BCSSS

International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics

2nd Edition, as published by Charles François 2004 Presented by the Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science Vienna for public access.

About

The International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics was first edited and published by the system scientist Charles François in 1997. The online version that is provided here was based on the 2nd edition in 2004. It was uploaded and gifted to the center by ASC president Michael Lissack in 2019; the BCSSS purchased the rights for the re-publication of this volume in 200?. In 2018, the original editor expressed his wish to pass on the stewardship over the maintenance and further development of the encyclopedia to the Bertalanffy Center. In the future, the BCSSS seeks to further develop the encyclopedia by open collaboration within the systems sciences. Until the center has found and been able to implement an adequate technical solution for this, the static website is made accessible for the benefit of public scholarship and education.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

ALLOSTASIS 1)

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The conservation of dynamic stability during a process of change in a system

Any system or subsystem is normally able to cope with a more or less wide range of inputs.

As expressed by ASHBY, a system counts with a defined variety which allows it to adapt to specific variations in its environment.

The french biologist P. VENDRYES, in turn, explained that the system is able to maintain itself within limits of adaptive fluctuations if it counts with sufficient reserves (or resources) disponible for use.

Allostasis has thus a qualitative and a quantitative aspect.

However if variety and/or resources are insufficient and tend to be exhausted, non adequately compensated input perturbations create stress in the system.

If stress becomes excessive or persists for long time, the system may undergo severe damage and, in extreme cases, be destroyed.

→ Break down; Collapse; Criticality; Equilibrium; General adaptation syndrome; Heterostasis; Homeostasis; Regulation; Synergetics

Categories

  • 1) General information
  • 2) Methodology or model
  • 3) Epistemology, ontology and semantics
  • 4) Human sciences
  • 5) Discipline oriented

Publisher

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science(2020).

To cite this page, please use the following information:

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science (2020). Title of the entry. In Charles François (Ed.), International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics (2). Retrieved from www.systemspedia.org/[full/url]

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