General System Theory Ludwig Von Bertalanffy
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Action Research As Process: the Two Stage Model for Active Adaptation
Action Research as Process: The two stage model for active adaptation Donald W. de Guerre Department of Applied Human Sciences, Concordia University, Montreal, Canada 1455 de Maisonneuve Blvd. West Montreal, QC H3G 1M8 Canada Office: 514-848-2270 Fax: 514-848-2262 Home Voice/Fax: 514-482-5677 Cell: 514-214-1692 E-mail: [email protected] 2 The Action Research Paradigm Reason and Bradley (2001) suggest that it is premature to define action research, and they suggest it is “… a participatory, democratic process concerned with developing practical knowing in the pursuit of worthwhile human purposes, grounded in a participatory worldview that is currently emerging (Reason and Bradley, 2001 p.1).” Indeed to try and further define action research would be stifle its development (van Beinum, Faucheux & van der Vlist, 1996). It is not going to far to suggest that action research is a radical enough departure from traditional academic forms of scholarship so as to take on some of the characteristics of a new social science paradigm. There are many variants of action research. Gloster (2000) outlines the socio-ecological systems action research model developed by Fred Emery (1981, reprinted in Trist, 1997). He differentiates between action research (ar) which improves the practical affairs of a particular social system and Action Research (AR) that in addition contributes to social scientific knowledge. To describe socio-ecological AR, following Peirce, Emery demonstrated that the type of logical inference required to generate concepts, and hypotheses about their connections, was based primarily on the logic of abduction: Peirce demonstrated that there were three forms of logical inference and not just the two, deduction and induction, that were generally supposed. -
Reading the World, Writing the Mind: Ideology, Morphogenesis, Revolution
READING THE WORLD, WRITING THE MIND: IDEOLOGY, MORPHOGENESIS, REVOLUTION by Philip Edmond Olsen A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of The Wilkes Honors College in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences with a Concentration in Philosophy Wilkes Honors College of Florida Atlantic University Jupiter, Florida May 2014 READING THE WORLD, WRITING THE MIND: IDEOLOGY, MORPHOGENESIS, REVOLUTION by Philip Edmond Olsen This thesis was prepared under the direction of the candidate’s thesis advisor, Dr. Daniel White, and has been approved by the members of her/his supervisory committee. It was submitted to the faculty of The Honors College and was accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences. SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE: ____________________________ Dr. Daniel White ____________________________ Dr. Michael Harrawood ______________________________ Dean Jeffrey Buller, Wilkes Honors College ___________ Date ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my thesis advisor, Dr. Daniel White, for his insight, conversation, and encouragement. I would also like to thank Dr. Michael Harrawood for giving me a lot of books and talking about philosophy with me. Finally, I would like to thank Calvin Bankert, John Carney, Alexa Robinson, Janeen Smith, and Daniel Zengotita for talking to me about things. It all helped. iii ABSTRACT Author: Philip Edmond Olsen Title: Reading the World, Writing the Mind: Ideology, Morphogenesis, Revolution Institution: Wilkes Honors College of Florida Atlantic University Thesis Advisor: Dr. Daniel White Degree: Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences Concentration: Philosophy Year: 2014 In the 1960s, the French Communist thinker Louis Althusser undertook to reorient capitalistic societies toward realizing socialist ideals. -
Claude Bernard
