About
type: AboutPage
main entity: Rory Riggs
about: Rory Riggs
description: Rory Riggs is an inventor, executive, and investor who applies one system, the Locus Model, across biotechnology, finance, and economics. Mr. Riggs is Executive Chairman of Syntax Data, which has built a foundational coordinate-based information infrastructure for finance and economic data based on his patented Locus Model and Functional Information System (FIS).
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Rory Riggs
type: Person
given name: Rory
additional name: Balfour
family name: Riggs
alternate name: Rory Balfour Riggs
alternate name: Rory B. Riggs
description: Rory Riggs is an inventor, executive, and investor who applies one system, the Locus Model, across biotechnology, finance, and economics. Mr. Riggs is Executive Chairman of Syntax Data, which has built a foundational coordinate-based information infrastructure for finance and economic data based on his patented Locus Model and Functional Information System (FIS).
job title: Executive Chairman / Founder
works for: Syntax Data (Syntax LLC / Locus Analytics)
gender: male
knows language: English
disambiguating description: Rory Riggs is an inventor, executive, and investor who applies one system, the Locus Model, across biotechnology, finance, and economics.
has occupation: occupation-syntax-data-syntax-llc-locus-analytics-executive-chai-7ec1f0-role
has occupation: occupation-cibus-inc-chairman-of-the-board-role
has occupation: occupation-cibus-inc-chief-executive-officer-role
has occupation: occupation-webs-etf-trust-syntax-etf-trust-ceo-and-trustee-role
has occupation: General Partner / Co-Founder
has occupation: Managing Member
has occupation: occupation-royalty-pharma-plc-chairman-and-founder-role
has occupation: occupation-biomatrix-inc-president-cfo-and-director-role
has occupation: occupation-rfp-corporation-chief-executive-officer-role
has occupation: occupation-painewebber-inc-managing-director-mergers-acquisitions-role
has occupation: Chair
has occupation: Chairman
alumni of: Middlebury College
alumni of: Columbia University
has credential: BA
has credential: MBA
knows about: Functional classification systems
knows about: Pharmaceutical royalty finance
knows about: Precision gene editing / agricultural biotechnology
knows about: Index construction and portfolio classification
knows about: Mergers and acquisitions
knows about: Glossary
affiliation: org-new-york-genome-center-affiliation
affiliation: org-feinstein-institute-northwell-health-affiliation
affiliation: org-fibrogen-inc-affiliation
affiliation: org-intra-cellular-therapies-inc-affiliation
affiliation: org-sugen-inc-affiliation
affiliation: org-genenews-stagezero-life-sciences-affiliation
affiliation: org-nuredis-inc-affiliation
affiliation: org-bond-street-marketplace-affiliation
knows: Syntax Data (Syntax LLC / Locus Analytics)
knows: Royalty Pharma plc
knows: Cibus Inc.
knows: FibroGen Inc.
knows: SUGEN Inc.
knows: BioMatrix Inc.
knows: Intra-Cellular Therapies Inc.
knows: New York Genome Center
knows: Feinstein Institute (Northwell Health)
knows: Scientia Ventures LLC
knows: PaineWebber Inc.
knows: RF&P Corporation
knows: Middlebury College
knows: Columbia University
subject of: Cibus Appoints Co-Founder Rory Riggs as Chief Executive Officer
subject of: Syntax LLC Announces Launch of Stratified LargeCap ESG Index
subject of: Cibus Opens Gene Editing Facility for Trait Production
subject of: Cibus Closes Calyxt Deal
subject of: Cibus Named to Fast Company's Annual List of the World's Most Innovative Companies of 2024
subject of: Cibus Names Agricultural Biotechnology Leader Craig Wichner as Chief Executive Officer
subject of: Royalty Pharma Co-Founder Writes Open Letter to Board of Elan Ahead of EGM
subject of: Regarding Cloe
subject of: Margaret Crotty and Rory Riggs Health Care Leadership Award, 2024

Rory Riggs is an inventor, executive, and investor who applies one system, the Locus Model, across biotechnology, finance, and economics.
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copyright year: 2026
about: Rory Riggs

Syntax Data (Syntax LLC / Locus Analytics)
type: Organization

occupation-syntax-data-syntax-llc-locus-analytics-executive-chai-7ec1f0-role
type: Role
has occupation: Executive Chairman / Founder
start date: 2009
role name: Executive Chairman / Founder at Syntax Data (Syntax LLC / Locus Analytics)

Executive Chairman / Founder
type: Occupation
description: Founded Locus Analytics in 2009 as an economic research firm to pioneer Systems Economics and develop and patent the Functional Information System. Syntax and Locus Analytics merged in March 2023. Built the coordinate-based Locus Model and FIS information infrastructure for finance and economic data, and the Syntax Stratified Indices.

occupation-cibus-inc-chairman-of-the-board-role
type: Role
has occupation: Chairman of the Board
start date: 2026-06
role name: Chairman of the Board at Cibus Inc.

