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.

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ORGANIZATION (Epigenetic evolution of) 1)2)

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According to J.P. CHANGEUX, in biological evolution: "… at the higher levels of organization… there is also a so-called epigenetic evolution in the individual, without modification of the genome. The varying elements are the neurons: their number and, most of all their interconnexions" (1992, p.707).

"At the highest level, "reason" links between groups of neurons do appear, programs of action and reasoning do develop" (p.706).

It seems to be a constant of evolution that, at some states, higher levels of complexity emerge through association of elements of the immediately lower level. C. BRESCH, tackled this subject globally in his book "Zwischenstufe Leben: Evolution ohne Ziel?" (1977).

BRESCH describes the following levels of organizational emergence through association: Atoms from elemental particles; molecules from atoms; polymers from molecules; protobionts from polymers; cells from protobionts; pluricellular organisms (plants and animals) from cells; groups from animals. In a similar fashion CHANGEUX shows the emergence of neurons from atoms through association between neurotransmitters, neuropeptides, enzymes, etc.; and the emergence of the highly organized brain through association between groups of neurons.

A similar emergence phenomenon seems presently at work among men and may signal the emergence of a planetary super-organism. Association between simple robots could seemingly also lead to societies of cybernetic organisms.

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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