Systems theory & class statement

Complexification and the design process

From Mutual Causality:

The processes by which the system sustains and creates order in Fleiss-Gleichgewicht are seen as twofold. One is homeostatic, whereby the continuity of structure or pattern is maintained. The other is self-organizing, whereby the structure is modified, its organization increased. In this complexification the system moves toward greater improbability and variety. This involves a decrease in structural stability: The system, more finely tuned, is more vulnerable to physical disorganization, but this in turn is counterbalanced by a greater flexibility and capacity to adapt, process information, and cope.

Systems research shows that, starting anywhere except the thermodynamically most probable equilibrium, an open system will complexify in response to inputs from the environment. This finding has led W.R. Ashby to say that in such a system “life and intelligence inevitably develop.”

Behaviorism presents the person as motivated by tension reduction and primarily reactive; it postulates a homeostatic type of equilibrium in which rest or inactivity is the goal. If this were indeed the case, says von Bertalanffy, “life would never have progressed beyond the amoeba which, after all, is the best adapted creature in the world…[and] Michelangelo should have followed his father’s request and gone in the wool trade, thus sparing himself lifelong anguish.” In contrast to the stimulus-response (S-R) model, systems theory sees the individual as primarily active, seeking not rest but that steady state maintained by the tension of interaction, as evident in spontaneous, exploratory, and playful behavior.

Our task:

Defining design research process and the creative process

+ Tracking evolution of products/communications that we consider classic

+ Developing a process by which we can analyze examples

+ Using/seeking transdisciplinary resources and problem-solving techniques

+ Surveying answers to past problems and utilizing findings as toolkit in projecting future solutions

+ Determining elemental forms/ideas/intentions

+ Creating complexified systems by adding inputs to challenge classic constructs—examining hybrids

+ Seeking new holons from complexified systems

+ Cataloging/re-cataloging as a tool to explore systems from multiple perspectives

+ Seeking points where tension of interaction occurs, and applying those points to new systems

Haecceity

I came across this description after reading this column by David Brooks in the New York Times, highlighting a number of answers to the question: What scientific concept would improve everybody’s cognitive toolkit? The question formed the basis for a symposium organized by edge.org to which 164 thinkers submitted their answers.

The concept of haecceity (described by Bruce Hood) resonated with me in the context of our discussions of hybrid as well as the idea of classic. I am intrigued by the idea that a gradual transformation of an object can still yield an impression of the object being the same, being familiar (such as the point about restoring/rejuvenating works of art). Thus far perhaps we've been thinking about the hybrid as a different form, but what if it were the same form, altered in some slight way? Perhaps altered many times in small ways so that it was fundamentally "different" but still appeared the same?

Haecceity is originally a metaphysical concept that is both totally obscure and yet very familiar to all of us. It is the psychological attribution of an unobservable property to an object that makes it unique among identical copies. All objects may be categorized into groups on the basis of some shared property but an object within a category is unique by virtual of its haecceity. It is haecceity that makes your wedding ring authentic and your spouse irreplaceable, even though such things could be copied exactly in a futuristic science fiction world where matter duplication had been solved.

Haecceity also explains why you can gradually replace every atom in an object so that it not longer contains any of the original material and yet psychologically, we consider it to be the same object. That transformation can be total but so long as it has been gradual, we consider it to be the same thing. It is haecceity that enables us to accept restoration of valuable works of art and antiquities as a continuous process of rejuvenation. Even when we discover that we replace most of the cellular structures of our bodies every couple of decades, haecceity enables us to consider the continuity of our own unique self.

Link to all the responses here.

Investigating catalogue structures

As one method of investigation, I have begun mapping the layouts of different kinds of catalogues, and plan next to use these one-step-removed diagrams as ready-made structures to catalogue different information in new ways. For example, re-cataloguing/narrating a series of facebook photos through one of the above maps, or exploring a particular collection of items through the windows created by these catalogue structures.

The Book of the Future

Hendrickson in his article the Future of the Book states: 

"that as an industry, we should try to build a list of important concepts, features, and ideas that will help us all work towards building The Book of the Future." 

How might we address these in consideration of the output of our project?