Chairman of the Board
type: Occupation
description: Transitioned from Chief Executive Officer to Chairman of the Board in June 2026 as Craig Wichner became CEO.

occupation-cibus-inc-chief-executive-officer-role
type: Role
has occupation: Chief Executive Officer
start date: 2021-10-07
end date: 2026-06
role name: Chief Executive Officer at Cibus Inc.

Chief Executive Officer
type: Occupation
description: Co-founder and CEO of Cibus, the leading precision gene-editing company for agriculture. Applied the Locus Model's functional-systems approach to plant biology through the Rapid Trait Development System (RTDS).

occupation-webs-etf-trust-syntax-etf-trust-ceo-and-trustee-role
type: Role
has occupation: CEO and Trustee
start date: 2017
role name: CEO and Trustee at WEBS ETF Trust (Syntax ETF Trust)

CEO and Trustee
type: Occupation
description: CEO and Trustee of the Syntax-affiliated ETF trust since 2017.

General Partner / Co-Founder
type: Occupation
description: General Partner and co-founder of Scientia Ventures.

Managing Member
type: Occupation
description: Managing Member of Balfour Venture Partners.

occupation-royalty-pharma-plc-chairman-and-founder-role
type: Role
has occupation: Chairman and Founder
start date: 1996
end date: 2024-06-06
role name: Chairman and Founder at Royalty Pharma plc

Chairman and Founder
type: Occupation
description: Co-founded Royalty Pharma in 1996 with a $60 million start; built it into the world's largest acquirer of pharmaceutical royalties, holding partial royalty rights on seven of the top thirty drugs sold in the United States. Served as Chairman from 2003 and resigned as a director on June 6, 2024.

occupation-biomatrix-inc-president-cfo-and-director-role
type: Role
has occupation: President, CFO, and Director
start date: 1996
end date: 2000
role name: President, CFO, and Director at BioMatrix Inc.

President, CFO, and Director
type: Occupation
description: President, CFO, and Director of BioMatrix, overseeing the launch of Synvisc, a viscosupplementation treatment.

occupation-rfp-corporation-chief-executive-officer-role
type: Role
has occupation: Chief Executive Officer
start date: 1991
end date: 1995
role name: Chief Executive Officer at RF&P Corporation

Chief Executive Officer
type: Occupation
description: CEO of RF&P, a real estate investment company owned by the Virginia State Retirement System.
occupation location: Virginia, United States

Virginia, United States
type: Place

occupation-painewebber-inc-managing-director-mergers-acquisitions-role
type: Role
has occupation: Managing Director, Mergers & Acquisitions
start date: 1981
end date: 1990
role name: Managing Director, Mergers & Acquisitions at PaineWebber Inc.

Managing Director, Mergers & Acquisitions
type: Occupation
description: Managing Director in the mergers and acquisitions group at PaineWebber.

Chair
type: Occupation
description: Chair of eReceivables, a healthcare service technology company.

Chairman
type: Occupation
description: Chairman of Nucelis Inc.

Middlebury College
type: CollegeOrUniversity

Columbia University
type: CollegeOrUniversity

BA
type: EducationalOccupationalCredential
credential category: degree
recognized by: Middlebury College

MBA
type: EducationalOccupationalCredential
credential category: degree
recognized by: Columbia University

Functional classification systems
type: DefinedTerm
description: Inventor of the coordinate-based Locus Model and Functional Information System for classifying economic activity by function rather than conventional industry category.
term code: thought leader

Pharmaceutical royalty finance
type: DefinedTerm
description: Founded and built Royalty Pharma into the world's largest acquirer of pharmaceutical royalties, helping create the category as an investable asset class.
term code: expert

Precision gene editing / agricultural biotechnology
type: DefinedTerm
description: Led Cibus's application of production-system methodology to plant biology through the Rapid Trait Development System.
term code: expert

Index construction and portfolio classification
type: DefinedTerm
description: Built the Syntax Stratified Indices, benchmark indices constructed on functional rather than conventional sector classification.
term code: expert

Mergers and acquisitions
type: DefinedTerm
description: Managing Director in M&A at PaineWebber, 1981–1990.
term code: advanced

org-new-york-genome-center-affiliation
type: OrganizationRole
affiliation: New York Genome Center
role name: Board Member
description: Director of the New York Genome Center, his primary current nonprofit board.

New York Genome Center
type: Organization

org-feinstein-institute-northwell-health-affiliation
type: OrganizationRole
affiliation: Feinstein Institute (Northwell Health)
role name: Director
description: Director of the Feinstein Institute, the research arm of Northwell Health.

Feinstein Institute (Northwell Health)
type: Organization

org-fibrogen-inc-affiliation
type: OrganizationRole
affiliation: FibroGen Inc.
role name: Co-Founder and Director
start date: 1993-10
description: Co-founder and director of FibroGen since October 1993 — his longest confirmed board tenure.

