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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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NEURON (Formal) 2)

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Model of the biological neuron made up by a binary element whose state is + 1 (active) or -1 (inactive). (L. PERSONNAZ et al., 1988, p.1364).

These authors explain: "It was conceived by W. McCULLOCH and W. PITTS, from Chicago University in 1943… It updates its state periodically in the following way: It computes the sum of its inputs (which are the outputs of the formal neurons to which it is connected). The value of every input being modulated by the corresponding- synaptic efficiency, it takes a decision by comparing this sum with a threshold of its own. If the sum is superior to the threshold, the neuron adopt its active state (+ 1); in the opposite case, it remains in its inactive state (-1)" (Ibid).

The formal neuron is thus a totalizer of impulses, combined with a simple binary decider, or an "all or nothing" model, as stated by H.von FOERSTER (1981, p.33).

(For more precise and detailed description and comments of this important model, see H.von FOERSTER, 1981, p.33-42)

→ Parallel Distributed Processing

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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