DISSOLUTION OF A SYSTEM
Charles François (2004). DISSOLUTION OF A SYSTEM, International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics, 2(1): 954.
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 954 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Human sciences |
Ch. SMITH resumes E. JANTSCH's synthesis about a system's dissolution in conditions of turbulence. Associated conditions and processes are as follows:
- “a) Initial conditions of disequilibrium — through a system's opening to internal or external forces of turbulence. Forces moving a system toward disequilibrium must be sufficiently intense or be stepped up to a degree that they act to push the system out of its equilibrium maintaining or stabilizing parameters.
- “b) Symmetry breaking — involving a system's breaking down of its structures and processes — (must reach) to an extent that sufficient degrees of freedom become available as a capacity within which new structures may be formed” (1986, p.206).
Of course, many systems are utterly destroyed by turbulence, never getting any chance to reach a higher level of organization by dissipative structuration.
In these cases, their elements are set free and may become parts of new systems. This has been the case, for example, of members of archaic tribes who individually survive the destruction of their society and are incorporated at least biologically in another culture, carrying over with them some genetic and cultural traits.