FibroGen Inc.
type: Organization

org-intra-cellular-therapies-inc-affiliation
type: OrganizationRole
affiliation: Intra-Cellular Therapies Inc.
role name: Director, Audit Committee
start date: 2014-01
end date: 2025
description: Director of Intra-Cellular Therapies from January 2014, serving on the Audit Committee.

Intra-Cellular Therapies Inc.
type: Organization

org-sugen-inc-affiliation
type: OrganizationRole
affiliation: SUGEN Inc.
role name: Co-Founder and Board Member
description: Co-founder and board member of SUGEN.

SUGEN Inc.
type: Organization

org-genenews-stagezero-life-sciences-affiliation
type: OrganizationRole
affiliation: GeneNews / StageZero Life Sciences
role name: Board Chair / Director
start date: 1998
description: Board Chair and director of GeneNews, later StageZero Life Sciences, since 1998.

GeneNews / StageZero Life Sciences
type: Organization

org-nuredis-inc-affiliation
type: OrganizationRole
affiliation: Nuredis Inc.
role name: Director
description: Director of Nuredis Inc.

Nuredis Inc.
type: Organization

org-bond-street-marketplace-affiliation
type: OrganizationRole
affiliation: Bond Street Marketplace
role name: Angel Investor / Board Member
description: Angel investor and board member of the fintech company Bond Street Marketplace.

Bond Street Marketplace
type: Organization

Syntax Data (Syntax LLC / Locus Analytics)
type: Person
description: Founder and Executive Chairman; built the Locus Model, Functional Information System, and Syntax Stratified Indices.

Royalty Pharma plc
type: Person
description: Co-founder and Chairman (2003–2024); built the pharmaceutical royalty asset class.

Cibus Inc.
type: Person
description: Co-founder; CEO 2021–2026, then Chairman of the Board.

FibroGen Inc.
type: Person
description: Co-founder and director since October 1993.

SUGEN Inc.
type: Person
description: Co-founder and board member.

BioMatrix Inc.
type: Person
description: President, CFO, and Director, 1996–2000; oversaw the launch of Synvisc.

Intra-Cellular Therapies Inc.
type: Person
description: Director, 2014–2025.

New York Genome Center
type: Person
description: Current director.

Feinstein Institute (Northwell Health)
type: Person
description: Current director of the research arm of Northwell Health.

Scientia Ventures LLC
type: Person
description: General Partner and co-founder.

PaineWebber Inc.
type: Person
description: Managing Director, Mergers & Acquisitions, 1981–1990.

RF&P Corporation
type: Person
description: CEO, 1991–1995, a Virginia State Retirement System–owned real estate investment company.

Middlebury College
type: Person
description: Undergraduate alma mater (BA).

Columbia University
type: Person
description: Graduate alma mater (MBA).

Cibus Appoints Co-Founder Rory Riggs as Chief Executive Officer
type: NewsArticle
type: Article
description: Announcement of Rory Riggs's appointment as CEO of Cibus, naming him a pioneer in Systems Economics.
date published: 2021-10-07T00:00:00+00:00
additional type: news article
publisher: BusinessWire
about: Rory Riggs
is part of: Rory Riggs
abstract: Announcement of Rory Riggs's appointment as CEO of Cibus, naming him a pioneer in Systems Economics.
author: Rory Riggs

Syntax LLC Announces Launch of Stratified LargeCap ESG Index
type: NewsArticle
type: Article
description: Launch announcement with a direct quote from Riggs on ESG analytics.
date published: 2020-08-01T00:00:00+00:00
additional type: news article
publisher: BusinessWire
about: Rory Riggs
is part of: Rory Riggs
abstract: Launch announcement with a direct quote from Riggs on ESG analytics.
author: Rory Riggs

Cibus Opens Gene Editing Facility for Trait Production
type: NewsArticle
type: Article
description: Coverage of the Cibus Oberlin facility opening, including Riggs's quote on applying pharmaceutical quality standards to plant biology.
date published: 2023-08-02T00:00:00+00:00
additional type: news article
publisher: San Diego Business Journal
about: Rory Riggs
is part of: Rory Riggs
abstract: Coverage of the Cibus Oberlin facility opening, including Riggs's quote on applying pharmaceutical quality standards to plant biology.
author: Rory Riggs

Cibus Closes Calyxt Deal
type: NewsArticle
type: Article
description: Coverage of the Cibus/Calyxt merger closing, including a Riggs quote on the combined company's patent portfolio.
date published: 2023-06-12T00:00:00+00:00
additional type: news article
publisher: San Diego Business Journal
about: Rory Riggs
is part of: Rory Riggs
abstract: Coverage of the Cibus/Calyxt merger closing, including a Riggs quote on the combined company's patent portfolio.
author: Rory Riggs