DOI: 10.1590/0004-282X20130239 HISTORICAL NOTES Claude Bernard: bicentenary of birth and his main contributions to neurology Claude Bernard: bicentenário do nascimento e suas principais contribuições à neurologia Marleide da Mota Gomes1, Eliasz Engelhardt2 ABSTRACT Claude Bernard (1813-1878) followed two main research paths: the chemical and physiological study of digestion and liver function, along with experimental section of nerves and studies on sympathetic nerves. Curare studies were, for example, of longstanding interest. His profound mental creativity and hand skillfulness, besides methodology quality, directed his experiments and findings, mainly at the Collège de France. His broader and epistemological concerns were carried out at the Sorbonne and later at the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle. His insight gave clues to define the “ milieu intérieur”, later known as “homeostasis”, and grasp the brain complexity. Bernard followed and surpassed his master François Magendie who also fought against dogmas and laid the foundations of experimental medicine, and its main heinous tool – vivisection. Bernard created the methodological bases of experimental medicine, and collected honors as a renowned researcher. Keywords: Claude Bernard, sympathetic nerves, homeosthasis, epistemology, history of neurosciences. RESUMO Em suas pesquisas, Claude Bernard (1813-1878) seguiu dois caminhos principais: o estudo fisiológico e químico da digestão e da função hepática; a seção experimental de nervos e os estudos sobre nervos simpáticos. Estudos sobre curare, por exemplo, foram de interesse duradouro. Suas profundas criatividade mental e habilidade manual, além da qualidade metodológica, conduziram às suas experiências e descobertas, principalmente no Collège de France. Seus interesses sobre temas epistemológicos mais amplos foram conduzidos na Sorbonne e, posteriormente, no Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle. -
QUESTION BANK MBA SEMESTER 4 Vol
QUESTION BANK MBA SEMESTER 4 Vol. III 1 FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION The Questions contained in this booklet have been prepared by the faculty of the Institute from the sources believed to be reliable. Neither the Institute nor the faculty gives any guarantee with respect to completeness or accuracy of the contents contained in the booklet and shall in no event be liable for any errors, omissions or damages arising out of use of the matter contained in the booklet. The Institute and the faculty specifically disclaim any implied warranty as to merchantability or fitness of the information for any particular purpose. 2 QUESTION BANK ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT MS - 230 3 QUESTION BANK ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT MS- 230 UNIT I TEST YOURSKILLS Multiple Choice Questions 1. Organization Development is aimed at:- (a) Enhancing congruence between organizational structure, processes, strategy, people and culture (b) Developing new and creative organizational solutions (c) Developing the organization’s self renewing capacity (d) All of the above 2. OD values generally tend to be: - (a) Humanistic (b) Democratic (c) Optimistic (d) Only a and b (e) All of the above 3. The Unfreezing-Moving-Refreezing model of change was given by: - (a) Kurt Lewin (b) George Litwin (c) RensisLikert (d) Jane Mouton 4. A change that alters some features of an organization is referred to as: - (a) Transformational Change (b) Structural Change (c) Adaptive Change (d) None of the Above 5. A change that alters the fundamental character of the organization is called: - (a) Incremental Change (b) First Order Change (c) Discontinuous Change 4 (d) None of the Above 6. -
Living Systems Theory (Under Construction)
Calhoun: The NPS Institutional Archive Faculty and Researcher Publications Faculty and Researcher Publications 2008-06-30 Living Systems Theory (under construction) Bradley, Gordon http://hdl.handle.net/10945/38246 Living Systems Theory (under construction) Agranoff, B. W. (2003). Obituaries: James Grier Miller. Retrieved May 26, 2008, from University of Michigan: The University Record Online: http://www.ur.umich.edu/0203/Feb03_03/obits.shtml Bertalanffy, Ludwig von. (1968). General System Theory: Foundations, Development, Applications. New York: George Braziller. Crawford, Raymond R. (1981). An Application of Living Systems Theory to Combat Models. Master’s Thesis. Monterey, CA: Naval Postgraduate School. http://stinet.dtic.mil/oai/oai?verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA101103 Duncan, Daniel M. (1972). James G. Miller's Living Systems Theory: Issues for Management Thought and Practice. The Academy of Management Journal, 15:4, 513-523. http://www.jstor.org/stable/255145?seq=1 Kuhn, Alfred. (1979). Differences