1. Systems, Cybernetics and Complexity: Advancing the Systems Movement
Stuart A. Umpleby
President of the Executive Committee
International Academy for Systems and Cybernetic Sciences

2. The current state of our fields (advantages)
Several journals that are prospering
An increasing number of books are being published
There is interest in the field abroad
The large systems program of the Open University in UK
New, seemingly similar fields are being created – informing science, scientonomy

3. The current state of our fields (disadvantages)
People do not know what cybernetics means
People confuse cybernetics with computer science and AI
No regular government funds for cybernetics research
Very few educational programs in cybernetics (mostly abroad)
Little interest in the unification of science

4. Stories being told about our fields
In the last few years I have heard several people say that systems science and cybernetics have died
They have been succeeded by the field of complexity which includes everything that was of value in those two fields and complexity has gone farther
However, what I see is that associations, journals and conferences in systems and cybernetics are continuing, even increasing
Associations, journals, and conferences in complexity have been added
The questions being asked and the methods being used are different in systems, cybernetics, complexity

5. Three Neighboring Fields 1
Cybernetics
Systems
Complexity
Origin of the field
Macy Conferences, , American Society for Cybernetics founded, 1964
An informal meeting within the 1954 meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Berkeley, California
1984, Santa-Fe Institute founded (first meeting 1985)
Early authors
W. McCulloch, N. Wiener, A. Rosenblueth, M. Mead, G. Bateson, H. von Foerster, H. Maturana
Ludwig von Bertalanffy, K.E. Boulding, Anatol Rapoport, James G. Miller, Ralph Gerard, Jay Forrester, Edwards Deming
M. Gell-Mann, G. West, R. Axtell, B. Arthur, J. Holland, S. Kauffman, S. Wolfram
Definition of field
Describe control and communication in animals, machines and social systems; create a science of purposeful systems
Identify the common features of systems. A living system processes matter, energy, and information. It evolves over time and adapts to its environment
New entities and patterns of behavior emerge when many agents interact and adapt to each other and their environments
Purpose
Create a science of perception, regulation, learning, adaptation, goal formulation, and understanding
Create a general theory of systems and a variety of approaches to systems analysis
Identify the unseen mechanisms and processes that shape evolving worlds

6. Three Neighboring Fields 2
Cybernetics
Systems
Complexity
Methods
Three fundamental models describe 1) regulation, 2) self-organization, and 3) reflexivity
Systems engineering, system dynamics,  causal loop diagrams, flow diagrams, process improvement methods
Rigorous logical, mathematical, computational methods
A key question
How does the brain understand the world and itself? How can we create self-governing societies? How can we create a reflexive science?
What are the structures and processes in living systems? What is essential for life?
How do order and novelty emerge in the world?
Internal mechanisms
Reflexivity operates on two levels – observing and participating
Miller's 19 critical subsystems -- e.g. input       transducer for information, ingestor for matter- energy, decoder, encoder, matter-energy  storage, reproducer, supporter, transporter, etc.; These processes occur on 8 levels: cell, organ, organism, group, organization, nation, supranational system, world
Increases in complexity require two processes: creating new variety and selecting appropriate variety; Describe the rules governing how agents interact

7. Three Neighboring Fields 3
Cybernetics
Systems
Complexity
Locus of contribution
Extensions of philosophy
Share theories and methods for analyzing systems with other disciplines
Extensions of mathematics
How science advances
Expand the realm of inquiry by adding a new dimension
 Identify instances of processes such as evolution, adaptation, cognition
Find the underlying mechanisms of emergence
Conception of Cognition
Cognition is one aspect of autopoiesis
Cognition is a perception and decision process in living systems
Cognition emerges in some biological processes
Conception of Complexity
Complexity lies in multiple conceptualizations of a system of interest which are created by people who have an interest in that system and its affect on the world
Complexity lies in the system observed
Complexity emerges in some systems as a result of the interactions among elements in the system

8. What future do we want?
Do we want systems science and cybernetics to continue?
Should these fields be subsumed under complexity?
How should the fields be described on college campuses?
Can the three fields cooperate on conferences and curricula?
The Academy ( is beginning to include complexity scholars

9. Trends that support attention to our fields
Increasing interest in climate change and its consequences
Concern about growing numbers of refugees
Concern about loss of species and habitats
Preparations for more frequent storms and floods and rising sea level
Continuing interest in communicating across disciplines
The continuing growth of the internet
Increasing use of AI and data analytics
Interest in the unification of science

10. Problems we need to work on
More educational programs in systems and cybernetics are needed
More young people are needed to learn and extend the work that has been done
Our fields are not well-known

11. Contact information
Stuart A. Umpleby, Professor Emeritus Department of Management The George Washington University Washington, DC USA blogs.gwu.edu/umpleby

12. A presentation at the annual meeting of the
International Society for the Systems Sciences
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
June 27 - July 2, 2019