Cibus Named to Fast Company's Annual List of the World's Most Innovative Companies of 2024
type: NewsArticle
type: Article
description: Cibus named #2 Most Innovative Company in agriculture for 2024, with a quote from Riggs.
date published: 2024-03-19T00:00:00+00:00
additional type: news article
publisher: GlobeNewswire
about: Rory Riggs
is part of: Rory Riggs
abstract: Cibus named #2 Most Innovative Company in agriculture for 2024, with a quote from Riggs.
author: Rory Riggs

Cibus Names Agricultural Biotechnology Leader Craig Wichner as Chief Executive Officer
type: NewsArticle
type: Article
description: Announcement of Riggs's transition from CEO to Chairman of the Board at Cibus as Craig Wichner becomes CEO.
date published: 2026-06-08T00:00:00+00:00
additional type: news article
publisher: GlobeNewswire
about: Rory Riggs
is part of: Rory Riggs
abstract: Announcement of Riggs's transition from CEO to Chairman of the Board at Cibus as Craig Wichner becomes CEO.
author: Rory Riggs

Royalty Pharma Co-Founder Writes Open Letter to Board of Elan Ahead of EGM
type: NewsArticle
type: Article
description: Coverage of an open letter authored by Riggs as Royalty Pharma Chairman to the Elan board.
date published: 2013-06-17T00:00:00+00:00
additional type: news article
publisher: Irish Times
about: Rory Riggs
is part of: Rory Riggs
abstract: Coverage of an open letter authored by Riggs as Royalty Pharma Chairman to the Elan board.
author: Rory Riggs

Regarding Cloe
type: NewsArticle
description: In her junior year at Middlebury, she founded TEDxMiddlebury, a local chapter of the TED Conference. A full year of planning went into the event, from designing the website to timing out the cookie breaks. The first event featured 16 speakers, most of them Middlebury alums. During the after-party, Cloe received a phone call. It was Rory Riggs ’75, the founder of an analytics company and a longtime TED Conference attendee.'He was calling from a mountain,' Cloe told me. 'I think it was Kilimanjaro.' Riggs was actually hiking in Jordan and had been tuning into a livestream of the event. On the phone call he offered to cover all of Cloe’s expenses to attend the 2011 TEDActive in Palm Springs. It was an act of extreme generosity that changed her life.
date published: 2018-01-31T00:00:00+00:00
publisher: Middlebury Magazine
about: Rory Riggs

Margaret Crotty and Rory Riggs Health Care Leadership Award, 2024
type: NewsArticle
description: UHF is proud to present the 2024 Health Care Leadership Award to Margaret Crotty and Rory Riggs, for their important work at the intersection of health care, public health, and biotechnology
date published: 2024
publisher: United Hospital Fund
about: Rory Riggs

Rory Riggs
type: Organization

Home
type: ListItem
position: 1
item: https://theroryriggs.com

About
type: ListItem
position: 2
item: https://theroryriggs.com/about

Rory Riggs
type: WebSite
description: The personal site of Rory Riggs — inventor of the Locus Model and Functional Coordinates, founder of Systems Economics, and Executive Chairman of Syntax Data. Documents his work across financial classification (FIS, Syntax Stratified Indices), agricultural biotechnology (Cibus, Rapid Trait Development System), and pharmaceutical royalties (Royalty Pharma).
language: en
publisher: Rory Riggs

Glossary
type: DefinedTermSet
author: Rory Riggs
has defined term: Locus Model
has defined term: Functional Coordinates
has defined term: Systems Economics
has defined term: Theory of Economic Systems
has defined term: Locus Theory
has defined term: Locus Language
has defined term: Locus
has defined term: Activity Cycle
has defined term: Economic Physiology
has defined term: Economic Morphology
has defined term: Enterprise Barcode
has defined term: Labor Barcode
has defined term: Terminality
has defined term: Subject Resource Role
has defined term: Structural Resources
has defined term: Supporting Resources
has defined term: Functional Information System (FIS)
has defined term: FIS Coordinates
has defined term: Functional Location
has defined term: Functional Space
has defined term: Functional Proximity
has defined term: Functional Trajectory
has defined term: Functional Query
has defined term: Systems Syntax
has defined term: Production System Model
has defined term: Locus Functional Markers
has defined term: Functional Address
has defined term: The Functional Triad
has defined term: Economic Cartography
has defined term: Natural Functional Order
has defined term: Bounded Order / Unbounded Fill
has defined term: Functional Twins
has defined term: Economic Twin
has defined term: Rapid Trait Development System (RTDS)
has defined term: Stratified Weighting

Locus Model
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: A theoretical framework that defines the internal parts and processes of any product-producing system, giving every activity and resource a functional identity and an ordered position.
term code: coined, 2013

Functional Coordinates
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The coordinate system that locates any economic activity or resource by what it does and where it falls in the order of work, parallel to latitude/longitude in space and date/hour in time. Patent-backed (US 9,910,910; US 10,019,509).
term code: coined, 2013

