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Article
Publication date: 1 July 2001

Francis Heylighen

The symbol‐based epistemology used in artificial intelligence is contrasted with the constructivist, coherence epistemology promoted by cybernetics. The latter leads to…

473

Abstract

The symbol‐based epistemology used in artificial intelligence is contrasted with the constructivist, coherence epistemology promoted by cybernetics. The latter leads to bootstrapping knowledge representations, in which different parts of the system mutually support each other. Gordon Pask’s entailment meshes are reviewed as a basic application of this approach, and then extended to entailment nets: directed graphs governed by the “bootstrapping axiom”, determining which concepts are to be distinguished or merged. This allows a constant restructuring of the conceptual network. Semantic networks and frame‐like representations can be expressed in this scheme by introducing a basic ontology of node and link types. Entailment nets are then generalized to associative networks with weighted links. Learning algorithms are presented which can adapt the link strengths, based on the frequency with which links are selected by hypertext users. It is argued that such bootstrapping methods can be applied to make the World Wide Web more intelligent, allowing it to self‐organize and support inferences.

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Kybernetes, vol. 30 no. 5/6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

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Article
Publication date: 1 March 1992

Outlines the philosophy of the Principia Cybernetica Project — a movement towards the transdisciplinary unification of the domain of systems theory and cybernetics.

24

Abstract

Outlines the philosophy of the Principia Cybernetica Project — a movement towards the transdisciplinary unification of the domain of systems theory and cybernetics.

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Kybernetes, vol. 21 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

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Article
Publication date: 1 May 1989

Francis Heylighen

This communication is published in two parts. The author believes that a new domain, emerging from the cybernetics and systems tradition, is defined: complexity research. The…

88

Abstract

This communication is published in two parts. The author believes that a new domain, emerging from the cybernetics and systems tradition, is defined: complexity research. The study of this subject is motivated by the complexity of problems facing present‐day society, and the availability of new concepts and technologies. A conceptual framework for analysing complexity and self‐organising processes is outlined, and the fundamentals of an appropriate methodology are sketched. It is proposed that researchers working within this domain would associate by creating a network.

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Kybernetes, vol. 18 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

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Article
Publication date: 10 August 2010

43

Abstract

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Kybernetes, vol. 39 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

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Article
Publication date: 1 August 2005

Alex M. Andrew

Attention is drawn to an announcement of two publications relating to the work of Humberto Maturana, and to a new online encyclopedia of systems and cybernetics. The latter uses…

299

Abstract

Purpose

Attention is drawn to an announcement of two publications relating to the work of Humberto Maturana, and to a new online encyclopedia of systems and cybernetics. The latter uses Wikimedia technology for free interaction, and this is discussed. Advice on combating spyware and other forms of malware is reviewed, as well as surveys of how to make computers quieter in operation, and of the worrying question of when to switch off between periods of use.

Design/methodology/approach

The aim is to review developments on the internet, especially those of general cybernetic interest.

Findings

Some of the developments reported have research value, while others bear on practical aspects of computer use and internet access.

Practical implications

The comments on security may prompt urgent action by readers. Otherwise the implications are for access to information and for computer quietness and economy.

Originality/value

It is hoped this is a valuable periodic review.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 34 no. 7/8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

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Article
Publication date: 1 August 2006

Alex M. Andrew

Selections from topics discussed on the CybCom list over a particularly active period in early 2006 are reviewed. These include the relevance of autopoiesis to sociology, courses…

89

Abstract

Purpose

Selections from topics discussed on the CybCom list over a particularly active period in early 2006 are reviewed. These include the relevance of autopoiesis to sociology, courses of instruction on cybernetics, cybernetics applied to social theory, the “ethical imperative” of von Foerster, and Günther's “polylogic”. Other lists on the internet are also described.

Design/methodology/approach

The aim is to review developments on the internet, especially those of general cybernetic interest.

Findings

The relevance of autopoiesis to sociology is dubious; various courses of instruction exist but cyberneticians should try to enhance visibility; information flows in social systems have useful correspondence to those in living organisms; the “ethical imperative” is not a universal rule; “polylogic” is of interest but not yet embodied in a working computer.

