BCSSS

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.

About

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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STASIS 2)5)

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1) The balance between various forces in equilibrium.

Stasis may appear at some nodes in permanently interacting fields. It could be the origin of stable forms and homeostasis (d'Arcy THOMPSON, 1916 – C. LAVILLE, 1950).

2) The state of stability reached by a species after a phase of swift evolution.

The concept has been introduced in paleontology and evolution theory by St. GOULD and N. ELDREDGE, who speak of "Punctuated equilibrium and macroevolution" (1993, p.223).

It seems to be a mere synonym for homeostasis (in populations). The authors write: "… stasis does not signify rock-hard immobility, but fluctuation of little or no consequence" (p.226).

The curious parallelism with PRIGOGINE's theorem of minimum entropy production from one side, and his dissipative structuration in far-from-equilibrium systems from the other, is striking and should be investigated.

Categories

  • 1) General information
  • 2) Methodology or model
  • 3) Epistemology, ontology and semantics
  • 4) Human sciences
  • 5) Discipline oriented

Publisher

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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