Systems Economics
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The field designation for the study of economies as living systems composed of repeating, ordered functional activities and the resources that staff them.
term code: coined, 2019

Theory of Economic Systems
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The generalized systems theory of all activities and resources used in an economy, from which the Locus Model is built.
term code: coined, 2019

Locus Theory
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The comprehensive systems theory of all activities and resources used in an economy, stated in two branches: the Locus Theory of Economic Systems and the Locus Theory of People.
term code: coined, 2019

Locus Language
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The formal language of the model, in which activities function as verbs, resources as nouns, and a locus is a complete sentence describing real economic phenomena.
term code: coined, 2019

Locus
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The base unit of economic activity: a single pairing of an activity with the resources required to produce its output, which together fix the activity's position in economic space.
term code: coined, 2013

Activity Cycle
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The complete ordered sequence of actions a system performs to produce a product, dividing into four phases, twelve divisions, and thirty-six sub-divisions; the master construct of the Locus Model.
term code: coined, 2013

Economic Physiology
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The activity dimension of the model: the processes an economic system performs, treated as the physiology of a living economic organism.
term code: coined, 2019

Economic Morphology
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The resource dimension of the model: the parts an economic system is built from, treated as the anatomy of a living economic organism.
term code: coined, 2019

Enterprise Barcode
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The twenty-locus barcode capturing a company's product line and every Economic System connected to it — the model's principal commercial artifact.
term code: coined, 2013

Labor Barcode
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The four-field barcode capturing a job's functional role in the economy.
term code: coined, 2019

Terminality
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The property determining where a chain of product usage stops — the point at which a Work Group reaches the customer's Central Department Cycle and the sequence terminates.
term code: coined, 2019

Subject Resource Role
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The five functional contributions a subject resource can make in production: space-infrastructure, operator, direction, financial capacity, and power.
term code: coined, 2019

Structural Resources
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: Resources used by performing a task directly and physically persistent, ready without transformation — comprising people, space, and equipment.
term code: coined, 2019

Supporting Resources
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: Resources consumed in enabling a structural resource to perform — comprising information, money, and energy.
term code: coined, 2019

Functional Information System (FIS)
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The system that augments economic and financial data with standardized functional references, making business, employment, product, and service data unified, searchable, and stable across time and geography. Patent-backed (US 8,990,268; US 9,098,564; US 9,361,358).
term code: coined, 2014

FIS Coordinates
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The applied coordinate values assigned to each business, job, and product, identifying its functional role, position, and attributes in the economy.
term code: coined, 2017

Functional Location
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The position an economic element occupies in functional space, determined by what it does rather than where or when it operates. Patent-backed (US 11,657,026; US 12,242,431).
term code: coined, 2014

Functional Space
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The n-dimensional space in which functional locations are computed, compared, and traversed. Patent-backed (US 12,242,431).
term code: coined, 2014

Functional Proximity
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The measured distance between two functional locations, enabling comparison across otherwise unrelated entities.
term code: coined, 2014

Functional Trajectory
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The computed path an element traces through functional locations over time. Patent-backed (US 11,151,096).
term code: coined, 2017

Functional Query
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The retrieval method in which entities are found by functional coordinate rather than keyword, returning complete functional populations instead of name matches.
term code: coined, 2017

Systems Syntax
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The logical data model on which a representation of a functional system is constructed.
term code: coined, 2017

Production System Model
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The model identifying and defining the parts and processes necessary to produce a product, from which functional markers are derived.
term code: coined, 2017

Locus Functional Markers
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The coded functional references derived from the Production System Model and assigned to entities in the FIS database.
term code: coined, 2017

Functional Address
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The three-part identifier of any economic part: what the job does, what it produces, and where it sits in the functional order of work. Introduced in the forthcoming book Virtual Economics.
term code: coined, 2026

The Functional Triad
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The three-coordinate reference frame of time, space, and function, in which function supplies the 'what' that time and space cannot.
term code: coined, 2026

Economic Cartography
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The practice of charting an economic system by its functional coordinates so the whole can be seen, compared, and managed.
term code: coined, 2026

Natural Functional Order
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The stable, invariant sequence of positions that every ongoing economic system must fill, independent of geography, culture, technology, or era.
term code: coined, 2026

Bounded Order / Unbounded Fill
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The paired principle that the functional order is fixed while the actors, technologies, and outputs occupying it vary without limit.
term code: coined, 2026

Functional Twins
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The accurate functional representations that mirror real-world resources and activities inside the model.
term code: coined, 2026

Economic Twin
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The functional counterpart to the spatial twin supplied by GIS and the temporal twin supplied by the calendar.
term code: coined, 2026

Rapid Trait Development System (RTDS)
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: Cibus's precision gene-editing platform for agricultural trait development, applying production-system methodology to plant biology.
term code: used extensively

