The Basics Guide

Tag: Cybernetics

  • Human Inversion – When Systems Serve Themselves, Not Us

    Systems built to serve humans often reverse, demanding humans serve them. This structural inversion drives meaningless work, platform decay, and institutional dysfunction. Recognition of this shift is the first step toward restoring balance between individual needs and systemic momentum.

  • Attention is Agency

    Many systems—biological, social, cognitive, technological—don’t eliminate internal tensions; they govern them. At their core lies a structure: two enduring opposites and a mediating force. The opposites remain; the mediator governs their expression. This isn’t merely synthesis or compromise. This leads to agency.

  • The Mediator Triad

    At the base of many dynamic systems lies a familiar structure: two enduring opposites and a third element that governs their interaction. These are not static binaries—they are living polarities in active, mediated opposition: traits, values, forces, or strategies that remain in tension over time. Together, all three form a triad.

  • POSIWID – The Purpose Of a System Is What It Does

    POSIWID – The Purpose Of a System Is What It Does

    POSIWID, or “The Purpose Of a System Is What It Does,” posits that a system’s real purpose is evident through its outcomes, not its intended goals. This principle, applicable in various domains, emphasizes examining actual results to gain insights into system functionality and inform improvement strategies.

  • Gall’s Law

    Gall’s Law

    Gall’s Law posits that effective complex systems evolve from simpler, functional predecessors. Widely applied in fields like engineering and organizational design, the principle advocates for an iterative development process that starts with basic, operational systems.