1. Easy-to-use authoring tools that enable content creation and distribution
1. We have experienced this from the extreme design limitations in Apple Pages. The offset being the automatic/built-in accessibility features. This compromise is most apparent in the user's ability to customize the typography of the work. font size (not a trivial matter for the visually impaired), style and justification  (the majority of users would likely choose based on personal and culturally driven aesthetics rather than design best practices).
2. What does the equipment do well and how do we take full advantage of it?
2. Readily available in all formats
1. I want it on all my devices. Might be better to say that I want it in all/preferred contexts.
3. Continuous Updates (more tech-oriented and some non-fiction)
1. Mutability. Real-time revisions.
4. Rich media integration
1. Trans-media narratives.
5. Socially and personally connects readers to publisher/author/community
1. Holonarchy over hierarchy.
6. Engages the distracted and partial attention society
1. Packet knowledge.
7. Written and translated simultaneously
1. Collaborative processes, multiple authors
8. Gamification features
1. Expansion of what is narrative
9. Access from the source
1. Holonarchy over hierarchy.
10. Culture, staffing, and innovation
1. BRB
11. Open source
1. Holonarchy over hierarchy.
12. Priced fairly
1. BUSINESS

Hybridity

Our repeated use of hybrid has rendered it a bit opaque to me, so I revisited the dictionary.

Hybrid

Etymology

Known in English since 1601, but rare before c.1850. From Latin hybrida, a variant of ibrida (“a mongrel; specifically, offspring of a tame sow and a wild boar”), of unsure origin, possibly (a) somehow related to Ancient Greek ὕβρις (hybris, “outrage”)^[1], or (b) < the roots ús (“sow”) and ibro (“wild boar”)^[2]

Might we ask in what ways is a hybrid an outrage? A bastard? Or maybe, instead it is a kind of

Cultivar (plural cultivars)

A cultivated variety of a plant species or hybrid of two species.

A Catalogue of Furniture Styles in America, Late 1600's to Present

In response to our conversation about the catalogue as a means of organizing a subject to study it, I chose to create a catalogue to examine the evolution of furniture styles in America and how it parallels with historical events.

I was surprised to find an overall less reliable pattern in how political events affected furniture styles. This pattern is clear in the early years; colonial America imported its style from England, with only small variations to adapt to American life.

The pattern continued when English styles fell out of favor around the time of the American Revolution. Still connected to European roots, Americans adopted (and slightly reinterpreted) French styles. But the pattern seems to break down with the Victorian and Art Nouveau era. Victorian America saw a revival of numerous past styles, which seemed to have little connection to political events. Art Nouveau seemed to be less about reaction to political events and more about breaking free of old styles and artistic expectations.

Art Deco brought back a strong connection to the political and social events of its time. Its experimentation with new materials and emphasis on technology and speed attempted to infuse luxury into one's surroundings while the economy was facing the Great Depression. While the clean simplicity of Modern furniture seemed to have little connection to political events, Post-Modern reflected the socio-political chaos of the time, expressing the distrust of governments.

From a purely stylistic stance, the pattern is also difficult to discern. In a very general sense, forms seem to evolve into simpler and simpler forms, though this is not necessarily so with the Victorian and Post-Modern movements.

Is there a way to use this catalogue to predict what our tastes may evolve into in the future? Would another catalogue be beneficial, perhaps one that isolates pieces of furniture for specific uses of that time period (ie. laptop desk vs an 18th century writing desk)? Do our tastes really cycle or do they evolve with technological advances or social change? Deeper investigations into any of these periods may provide even more insight into specific ways that furniture has changed (the small 50's formica kitchen table replaces the huge oak dining table). Or perhaps isolating style/form should be the specific conversation rather than how the function of furniture has changed. Truly the catalogue as a means of exploration is a useful tool, even when the results revealed are not what we expected.

One insight I've found into the way furniture styles may change is exemplified below. A definite impact of technology on style, as well as an incredible example of the past and future becoming a hybrid!

http://design-milk.com/furniture-with-memory/

The Hybrid Game

What happens when old and new collide? Or expected and unexpected? Logical and illogical?