Stratified Weighting
type: DefinedTerm
in defined term set: Glossary
description: The index-construction methodology underlying the Syntax Stratified Indices, grouping securities by functional attribute rather than conventional sector classification.
term code: used extensively

Commentary: Systems Economics — A New Prescription for Risk Management
type: Article
name: Systems Economics: A New Prescription for Risk Management
is part of: Rory Riggs
description: Op-ed authored by Rory Riggs articulating the case for functional, systems-based classification of economic data as an alternative to conventional sector-based risk models.
abstract: Op-ed authored by Rory Riggs articulating the case for functional, systems-based classification of economic data as an alternative to conventional sector-based risk models.
date published: 2019-07-15T00:00:00+00:00
publisher: org-pensions-investments
author: Rory Riggs

Gene Editing to Lead a New Agricultural Revolution
type: Article
is part of: Rory Riggs
description: Authored article by Rory Riggs on precision gene editing and its application to agricultural trait development.
abstract: Authored article by Rory Riggs on precision gene editing and its application to agricultural trait development.
date published: 2021-11-29T00:00:00+00:00
publisher: org-future-farming
author: Rory Riggs

Proposed Merger Shows That When it Comes to Gene Editing, You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet
type: Article
is part of: Rory Riggs
date published: 2023-03-09T00:00:00+00:00
publisher: org-seedworld
author: Rory Riggs

Practical Applications of An Index Methodology for Diversifying Business Risk
type: ScholarlyArticle
description: In An Index Methodology for Diversifying Business Risk, published in The Journal of Index Investing, Rory Riggs and Jonathan Chandler, both of Syntax, LLC, and Mark T. Finn, of Vantage Consulting Group, introduce a methodology for constructing an equity index in which the weight assigned to each component is determined by reference to the nature of the business risks to which it is exposed. The methodology uses the technique of statistical stratification to maximize the index’s diversification across different categories of business risks. Using the populations of the S&P 500 and the S&P MidCap 400 indexes, the authors compare the performance of stratified indexes created using their methodology to both market-capitalization-weighted and equal-weighted indexes comprising the same components. They find that the stratified indexes delivered higher returns and higher Sharpe ratios than the others.
abstract: In An Index Methodology for Diversifying Business Risk, published in The Journal of Index Investing, Rory Riggs and Jonathan Chandler, both of Syntax, LLC, and Mark T. Finn, of Vantage Consulting Group, introduce a methodology for constructing an equity index in which the weight assigned to each component is determined by reference to the nature of the business risks to which it is exposed. The methodology uses the technique of statistical stratification to maximize the index’s diversification across different categories of business risks. Using the populations of the S&P 500 and the S&P MidCap 400 indexes, the authors compare the performance of stratified indexes created using their methodology to both market-capitalization-weighted and equal-weighted indexes comprising the same components. They find that the stratified indexes delivered higher returns and higher Sharpe ratios than the others.
date published: 2017
is part of: The Journal of Index Investing
author: Rory Riggs

The Journal of Index Investing
type: Periodical

An Index Methodology for Diversifying Business Risk
type: ScholarlyArticle
description: This article introduces a new passive weighting methodology for diversifying business risk: functional information system (FIS)–based stratified weighting. The FIS-based stratified-weight approach effectively diversifies related business risk (RBR), such as supply chain dynamics, customer groups, product types, or other operational attributes that affect groups of companies that share common earnings drivers. The proposed methodology addresses overconcentrations of business risk that regularly occur in capitalization-weighted or equal-weighted indexes. This approach maintains a diversified weighting of an index’s underlying business risks by allocating constituents to specific RBR groupings, defined using FIS classification, and then fixing the weight of each group via stratification. The motivation behind this methodology is the fact that stock performance is the result of business performance and diversifying business performance is the ultimate goal of a diversified equity index. The authors demonstrate the performance benefit of stratified-weighted versions of the S&P 500 and S&P MidCap 400 indexes over traditional market capitalization weighting and equal weighting, especially following periods of economic stress. They find that FIS-based stratified-weight indexes deliver consistent and significantly higher returns relative to standard capitalization-weighted market indexes and equal-weighted indexes (on average, 389 bps per annum for the S&P 500 and 175 bps per annum for the S&P 500 equal weight), while exhibiting comparable beta and volatility. This article proposes that these results are robust and are not related to the choice of the universe or to particular market conditions.
abstract: This article introduces a new passive weighting methodology for diversifying business risk: functional information system (FIS)–based stratified weighting. The FIS-based stratified-weight approach effectively diversifies related business risk (RBR), such as supply chain dynamics, customer groups, product types, or other operational attributes that affect groups of companies that share common earnings drivers. The proposed methodology addresses overconcentrations of business risk that regularly occur in capitalization-weighted or equal-weighted indexes. This approach maintains a diversified weighting of an index’s underlying business risks by allocating constituents to specific RBR groupings, defined using FIS classification, and then fixing the weight of each group via stratification. The motivation behind this methodology is the fact that stock performance is the result of business performance and diversifying business performance is the ultimate goal of a diversified equity index. The authors demonstrate the performance benefit of stratified-weighted versions of the S&P 500 and S&P MidCap 400 indexes over traditional market capitalization weighting and equal weighting, especially following periods of economic stress. They find that FIS-based stratified-weight indexes deliver consistent and significantly higher returns relative to standard capitalization-weighted market indexes and equal-weighted indexes (on average, 389 bps per annum for the S&P 500 and 175 bps per annum for the S&P 500 equal weight), while exhibiting comparable beta and volatility. This article proposes that these results are robust and are not related to the choice of the universe or to particular market conditions.
date published: 2017
is part of: The Journal of Index Investing
author: Rory Riggs

