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.

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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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ENTRAINMENT 2)5)

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"A locking together of frequencies" (A.T. WINFREE, 1980, p.114).

This phenomenon corresponds to the behavior of two or more oscillators in process of coupling. The oscillators may be electrical, physical (clocks), chemical (malonic acid reaction), biological (organic functions) or social (dictyostelium discoideum congregation, fireflies forming swarms and, probably, homogeneization of some characteristics in human groups).

Entrainment is thus a process of self-organization. It can be topologically modelized (R.A. ABRAHAM & C.D. SHAW, 1988, p.560).

WINFREE explains that entrainment does not necessarily implies "… a stable relationship, let alone… synchrony" (Ibid).

Entrainment is not possible"… if the periods are too unequal or the mutual influence is too faint" (Ibid).

Mutual influence obviously implies mutual perception through some mode of communication. In S. STROGATZ and I. STEWART words: "If their interconnections are too weak, the oscillators will be unable to achieve synchrony" (or an existing sychrony will be destroyed) (1993). This was already shown by Chr. HUYGHENS, with his classical experiment on synchronic correlation of two clocks.

For an experimental device that demonstrates entrainment see W. GARVER and F. MOSS "electronic fireflies" (1993, p.94).

Categories

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

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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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