SYSTEMS (Isomorphic)
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(2) |
| ID | ◀ 3468 ▶ |
| Object type | Epistemology, ontology or semantics, Methodology or model |
Two, or more, systems models whose features are equivalent.
Only models can be isomorphic. No model is totally isomorphic to a concrete system. Isomorphic models occupy a specific level in the whole taxonomy of abstract systems.
G. KLIR explains this as follows: “The largest and most fundamental classes of systems are those associated with the described epistemological types. They are further classified by the various methodological distinctions. The more of these distinctions are introduced, the smaller classes of systems are obtained. The smallest classes of systems are reached when systems become totally equivalent in terms of their relations, i.e. isomorphic with each others” (1991, p.222).
This is a top-down interpretation.
Another, bottom-up, seems possible, in step with increasing degrees of abstraction, as shown by KORZYBSKI in his structural differential: More and more general categories of objects can be represented through more and more abstract “labels”, with a diminishing number or more and more general characteristics. In this sense, for instance, networks of different types can be isomorphically characterized, being different however from hierarchies, another type of isomorphic models.
It would seem that both ways lead to the same general systemic result.
For another angle see: “SYSTEM (Isomorphic)”.