CYCLIC ORDER
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 810 ▶ |
| Object type | Methodology or model |
The periodic reappearance of some sequence of activity in some behavioral pattern .
The classical example are the periodic fluctuations in the Belousov-Zhabotinskii reaction .(A. WINFREE, 1980).
This type of repetitive patterns is however very general in self-organizing structures . B.F. MADORE and W.L. FREEDMAN demonstrate as much by computer simulations (1987, p.252).
According to them: “All that is required for our simulated chemistry experiment is a mix of ”elements “ which react in such a way that they will be found sequentially in one of three main states (active, receptive and quiescent); that these states occur in a cyclic order; and that there are a few simple rules as to how one state leads to the next”.
And “… the first basic forms found in these experiments - the rotating spirals and expanding closed circles - are topologically related. Once the circles are explained the spirals are, in fact, a natural (expected) consequence” (p.254).
- “Interestingly, the computer model does not involve any chemistry per se; it works with only a set of ”allowed states “ and a set of rules for the interaction and transition between states ” (p.255-6). It is fact a cellular automaton .
The subject is closely related to J. CONWAY's Game of Life , to I. PRIGOGINE's models of the emergence of order through bifurcation and nucleation ; to Ch. LAVILLE's vortexes and to D. Mc NEIL's toroids .