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.

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AUTOMATA (Self -reproducing) 3)5)

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In L. LÖFGREN words: "… an automaton where the behavior function F is considered self-reproducing if, from some stimulus, it produces another automaton with the same function F This leads to the question whether a function can contain itself in its range" (1978, p.247)

In view of GÖDEL'S incompleteness theorem, this does not seem to be a very promising proposition.

However ATLAN states: "…up to now the only self-reproducing automata known are the natural machines, i.e. the living organisms" (1972, p.22). But even this view should be qualified: reproduction by division is not the same process as sexual reproduction. Besides, self-reproduction has now a specific autopoietic meaning.

ATLAN also writes:

"a) Living organisms' specificity is related to (cybernetic) principles of organization, and not anymore to irreductible vital principles

"b) Once these principles are outlined, nothing should impede their application to artificial automata, whose performance could equalize those of living organisms" (p.22-23)

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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