Robert Rosen

Zusatztext

The articles collected here were written by Robert Rosen (1934-1998), who was an expert in relational complexity and the founder of the discipline of Anticipatory Systems Theory, to explain and elucidate the behavior of social systems. Some of these papers were written while Rosen was at Robert Hutchins' "Think Tank" in Santa Barbara, called "The Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions." Although these papers were written in the 1970s, they prove to be just as relevant now as when they were written, representing applications of Rosen's scientific mind to the common problems of humanity and of governments. As it has turned out, a science rooted in anticipatory foundations is highly appropriate for understanding the kinds of systems within which many of our current pressing global problems arrise, includingmedical, psychological, social, economic, ecosystemic, and others. All of these system types involve living organisms; therefore, the most useful way to approach them scientifically is using tools that take into account the unique nature of living organisms, and biological systems in general. While non-living systems can only react in the present to what is happening and what has happened in the past, all living organisms can both react and anticipate. Indeed, most reactions are anticipatory in nature: the reactions are guided and informed by encoded models. Rosen's work expanded the paradigm of science from a purely mechanistic/reductionist discipline to one that is better able to explore the complexity of life, mind, and society.

Autorenportrait

Roberto Poli, University of Trento, Italy; Judith Rosen, Rochester, New York, USA.

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