Abstract

Systems science (SS) isn’t widely accepted as an effective discipline for understanding and designing systems. This is because there isn’t a single discipline of SS being taught as a core topic or a unified version of SS being practiced. There are just various systems aspects and methods being applied

Principles of systems science can be used to develop a set of methodologies which demonstrate how SS can become a disciplined way to solve problems.

The Systems Approach

The application of SS to practicing other sciences brings rigor that goes beyond the intuitive recognition of systemness. Scientists and engineers have used systems thinking in an ad-hoc, non-integrated manner. It isn’t based on key principles.

The complex phenomena being studied in the sciences can’t be explained through the lens of a single discipline. SS is a “metascience” that can be applied to any discipline. It helps us discover what attributes systems have in general.

Systems Intuitions, Thinking, and Sensibility

Our brains are hardwired to perceive systemness because aspects of systemness are everywhere in the world.

“Language of Thought” (LOT) is an internal language natural to the brain and identical in all humans. LOT can also be defined as mentalese or systemese. Systemese is a basic template for describing the structures and functions of objects in the world.

Examples of the Systems Approach Within the Disciplines

• Systems ecology is at the forefront of applying systems thinking to science. For example, Howard Odom’s language of systems which is based on material and energy flows in an ecosystem that can be mapped and modelled.
• Systems dynamics allows scientists and engineers to reduce systems of interest to abstract sets of stocks, flows, and controls representing the dynamical aspects of a system.
• Systems management deals with how to organize and manage enterprises. Organizations are rich objects for systems study because they can be completely transparent.
• Systems engineering involves designing complex artifacts. New complex cyberphysical systems can’t be developed with only mechanical engineers. Systems engineers are needed to coordinate efforts of engineers coming from different disciplines.

Possible Issues with Current Practices

The systems approach in these fields has been based on intuitive methods. Practitioners adopt a limited framework for studying their subjects. They generally will pursue either system dynamics, network theory, or information theory as a main focus.