Systems Economics
type: Book
is part of: Rory Riggs
alternative headline: The Parts and Processes of Economic Systems
description: The formal textbook specification of the Locus Model — the field designation for the study of economies as living systems built from repeating, ordered functional activities and the resources that staff them. Defines Systems Economics, the Theory of Economic Systems, Economic Physiology, Economic Morphology, the Activity Cycle, the Locus Language, and the Barcode architecture (Enterprise Barcode, Labor Barcode, Summary Barcode).
date published: 2019
number of pages: 294
language: en
book edition: 3rd edition
publisher: org-locus-analytics
author: Rory Riggs

Rory Riggs
type: Person

Virtual Economics
type: Book
is part of: Rory Riggs
alternative headline: A Portrait of an Economic System
description: Forthcoming trade-facing statement of the Locus Model for a general readership, restating the same functional-coordinate framework as Systems Economics in accessible language. Introduces the terms Functional Address, Natural Functional Order, Bounded Order / Unbounded Fill, Functional Twins, Economic Twin, the Functional Triad, and Economic Cartography. Unpublished as of 2026.
date published: 2026
language: en
publisher: org-locus-analytics
author: Rory Riggs

Domain-specific syntax tagging in a functional information system
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abstract: A logical data model that aggregates data entities and analyzes economic information using a functional coordinate system, forming one of the foundational patents of the Locus Model / Functional Information System.
date created: 2014-03-17
date published: 2015-03-24
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Gabriel Marius
author: Towson Remmel
author: Sean Sandys

United States
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Towson Remmel
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Domain-specific syntactic tagging in a functional information system
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abstract: Systems and methods using a logical data model to aggregate data entities and analyze economic information via a functional coordinate system.
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date published: 2015-08-04
creative work status: granted
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spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs

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value: US 9,098,564 B2

Segmentation and stratification of composite portfolios of investment securities
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additional type: Patent
abstract: Forms a stratified, segmented composite investment portfolio by grouping securities according to risk-correlated functional attributes with adjustable weighting biases — the patent basis for the Syntax Stratified Indices.
date created: 2015-07-16
date published: 2016-01-26
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Harmon Martin Towson Remmel
author: Daniel Goldman
author: Christopher Silkworth
author: Jonathan Chandler
author: James Fifield
author: Adelaide Fuller
author: Sean Sandys
author: Gabriel Marius
author: Mark T. Finn

United States
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Jonathan Chandler
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Adelaide Fuller
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Mark T. Finn
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Syntactic loci and fields in a functional information system
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abstract: A logical data model aggregating data entities and analyzing economic information via a functional coordinate system, documenting the activity-product referent — an economic system occupying a functional slot in another system's Activity Cycle without transferring a resource.
date created: 2015-07-17
date published: 2016-06-07
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Harmon Martin Towson Remmel
author: Jonathan Chandler
author: James Fifield
author: Adelaide Fuller
author: Sean Sandys
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United States
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value: US 9,361,358 B2

Amy Whitaker
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Syntactic graph modeling in a functional information system
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abstract: A logical data model for aggregating data entities and analyzing economic information via a functional coordinate system, extended into graph modeling.
date created: 2015-12-13
date published: 2018-03-06
expires: 2034-03-17
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Jonathan Chandler
author: Winston Featherly-Bean
author: James Fifield
author: Adelaide Fuller
author: Daniel Goldman
author: Harmon Martin Towson Remmel

United States
type: Country

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property ID: patentNumber
value: US 9,910,910 B2

Winston Featherly-Bean
type: Person

High-dimensional systems databases for real-time prediction of interactions in a functional system
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abstract: Algorithmically determines the composition of elements in an n-dimensional functional system via a logical data model, enabling real-time prediction of interactions.
date created: 2017-05-08
date published: 2018-06-12
expires: 2034-03-17
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: James Breitmeyer
author: Vin Harng Chew
author: Daniel Goldman
author: Sean Sandys
author: Christopher Silkworth

