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

PROBLEMS (TYPOLOGY of) 1)

← Back

Typification of problems is a thorny issue.

However, at least one basic criterion should be applied: Problems are linear or nonlinear.

Linear problems respond to simple models, but must be of the… et ceteris paribus type, i.e. they must be immune to any changes of their nature, or environment, a quite improbable situation.

Complex systems present mostly nonlinear problems, resulting of a variety of behavior modes as, for instance: be submitted to regulations; respond simultaneously to different cyclical activities; obey to chaotic determinism; be close to an instability limit due to dissipative structuration; be organizationally closed, etc…

Using linear models to solve nonlinear problems leads normally to pseudo-solutions. It is possibly still more dangerous to be unaware of linear assumptions that one may bring unwittingly along when searching for solutions.

The most insidious of all is the belief that nonlinear problems can have perfect and complete solutions.

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]

We thank the following partners for making the open access of this volume possible:

© 2020 BCSSS Contact/Imprint