Imprint: Triarchy Press Edition: Second, revised Published: March 2024 List Price: £15 Format: Paperback Extent: 62pp. Size: 14 x 21.6 cm (8.5×5.5″) ISBN: 978-1-911193-48-7 Tags: Systems Thinking, Power and Love, Society, Genocide, Migration, Immigration, Purity, ToleranceBuy the paperback (£15) Published 5 March 2024, available here now Postage chargesQuantity: Buy the pdf (£10)Click the ‘Buy’ button below. At checkout, click No postage on ebooks from the dropdown. After paying, we will send an immediate confirmation and email your ebook file within 24 hours. PDF ISBN 978-1-911193-63-0 version: bookmarked pdf (pdf text cannot be edited, printed or copied – email us if you need this capability.)Read more reviews of the book
Encounters with the Other How we continue to misunderstand, dehumanize, scorn, humiliate, oppress−and even kill−others.
And how we can stop. Barry OshrySystems Thinking for Societies
Encounters with the OtherHow we continue to misunderstand, dehumanize, scorn, humiliate, oppress−and even kill−others. And how we can stop.Barry OshrySystems Thinking for Societies
[Another one with lots of systems | cybernetics | complexity implications and applications – adding philosophy of disability to the ‘fellow travellers’ list]
Posted on 31 March 2024
In this interview we learn about the main issues in modern-day philosophy of disability, and the relevance of this topic for the European encounter with the Americas.
442. Scott Williams on Disability and the New WorldPosted on 31 March 2024In this interview we learn about the main issues in modern-day philosophy of disability, and the relevance of this topic for the European encounter with the Americas.
🎉It is wonderful to see a new application of System Effects published in Frontiers, this time used to visualise how people connect to and value their local waterways.
🔍The project, undertaken by ESR – Science and Research in partnership with the local community, explored issues of environmental pollution and contamination within the Whau River catchment, an urban estuarine system in the west of Auckland City, Aotearoa, New Zealand.
🛠System Effects was used by ESR scientists as a tool for local action and planning, collaborative sense-making and more complex problem structuring.
📊The paper concludes that the use of the tool enabled the ESR team to have more meaningful impacts for the local community.
👏Well done, Mat Walton and colleagues, for bringing this application to life!
“The Layers of Irony Model: How a metameme spread across academia and subcultures”. 2024-03-17. Seong-Young Her, University of Canterbury, New Zealand. Presented at the University of Bucharest for the 2024 Philosophy of Memes Conference. Mentions works by YouTubers @oliSUNvia@JREG@fromthedeskofprofessorskye (@professorskye) @iDubbbzTV@HydeWars Slides, references, and supplementary materials will soon be made available on https://thephilosophersmeme.com . Please consider supporting this work via / thephilosophersmeme and joining the Discord server via / discord .
[The premise of ‘theories of everything’ sort of annoys me and sometimes these conversations are too technical or self-involved for me to listen all the way through – also, panel discussions on podcasts can be very annoying, and the ‘day in the life of a podcaster’ is one of the most accidental revealing, yet amusing and earnest, bits you could find about aspirant public intellectuals (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7tLFNz-oXw) – but the earnestness and engagement often do generate good results.
Anyway, sharing because this is one where I was just wryly resisting screaming ‘cybernetics, folks!’ – obviously particularly in the Active Inference bit].
In today’s episode, Karl Friston and Anna Lembke emphasize the urgency of reevaluating our personal and societal practices in the face of environmental, mental health, and addiction crises, through the lens of “active inference”. Please consider signing up for TOEmail at https://www.curtjaimungal.org
Announcing: NECSI Two-Week Intensive Summer Course in ComplexityJune 3-14, 2024 // Virtual (Attend from anywhere)Our Complexity Course is a two-week intensive program featuring:Live lecture and Q&A sessions with world-renowned complex systems physicist, Yaneer Bar-YamSpecial guest lecturer (to be announced)Access to over 12 hours of self-paced course modules, covering key complexity science concepts and its applicationsAmple networking and collaboration opportunitiesThis summer, discover the science that teaches us about collected patterns of behavior, helps us understand the fluctuations of global finance, and can help us meet societal, organization and global challenges.Register TodayRegister by April 27th for a 15% Early Bird Discount“I would definitely recommend it to colleagues or anyone interested. I think it was very accessible to the lay person”“I think it’s universal which discipline it can be applied to, or juts hte change of mindset – I think it’s powerful on its own”“Step-by-step, Yaneer guides us on a very exciting scientific journey that helps us to understand the real world and how to tackle it using traditional scientific tools as well as complex ones … he does it in a way that is accessible to not only academic people, but to laypeople too”NECSI has become the go-to place for leaders from all industries and sectors to learn about Complex Systems Science (CSS). CSS allows us to accurately predict real-world events and describe unintended consequences, dynamics, and emergent behaviors in real-world systems.Research from NECSI
This quote from the Chapter 7 “G. Spencer Brown on the Paradoxes of “Not”– And Gregory Bateson on the Richness of Analog Communication” of this book by Phillip Guddemi “Gregory Bateson on Relational Communication: From Octopuses to Nations.”Me is quiet, pondering about our worlds.
Test reads ‘Inspired by cybernetics, Bateson interprets meaning as a function of the restriction of possible meanings (1971: 17), and it can never be definitive. With an increase in the data provided, the probability of an interpretation can be improved, but the process of “the approach to non-ambiguity” (1971: 17) is asymptotic and endless. The method of inquiry is therefore one which “postpones” (1971: 18) the question of meaning, in favor of asking about how a change in the sequence of events or their contexts might produce a change in meaning. So meaning is understood at the first derivative level before it is understood in “itself.”’
