Re: Reinforcing/Balancing in Humans LO565

jack@HIS.COM
Mon, 27 Mar 95 23:10:15

Replying to: Re: Reinforcing/Balancing in Humans LO556

Sal Viviano says:

"I'm puzzled by the good vs. bad dichotomy pervading this thread.
I recall a passage in Draper Kaufman's _Systems Thinking I_.

(Quoting from memory now - I don't have the book with me.)

"Most real life systems consist of one or two growth loops
surrounded by swarms of balancing loops."

It just doesn't make sense to me to think in terms of good or
bad since most non-trivial systems get their life from the
interplay of the two types of feedback processes."

I fully agree. It is easy to get confused when "caught" in one's own
body, or in one's own time line. For example, the decay of the body from
maturity onward can be seen as a reinforcing loop (I lose energy, I use my
muscles less, they atrophy, I lose energy, etc.) which is "disease". But
of course the decay of each individual is part of the "balance" of organic
life on the planet, which can be seen as a "cancer" of Gaia, which is a
part of the chemical "balance" of the solar system, etc. The drift of
continents are what cause "earthquakes", which are considerably milder
than the ripples in your palm as you extend and flex your fingers...

--

Jack Hirschfeld What do you see when you turn out the lights? jack@his.com