United States
type: Country

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value: US 9,996,502 B2

James Breitmeyer
type: Person

Vin Harng Chew
type: Person

Multi-dimensional modeling in a functional information system
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abstract: A logical data model aggregating data entities and analyzing economic information via a functional coordinate system, extended to multi-dimensional modeling.
date created: 2018-03-05
date published: 2018-07-10
expires: 2034-03-17
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Jonathan Chandler
author: Richard Kahn
author: Ellison Kandler
author: Harmon Martin Towson Remmel

United States
type: Country

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property ID: patentNumber
value: US 10,019,509 B1

Richard Kahn
type: Person

Ellison Kandler
type: Person

Matching multidimensional projections of functional space
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additional type: Patent
abstract: An algorithmic method for computing complex relationships among objects via their functional locations in n-dimensional functional space.
date created: 2019-08-15
date published: 2020-03-24
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Elizabeth Bowling
author: Barry Fox
author: Daniel Goldman
author: Zachary Hall
author: Jordan Johnson
author: Elizabeth Prior
author: Sean Sandys
author: Dylan Wengert

United States
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value: US 10,599,623 B2

Elizabeth Bowling
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Barry Fox
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Zachary Hall
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Jordan Johnson
type: Person

Elizabeth Prior
type: Person

Dylan Wengert
type: Person

Dynamic syntactic affinity group formation in a high-dimensional functional information system
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abstract: Algorithmically modifies a functional system representation based on functional trajectory signals via a graph-based systems syntax — the basis for the Affinity Lenses / functional peer grouping capability.
date created: 2020-08-17
date published: 2021-10-19
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
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author: Rory Riggs
author: Jonathan Chandler
author: Daniel Goldman
author: Ellison Kandler
author: Sean Sandys
author: Simon Whitten

United States
type: Country

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value: US 11,151,096 B2

Simon Whitten
type: Person

Hyperdimensional vector representations for algorithmic functional grouping of complex systems
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abstract: Forms a stratified, segmented composite data structure by weighting data entities according to functional attributes, with positive and negative bias adjustments.
date created: 2019-08-15
date published: 2022-01-18
expires: 2035-02-09
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Daniel Goldman
author: Sean Sandys

United States
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value: US 11,227,028 B2

Predictive search and navigation for functional information systems
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additional type: Patent
abstract: An algorithmic method for computing complex relationships among data entities via positioning within n-dimensional functional space, enabling predictive search and navigation.
date created: 2020-03-24
date published: 2023-05-23
expires: 2034-03-17
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Elizabeth Bowling
author: Barry Fox
author: Daniel Goldman
author: Zachary Hall
author: Jordan Johnson
author: Elizabeth Prior
author: Sean Sandys
author: Dylan Wengert

United States
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value: US 11,657,026 B2

Algorithmic method for dynamically computing complex relationships in functional systems
type: CreativeWork
additional type: Patent
abstract: A continuation of US 11,657,026 B2 computing functional relationships and n-dimensional locations of data entities — the most recently granted patent in the Locus Model family.
date created: 2023-05-23
date published: 2025-03-04
expires: 2034-03-17
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Elizabeth Bowling
author: Barry Fox
author: Daniel Goldman
author: Zachary Hall
author: Jordan Johnson
author: Elizabeth Prior
author: Sean Sandys
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value: US 12,242,431 B2

Digital platform for trading and management of investment securities
type: CreativeWork
additional type: Patent
abstract: Forms a stratified, segmented composite data structure grouping and weighting data entities by functional attributes, applied to a digital trading and securities management platform.
date created: 2022-01-18
date published: 2025-01-07
expires: 2035-07-08
creative work status: granted
country of origin: United States
spatial coverage: USPTO
copyright holder: Locus LP
author: Rory Riggs
author: Jonathan Chandler
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United States
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BusinessWire
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San Diego Business Journal
type: NewsMediaOrganization

GlobeNewswire
type: NewsMediaOrganization

Irish Times
type: NewsMediaOrganization

Middlebury Magazine
type: NewsMediaOrganization

United Hospital Fund
type: NewsMediaOrganization

Syntax: Riggs on Stratified Weighting
type: PodcastEpisode
date published: 2019-06-03T00:00:00+00:00
part of series: RIA Channel
contributor: Rory Riggs
associated media: AudioObject
about: Stratified weighting and functional classification in index construction

The Evolution of Gene-Edited Crops
type: PodcastEpisode
date published: 2023-07-07T00:00:00+00:00
part of series: Bloomberg Businessweek
contributor: Rory Riggs
associated media: AudioObject
about: Gene editing and the future of agricultural biotechnology

ETF TV News #66 — Converting Funds to ETFs
type: PodcastEpisode
date published: 2020-03-23T00:00:00+00:00
part of series: ETF TV News
contributor: Rory Riggs
associated media: AudioObject
about: Stratified Weight methodology and fund-to-ETF conversion

Rory Riggs is an inventor, executive, and investor who applies one system, the Locus Model, across biotechnology, finance, and economics.
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