vs. Similarities in Living Systems. Contemporary Sociology, 8:5, 691- 696. http://www.jstor.org/sici?sici=0094- 3061(197909)8%3A5%3C691%3ADVSILS%3E2.0.CO%3B2-4 Miller, James Grier. (1979). Response to the Reviewers of Living Systems. Contemporary Sociology, 8:5, 705-715. http://www.jstor.org/sici?sici=0094- 3061(197909)8%3A5%3C705%3ARTTROL%3E2.0.CO%3B2-8 Miller, James Grier. (1995). Living Systems. Niwot: University of Colorado. (out of print) Oliva, Terence A. and R. Eric Reidenbach. (1981). General Living Systems Theory and Marketing: A Framework for Analysis. Journal of Marketing, 45:4, 30-37. http://www.jstor.org/sici?sici=0022- 2429(198123)45%3A4%3C30%3AGLSTAM%3E2.0.CO%3B2-R Parent, Elaine. -
Terms for Talking About Information and Communication
Information 2012, 3, 351-371; doi:10.3390/info3030351 OPEN ACCESS information ISSN 2078-2489 www.mdpi.com/journal/information Concept Paper Terms for Talking about Information and Communication Corey Anton School of Communications, Grand Valley State University, 210 Lake Superior Hall, Allendale, MI 49401, USA; E-Mail: [email protected]; Tel.: +1-616-331-3668; Fax: +1-616-331-2700 Received: 4 June 2012; in revised form: 17 August 2012 / Accepted: 20 August 2012 / Published: 27 August 2012 Abstract: This paper offers terms for talking about information and how it relates to both matter-energy and communication, by: (1) Identifying three different levels of signs: Index, based in contiguity, icon, based in similarity, and symbol, based in convention; (2) examining three kinds of coding: Analogic differences, which deal with positive quantities having contiguous and continuous values, and digital distinctions, which include “either/or functions”, discrete values, and capacities for negation, decontextualization, and abstract concept-transfer, and finally, iconic coding, which incorporates both analogic differences and digital distinctions; and (3) differentiating between “information theoretic” orientations (which deal with data, what is “given as meaningful” according to selections and combinations within “contexts of choice”) and “communication theoretic” ones (which deal with capta, what is “taken as meaningful” according to various “choices of context”). Finally, a brief envoi reflects on how information broadly construed relates to probability and entropy. Keywords: sign; index; icon; symbol; coding; context; information; communication “If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange apples then you and I will still each have one apple. -
Diversity and Complexity of the Theory and Social Thought That Contribute to Contemporary Planning
DOCUMENT RESUME ED 101 432 EA 006 709 AUTHOR Gutenschwager, Gerald TITLE Planning and Social Theory: A Selected Bibliography. Exchange Bibliography No. 179. INSTITUTION Council of Planning Librarians, Monticello, Ill. PUB DATE Mar 71 NOTE 13p. AVAILABLE FROMCouncil of Planning Librarians, P.O. Box 229, Monticello, Illinois 61856 ($1.50) EDRS PRICE MF-$0.76 HC-$1.58 PLUS POSTAGE DESCRIPTORS *Bibliographies; City Planning; Decision Making; Futures (of Society); Information Theory; Organizational Theories; *Planning; Policy Formation; Social Change; *Social Factors; *Social Sciences; Systems Analysis; Technological Advancement; *Theories ABSTRACT This bibliography's meant to reflect the growing diversity and complexity of the theory and social thought that contribute to contemporary planning. The purpose of this bibliography is to explore this diversity as it pertains to the various biases in planning as a social process. The organization of the document reflects the various levels--individual, organizational, social, and urban--at which social theory has been formulated with pertinence to planning.(Author/MLF) Council of Planning LibrariansEXCHANGE BIBLIOGRAPHIES March 1971 1 PLANNING AND SOCIAL THEORY: A Selected Bibliography Gerald Gutenschwagcr, Associate Professor of Planning School or Architecture, Washington University, Saint Louis .`i4'4 . '4.1 '4" OF HI At nt 11 ARE Tt t OC . 00.10. tovi 8ts1 Mrs. Mary Vance, Editor Post Office Box 229. Monticello, Illinois61856 2 COUNCIL OF PLANNING LIBRARIANS Exchange Bibliography #179 PLANNING AND SOCIAL THEORY: A SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY Gerald Gutenschwager Associate Professor of Plpnning School of Architecture Washington University Saint Louis INTRODUCTION The following bibliography is meant to reflect the growing diversity and complexity of theory and social thought which contributes tocontemporary 'planning as a professional discipline. -
