CONTROLLERS (Hierarchies of)
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 708 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Methodology or model |
G. PASK describes such a hierarchy as follows: “The lowest level controller imitates its environment, learning that a is more likely than b. The second level learns sequences, a then b, or b then a. The next level learns about and imitates sequences as a whole, not a or b as such, and further levels learn about categories'' of sequences. In other words, ”sequences“ and ”categories of sequences“' become represented by symbols at different levels of discourse and the artifact performs a non-trivial abstraction” (1962, p.66).
From the viewpoint of the nature of abstraction, this should be compared with KORZYBSKI's structural differential. (1950).
From the viewpoint of biological or human organization, it helps understand how a differential power to generalize leads unavoidably to the shaping of hierarchies.
According to St. KATZ: “The hierarchical arrangement as a whole is designed to carry out the highest order goals of the organism; lower order goals are simply means to this highest end” (1976, p.45).