Some really interesting themes – meritocracy of course, and the complex interplay between individual attributes and actions (effort, talent) and systemic forces (social, economic conditions).
Capital accumulation and societal rewards and feedback loops, generl complexity of social systems, adaptive systems and policy responses, and value pluralism and systemic diversity]
My guest this week is Gil Morejón, a historian of ideas currently teaching at Grenell college, one of the 4 amazing hosts of the What’s Left of Philosophy? Podcast. We discuss leftist takes on meritocracy, possible alternatives, and the differences between doing politics and ethics. Enjoy!
Journal of Knowledge Management Practice, August 1999
Allenna Leonard, PhD, The Complementary Set
ABSTRACT:
Contends that individual and organizational knowledge is difficult to value and therefore difficult to manage. Looks at the management of knowledge from the perspective of the individual, the network and the organization using Stafford Beer’s Viable System Model, a powerful descriptive and diagnostic tool to map management capacities and promote viability.
This article provides an introduction to the Viable System Model (VSM). The importance of organisational identity is described. The VSM is shown to be a model which enables the recognition of patterns necessary for survival within organisations. The five systems of the VSM are outlined. Emphasis is given to the distinctive channels of communication made explicit by the VSM. The importance of developing common perspectives and common languages is highlighted. The VSM is put forward as a useful contribution in this endeavour. Examples were chosen from the public sector.
Kybernetes: The International Journal of Systems & CyberneticsISSN 0368-492X (Print)Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing LimitedVolume 33, Numbers 3-4, 2004
CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I INTRODUCTION A Brief History The Field Today II FOCUSING ON THE SYSTEM AS A PURPOSEFUL WHOLE Time and Motion Probability Complexity and Variety III DESIGNING AND BUILDING MODELS Establishing a Purpose Defining The System Data Gathering and Illustration Testing and Revision IV STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE SYSTEMS APPROACH A Situational Example A Reductionist Model Outlook for the Systems Approach Some Specific Models Interactive Planning How To Do It When to Use Interactive Planning Comparison/Combination with Other Models Outlook for the Future Living Systems Theory How To Do It When To Use It Comparison/Combination with Other Models Futures Research Methodology The Systems Perspective EXIT AC/UNU Millennium Project Futures Research Methodology The Systems Perspective Outlook for the Future Operations Research How To Do It When To Use It Comparison/Combination With Other Model
The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a short research study that introduced a group of busy managers, in an organisation in turmoil, to Stafford Beer’s Viable System Model (VSM) through the use of a personal construct, developed by Allenna Leonard.
Design/methodology/approach
This study, designed as systemic action research, was a final project towards an Open University Masters in Systems Thinking in Practice. Initially managers were introduced to the personal VSM and invited to design their own VSM as systemic action learning. This was followed by an introductory collaborative inquiry to enable the managers to use their VSM learning to interrogate their organisational domain through the VSM lens.
Findings
The managers engaged well with the personal VSM (PVSM). All the managers reported that the PVSM was a useful learning tool and provided beneficial professional development to help clarify activities, priorities and their roles. They reported that the collaborative meeting was a very useful means to help them see others’ perspectives and work towards gaining a shared understanding of the issues and challenges within the organisation through the VSM lens.
Practical implications
The VSM is not well understood or routinely used in current management thinking. This method of introducing the VSM to managers has wide implications for providing managers with an introduction to systems thinking and an opportunity to engage openly with a valuable tool that will help their understanding of modern organisational complexity.
Originality/value
Using the personal VSM with managers has not been reported before and this study provides new opportunities to develop a means to introduce complex conceptual systems models to busy managers.
Introducing managers to the VSM using a personal VSMDavid T. Robinson KybernetesISSN: 0368-492XArticle publication date: 4 January 2013 Permissions DOWNLOADS1003AbstractPurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present the results of a short research study that introduced a group of busy managers, in an organisation in turmoil, to Stafford Beer’s Viable System Model (VSM) through the use of a personal construct, developed by Allenna Leonard.Design/methodology/approachThis study, designed as systemic action research, was a final project towards an Open University Masters in Systems Thinking in Practice. Initially managers were introduced to the personal VSM and invited to design their own VSM as systemic action learning. This was followed by an introductory collaborative inquiry to enable the managers to use their VSM learning to interrogate their organisational domain through the VSM lens.FindingsThe managers engaged well with the personal VSM (PVSM). All the managers reported that the PVSM was a useful learning tool and provided beneficial professional development to help clarify activities, priorities and their roles. They reported that the collaborative meeting was a very useful means to help them see others’ perspectives and work towards gaining a shared understanding of the issues and challenges within the organisation through the VSM lens.Practical implicationsThe VSM is not well understood or routinely used in current management thinking. This method of introducing the VSM to managers has wide implications for providing managers with an introduction to systems thinking and an opportunity to engage openly with a valuable tool that will help their understanding of modern organisational complexity.Originality/valueUsing the personal VSM with managers has not been reported before and this study provides new opportunities to develop a means to introduce complex conceptual systems models to busy managers.KeywordsManagers Organizational structures Change management Adaptability Action research Viable System Model Personal VSM Systems thinking Collaborative inquiryCitationRobinson, D.T. (2013), “Introducing managers to the VSM using a personal VSM”, Kybernetes, Vol. 42 No. 1, pp. 125-139. https://doi.org/10.1108/03684921311295529
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