The Social System of Systems Intelligence – a Study Based on Search Engine Method
In Essays on Systems Intelligence, eds. Raimo P. Hämäläinen and Esa Saarinen: pp. 119-133 Espoo: Aalto University, School of Science and Technology, Systems Analysis Laboratory Chapter 5 The Social System of Systems Intelligence – A Study Based on Search Engine Method Kalevi Kilkki This essay offers an preliminary study on systems intelligence as a social system based on four cornerstones: writings using the terminology of systems intelligence, search engines, models to describe the behavior of social phenomena, and a theory of social systems. As a result we provide an illustration of systems intelligence field as a network of key persons. The main conclusion is that the most promising area for systems intelligence as social system is to systematically apply positive psychology to develop organizational management and to solve our everyday problems. Introduction The social system of systems intelligence is an ambitious topic, particularly for a person without any formal studies in sociology. Moreover, systems intelligence is a novel area of science and, hence, the development of its social structures is in early phase. It is even possible to argue that there is not yet any social system of systems intelligence. The approach of this study is based on four cornerstones: first, the literature that has used concept of systems intelligence, second, search engines, third, models to describe the behavior of social phenomena, and forth, a theory of social systems. As a result we may be able to say something novel about the development of systems intelligence as a social system. As to the social systems this essay relies on the grand theory developed by Niklas Luhmann (Luhmann 1995). -
Edgar Morin’S Path of Complexity
FOREWORD EDGAR MORIN’S PATH OF COMPLEXITY ALFONSO MONTUORI Ndlr: A Montuori et l’éditeur de ‘On Complexity’ nous autorisent à reprender ici le texte anglais de la préface de l’ouvrage d’Edgar Morin qu’ils publient « ON COMPLEXITY » The reform in thinking is a key anthropological and historical problem. This implies a mental revolution of considerably greater proportions than the Copernican revolution. Never before in the history of humanity have the responsibilities of thinking weighed so crushingly on us. Does knowing that knowledge cannot be guaranteed by a foundation not mean that we have already acquired a first fundamental knowledge? And should this not lead us to abandon the architectural metaphor, in which the term “foundation” assumes an indispensable meaning, in favor of a musical metaphor of construction in movement that transforms in its very movement the constitutive elements that form it? And might we not also consider the knowledge of knowledge as a construction in movement? We need a kind of thinking that reconnects that which is disjointed and compartmentalized, that respects diversity as it recognizes unity, and that tries to discern interdependencies. We need a radical thinking (which gets to the root of problems), a multidimensional thinking, and an organizational or systemic thinking. History has not reached a stagnant end, nor is it triumphantly marching towards the radiant future. It is being catapulted into an unknown adventure. Edgar Morin: A Biblio-biography Perhaps the best way to provide a contextual introduction to Morin’s work is through an outline of his intellectual trajectory, in the form of a “biblio-biography.” A review of Morin’s journey helps us, I believe, to better understand the man and his mission in the essays that follow. -
Understanding Henri Lefebvre
