LEAST EFFORT PRINCIPLE (St. UMPLEBY)
Charles François (2004). LEAST EFFORT PRINCIPLE (St. UMPLEBY), International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics, 2(1): 1901.
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 1901 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Methodology or model |
- “An adaptive system will try either adapt to its environment or adapt that environment to its needs, whichever is easier” (As quoted by K. KRIPPENDORFF, 1986, p.59).
While this could be a consequence of ZIPF's Principle, it is however quite a different one.
Systematic efforts to adapt the environment to their needs is basically a recent characteristic of socio-technical human systems, with the possible older example of insect societies.
The concept may also be related to the co-evolution one, in which the environment is basically another specific system.