The science of synthesis : exploring the social implications of general systems theory / Debora Hammond.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hammond, Debora, 1951-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

International Society for the Systems Sciences.

System theory--History.

System theory.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (333 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Boulder : University Press of Colorado, c2003.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Debora Hammond's The Science of Synthesis explores the development of general systems theory and the individuals who gathered together around that idea to form the Society for General Systems Research. In examining the life and work of the SGSR's five founding members-Ludwig von Bertalanffy, Kenneth Boulding, Ralph Gerard, James Grier Miller, and Anatol Rapoport-Hammond traces the emergence of systems ideas across a broad range of disciplines in the mid-twentieth century. A metaphor and a framework, the systems concept as articulated by its earliest proponents highlights relationship and interconnectedness among the biological, ecological, social, psychological, and technological dimensions of our increasingly complex lives. Seeking to transcend the reductionism and mechanism of classical science-which they saw as limited by its focus on the discrete, component parts of reality-the general systems community hoped to complement this analytic approach with a more holistic approach. As one of many systems traditions, the general systems group was specifically interested in fostering collaboration and integration between different disciplinary perspectives. The Science of Synthesis documents a unique episode in the history of modern thought, one that remains relevant today. This book will be of interest to historians of science, system theorists, and scholars in such fields as cybernetics and system dynamics.

Contents:

Intro

Contents

Figures and Tables

Preface

Acknowledgments

Prologue: The Quest for Peace in a Nuclear World

1: The Behavioral Sciences in Postwar America

Part I: The Sources of Systems Thinking

2: The Science of Life: Organization in Living Systems

3: Engineering, Management, and the Military-Industrial Complex

4: Cybernetics and Information Theory: Feedback and Homeostasis

5: Ecology and Social Theory: Structure, Function, and Evolution

Part II: The Founders of General Systems Research

6: Ludwig von Bertalanffy (1901-1972): General Systems Theory

7: The Chicago Behavioral Science Committee

8: Kenneth Boulding (1910 -1993): Economics, Ecology, and Peace

Part III: Evolution and Evaluation

9: The Society for General Systems Research: Establishment and Development

Epilogue

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references (p. 279-295) and index.

ISBN:

1-280-50127-8

9786610501274

0-87081-797-3

OCLC:

614718907