# relation (association)

when two or more entities connect each other

- Computed level: L8 (depth in the emergence graph, not abstraction)
- Status: review  ·  Domain: everyday  ·  Arena: language

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [entities](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-entities.object), [interaction](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-interaction.process), [connects](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-connects.verb)

**Through:** entities interact and connect each other through a persistent link that enables mutual influence or flow

**Novel properties:**
- bidirectional flow
- sustained linkage
- relational persistence

## Examples
- The International Space Station maintains orbit through periodic reboosts from attached thrusters. *(engineering)*
- Neurons in the hippocampus fire together during memory recall, strengthening synaptic connections over time. *(biology)*
- The 2011 Tohoku earthquake shifted Japan's coastline, altering the gravitational relationship between Earth and the Moon. *(physics)*

## Used by
- [association](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-association.relation) (L10)
- [compare](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-compare.relation) (L9)
- [proportion](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-proportion.relation) (L18)
- [ratio](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-ratio.proportion) (L10)
- [summary](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-summary.text) (L14)

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*Canonical: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-relation.association*  
*Structured data: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-relation.association.json*  
*Every definition provably resolves to space, time, energy and pattern.*