BCSSS

International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics

2nd Edition, as published by Charles François 2004 Presented by the Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science Vienna for public access.

About

The International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics was first edited and published by the system scientist Charles François in 1997. The online version that is provided here was based on the 2nd edition in 2004. It was uploaded and gifted to the center by ASC president Michael Lissack in 2019; the BCSSS purchased the rights for the re-publication of this volume in 200?. In 2018, the original editor expressed his wish to pass on the stewardship over the maintenance and further development of the encyclopedia to the Bertalanffy Center. In the future, the BCSSS seeks to further develop the encyclopedia by open collaboration within the systems sciences. Until the center has found and been able to implement an adequate technical solution for this, the static website is made accessible for the benefit of public scholarship and education.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

OBSERVER (Collective) 1)3)4)

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According to K. BAUSCH, "the concept of observer may be considered at three levels

1- as generator of relativity, of subjectivity

2- as architect of models of other systems

3- as multi-systems having components simultaneously belonging to more than a single system, making different systems emergent even contemporaneously, such as occurs in flocks, swarms and social systems"(Glossary-Pers. Comm., 2002)

So called collective observers are in most cases also collective actors, agents or operators. In fact, the model could be applied to all collective behaviors.

However such behaviors are frequently quite unstable (or even fickle): flocks, swarms or crowds are easily broken up… and reordered in a different way

In the case of crowds they are notoriously inconstant, unpredictable or apt to be manipulated (a good example is Marc Antonio's discourse to the roman crowd after the murder of Julius Cesar, in SHAKESPEARE's drama)

In fact there is always a shifting and unstable behavioral relation between any individual and the crowd he/she happens to mix up at any time.

Membership itself is frequently dubious and provisional. A reconsideration of the proposed concept in the light of autopoiesis, conversation model and structure coupling seems to be necessary

Categories

  • 1) General information
  • 2) Methodology or model
  • 3) Epistemology, ontology and semantics
  • 4) Human sciences
  • 5) Discipline oriented

Publisher

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science(2020).

To cite this page, please use the following information:

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science (2020). Title of the entry. In Charles François (Ed.), International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics (2). Retrieved from www.systemspedia.org/[full/url]

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