From Second Order Cybernetics to Second Order Science
From Second Order Cybernetics to Second Order Science Keynote Address Annual Conference of the American Society for Cybernetics (ASC) Washington, October 25, 2005 Karl H. Müller (WISDOM) mueller@wisdom. at
The World as We Knew It …. in 1965 London, July 11 to July 17, 1967: International Colloquium on Philosophy of Science at Bedford College, Regent’s Park Three Volumes with Imre Lakatos as Editor: Problems in the Philosophy of Mathematics (1967) The Problem of Inductive Logic (1968) Problems in the Philosophy of Science (1968) Imre Lakatos and Alan Musgrave as Editors: Criticism and the Growth of Knowledge (1970)
Knowledge Organization in the World as We Knew It Meta. Level Philosophy of Science: Meta-Language, Meta-Criteria, Normative Object. Level Scientific Disciplines; Science of Science; Transdisciplinary Programs Robust Knowledge as a Circular Feedback Loop between Scientific Hypothesis and Theories at the Object Level and Philosophy of
Transdisciplinary Programs (1948 – 1965) The Miracle Year 1948 General Systems Theory Information Theory Cybernetics Cognitive Science Artificial Intelligence Bionics
Second Order Cybernetics (SOC) SOC Emerged Gradually during the Early Seventies 1972 Heinz von Foerster, “Notes on an Epistemology for Living Things” (second order relators, third order relator …. ) 1974 Heinz von Foerster et al. (eds. )(1974), Cybernetics of Cybernetics 1979 Heinz von Foerster “Cybernetics of Cybernetics” 1981 pp. Cybernetics of Cybernetics Understanding Second Order Cybernetics Cybernetic Reflections ….
Second Order Cybernetics (SOC) Ø Ø Ø Expressed More as a Vision than as a Framework for Research Directed against Objectivity and Context-free Methodologies Centered around Observer ¡ Self-Referentiality ¡
From the World as We Knew It …. . to the World as We Know It Decline of Philosophy of Science Decline of First Order Cybernetics Decline of Second Order Cybernetics
Risk-Society (Ulrich Beck) Modernity I → Modernity II Logic of Wealth-Production → Logic of Risk-Production Classes, Strata → Individualization Traditional Science → Self-Reflexive Science Self-organization of the Scientific System towards Self-Reflexivity
Second order Science (SOS) Topical Closure Meta-Analysis Second order Science (SOS) Observer Self-Referentiality
Basic Configuration across All Four Domains First Order Second Order FOS SOS Robust Knowledge as a Circular Feedback Loop within the Second Order Science Domain
Topical Closure FOS-Concepts, Scientific Fields SOS Examples: Goals of Goals, Purposes of Purposes …. Evolution of Evolution Cybernetics of Cybernetics (Second Order Cybernetics) First Order Cybernetics: The Cybernetics of Observed Systems Second Order Cybernetics: The Cybernetics of Observing Systems Sociology of Sociology …. .
Meta-Analysis since the 1980 ies Frequency of the Concept „Meta-Analysis“ in Psychological Abstracts Year 1967 – 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 Number of Counts 0 2 4 6 9 18 32 55 63
Meta-Analysis First Order Second Order Tests, Test Results Tests of Tests, ´Test Results of Test Results
Self-Referentiality First Order Functions, Operations, Models, Attributes, Relations Second Order Attributes of Attributes, Relations of Relations Functions of Functions, Operations of Operations, Models of Models Example for Attributes of Attributes as Robust Search Strategy Robert Axelrod (1984), The Evolution of Cooperation Second Order Search for Attributes of First Order Attributes
On Observers First Order Second Order Theory of the Brain First Order Second Order Theory of Living Organisms
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