Understanding Henri Lefebvre Theory and the Possible Stuart Elden continuum LONDON • NEW YORK Continuum The Tower Building, 15 East 26th Street 11 York Road New York London SE1 7NX NY 10010 www.continuumbooks.com © Stuart Elden 2004 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: 0-8264-7002-5 (HB) 0-8264-7003-3 (PB) Typeset by Refinecatch Ltd, Bungay Suffolk Printed and bound in Great Britain by MPG Books Ltd, Bodmin, Cornwall Contents Acknowledgements v Introduction: Henri Lefebvre 1901-91 1 1 Rethinking Marxism 15 A new reading of Marx 15 The 'juvenile presumptions' of existentialism 19 Structuralism as the French ideology 22 Logic and dialectics 27 Applications of the dialectic 36 Alienation 39 Production 43 The Party and beyond 46 2 Engaging with philosophy 65 Beyond Marxism 65 The Philosophies group, Schelling and Hegel 67 Nietzsche against the fascists 73 Heidegger and the metaphysics of the Grand Guignol 76 Metaphilosophy 83 Descartes and literature 85 3 The critique of everyday life 110 A day in the life 111 A critique of the present 115 Festival and revolution 117 4 From the rural to the urban 127 The town and the country 129 A sack of potatoes 135 Reading rural spaces 13 7 The -
Bibliography on World Conflict and Peace
DOCUMENT RESUME ED 097 246 SO 007 806 AUTHOR Boulding, Elise; Passions, J. Robert TITLE Bibliography on World Conflict and Peace. INSTITUTION American Sociological Association, Washington, D.C.; Consortium on Peace Research, Education, and Development, Boulder, Colo. PUB DATE Aug 74 NOT? 82p. AVAILABLE FROMBibliography Project, c/o Dorothy Carson, Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80302 ($2.50; make checks payable to Boulding Projects Fund) EDRS PRICE MF-$0.75 BC Not Available from !DRS. PLUS POSTAGE DESCRIPTORS Bibliographies; *Conflict Resolution; Development; Disarmament; Environment; *Futures (of Society); *Global Approach; Instructional Materials; International Education; international Law; International Organizations; *Peace; Political Science; Social Action; Systems Approach; *World Affairs IDENTIFIERS *Nonviolence ABSTRACT This bibliography is compiled primarily in response to the needs of teachers and students in the new field of conflict and peace studies, defined as the analysis of the characteristics of the total world social system which make peace more probable. The introduction includes some suggestions on how to use the bibliography, sources of literature on war/peace studies, and a request to users for criticisms and suggestions. Books, monographs, research reports, journal articles, or educational materials were included when they were:(1) related to conflict management at every social level,(2) relevant to nonviolence, and (3) classic statements in an academic specialization, such as foreign policy studies when of particular significance for conflict studies. A subject guide to the main categories of the bibliography lists 18 major topics with various numbered subdivisions. Th%. main body of the bibliography lists citations by author and keys this to the topic subdivisions. -
Special Education Session-2
Special Education Session Discussion on Control Textbooks at Undergraduate and Graduate Levels and Control Resources Publications Thursday, July 1, 2010 5:00 – 6:30 pm Waterfront C/D Refreshments will be served. Organizer and Chair: Bozenna Pasik-Duncan, University of Kansas, Chair of Control Education Committees, and Chair of IFAC Harold Chestnut Control Engineering Prize Selection Committee Sponsored by: AACC, IEEE CSS and IFAC Technical Committees on Control Education This Session will continue an important discussion on control textbooks that was initiated at the 2010 CDC/CCC in Shanghai, China last December. Call for Nominations for the IFAC Harold Chestnut Control Engineering Textbook Prize and Call for Control Resources Publications will be discussed. Harold Chestnut's contributions to control will be presented. Keynote Speaker Harold Chestnut received B.S. (1939) and Stephen Kahne M.S. (1940) degrees in electrical engineering The Story Behind the Harold Chestnut from MIT. He then began a life-long career with the General Electric Company until his Textbook Prize retirement in 1983. Stephen Kahne is an Embry-Riddle He was the first president of the International Aeronautical University Emeritus Professor Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC). He in Prescott, Arizona. He is an IEEE Life chaired the technical board and the Systems Engineering technical committee, served as Fellow, IFAC Fellow, AAAS Fellow, and honorary editor, and was the first advisor member of American MENSA. He was vice appointed for life. Chestnut was involved in president and IFAC president and has held the IEEE since its establishment in 1963 and leading positions in academia, industry, served as president in 1973.