Practical implications

The CybCom list, and others mentioned, are valuable sources of stimulating material.

Originality/value

It is hoped this is a valuable periodic review.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 35 no. 7/8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

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Article
Publication date: 7 September 2015

Cadell Last

The human system is developing into a global biocultural superorganism. However, in the process of aligning a stable global goal state, contemporary human control systems appear…

191

Abstract

Purpose

The human system is developing into a global biocultural superorganism. However, in the process of aligning a stable global goal state, contemporary human control systems appear to be inadequate structures. The purpose of this paper is to help humanity contextualize the nature of our highest control systems and guide future structural control system decisions, by proposing the application of an Information-Energy Metasystem Model (IEMM).

Design/methodology/approach

IEMM is an evolutionary-cybernetic model built with biological, anthropological, and historical data, and constructed utilizing two cybernetic theories: metasystem transition theory and control information theory (CIT). The IEMM suggests that major control transitions are dependent on specific information-energy control and feedback properties.

Findings

Throughout our evolutionary history humans have stabilized three distinct metasystems in the general organization of bands/tribes stabilized by language-hunting feedback, chiefdoms/kingdoms stabilized by writing-agricultural feedback, and nation-states stabilized by printing press-industrial feedback. In the future, IEMM predicts that new global (or “glocal”) controls based on the internet as an information medium, and renewable energy as an engine for stabilization, could potentially generate a fourth metasystem. However, this is largely dependent on our own ability and willingness for fundamental structural control innovation.

Originality/value

This is the first paper to analyze the contemporary control system structure within the context of the whole of human evolution.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 44 no. 8/9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

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Article
Publication date: 12 June 2009

Alex M. Andrew

The purpose of this paper is to mention a set of suggestions for analysing the current financial crisis, but with reservations about the usefulness of one based on Ashby's…

243

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to mention a set of suggestions for analysing the current financial crisis, but with reservations about the usefulness of one based on Ashby's principle of requisite variety. The reservations are supported by reference to a mechanism of chemotaxis in bacteria. A recent publication concerning the Gaia hypothesis and global warming is reviewed.

Design/methodology/approach

The aim is to review developments on the internet, especially those of general cybernetic interest.

Findings

The significance of complexity, in government and management, is not disputed, but doubts are expressed about validity of laws that are purported to treat it quantitatively. A pessimistic view of world future is due to James Lovelock, the originator of the Gaia hypothesis, though there is some reason to believe he is more hopeful than is suggested in an interview.

Practical implications

The reservations about Ashby's treatment of complexity are essentially theoretical and do not negate findings based on its robust and imprecise application. Lovelock indicates a means of saving the Earth from disastrous climate change but has little hope that it will be implemented.

Originality/value

It is hoped this is a valuable periodic review.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 38 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 1 July 2005

Alex M. Andrew

A recent discussion on the CybCom discussion list is reviewed, making a comparison of views of information due to Bateson and Shannon. The discussion extends to theories involving…

362

Abstract

Purpose

A recent discussion on the CybCom discussion list is reviewed, making a comparison of views of information due to Bateson and Shannon. The discussion extends to theories involving cellular automata and their relationship, as well as that of mathematics in general, to the real world. A recent suggestion that messages from extraterrestrials may be coded in DNA is discussed.

Design/methodology/approach

The aim is to review developments on the internet, especially those of general cybernetic interest.

Findings

The discussion is essentially philosophical and thought‐provoking.

Practical implications

A passing reference is made to methods for pattern recognition, and to the Bremermann limit with its bearing on ultimate computing capability. Attitudes to information exchange have a bearing on sociological theories, and behaviour of cellular automata is claimed to model communication between bacteria. The final note on extraterrestrial communication via DNA may redirect activity in the search for such communication and is evidence of an increasingly liberal attitude to scientific publication.

Originality/value

It is hoped this is a valuable periodic review.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 34 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

Available. Content available
Article
Publication date: 1 September 2004

23

Abstract

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 33 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

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