International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics

"A closed universe of existence which we can never cross the boundary of, once we are in" (G. KAMPIS, 1989, p.89).

A domain delimits the set of possible transformations for a system. Domains are the results of the establishment of coordinated constraints. M. BODEN gives as an example the classical rules of harmony in music.

No important work can be done outside the constraints of some domain. New domains can be created only by breaking existing constraints, and replacing them with others, possibly less stringent, or more productive, or simply different.

This implies at least in some measure, that we are mental prisoners within ourselves (and should thus try to take the measure of our inner mental space).

The KAMPIS definition is inspired from G. SPENCER-BROWN and F. VARELA, i.e. is related to the concept of organizational closure, by virtue of which the system is maintaining its own organizational invariance.

KAMPIS comments: "The most important point is that a domain has its own structure that cannot be studied directly from another domain (for instance, by an observer), it can only be approximated by the internal structure of another domain. Of course, different domains might have parallel evolution and this enables the formulation of approximate scientific laws that represent, to some extent, what is going on in another domain. However, our original interest is in the things themselves and it is a disappointment (faced by scientists of this century) that they are not available directly" (p.89-90).

This aspect is important for systemic epistemology.