spinson

S1P3I1N1S1O1N1

noun

An agent in an agent-based model representing a person who holds one of two opposite opinions on a topic (for example, "for" or "against").

Scrabble 9

Meanings

nounspinson (plural spinsons)

plural spinsons

  1. An agent in an agent-based model representing a person who holds one of two opposite opinions on a topic (for example, "for" or "against").

    The evolution of a spinson’s opinion is governed by two different processes: (i) independence and (ii) social and mass-media influence.

    2018, Tomasz Weron, Anna Kowalska-Pyzalska, Rafał Weron, “The role of educational trainings in the diffusion of smart metering platforms: An agent-based modeling approach”, in Physica A, volume 505, →DOI, page 594
    2 more examples

    The model proposed in this work belongs to the ‘rich feature agent’ or ‘complex agent’ categories, in contrast to the simplified ‘spinson’ models.

    2018, Pawel Sobkowicz, “Opinion Dynamics Model Based on Cognitive Biases of Complex Agents”, in Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulation, volume 21, →DOI

    The initial version of the q-voter has N spinsons connected on a complete graph. Among this initial population of spinsons, a q-sized committee is picked at random to influence another randomly selected spinson called a voter. If the committee is homogeneous, then the voter assumes the same value as the spinsons from the lobby; otherwise, it changes its opinion with probability #92;epsilon.

    2021, Jamil Civitarese, “External fields, independence, and disorder in q-voter models”, in Physical Review E, volume 103, number 1, →DOI

Origin

Blend of spin (“property of a subatomic particle”) + person. Based on the idea that a person's opinion can be likened to the up or down spin of a quark. Coined by Piotr Nyczka and Katarzyna Sznajd-Weron in 2013.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

spinson. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spinson

MLA

“spinson.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spinson. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “spinson,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spinson.

Source: spinson on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.