STABILITY (Asymptotic)
Charles François (2004). STABILITY (Asymptotic), International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics, 2(2): 3145.
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(2) |
| ID | ◀ 3145 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Methodology or model |
The tendency of a system towards a final state of absolute stability.
Such a process is characterized by the progressive damping with time of adaptive fluctuations within narrowing limits. Absolute stability is never reached (not even through rigor mortis) because it results in immediate end of coherence, the consequent breakdown of the system and the swift dispersal of its elements.
This is also true in ecological systems, as shown by Ch WALTER in a critical study of the LOTKA and VOLTERRA prey-predator equations (1954, p.215-217).
Asymptotic stability as a process is possible only for some time, until some basic function of the system undergoes a disturbance that throws it out of its stability conditions.