International Society for the Systems Sciences
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| International Society for the Systems Sciences (ISSS) | |
| Type | Professional Organization |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1956 |
| Headquarters | Pocklington, York , United Kingdom |
| Origins | Society for General Systems Research (SGSR) |
| Key people | Gary Metcalf (current president) |
| Area served | Worldwide |
| Focus | Systems sciences |
| Method | Special Integration Groups, Conferences, Publications |
| Website | www.isss.org/world |
The International Society for the Systems Sciences (ISSS) is an organisation for interdisciplinary collaboration and synthesis of systems sciences.
The ISSS is unique among systems-oriented institutions in terms of the breadth of its scope, bringing together scholars and practitioners from academic, business, government, and non-profit organizations. Based on fifty years of tremendous interdisciplinary research from the scientific study of complex systems to interactive approaches in management and community development.[1]
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[edit] Mission
The initial purpose of the society was "to encourage the development of theoretical systems which are applicable to more than one of the traditional departments of knowledge," with the following principal aims:[2]
- to investigate the isomorphy of concepts, laws, and models in various fields, and to help in useful transfers from one field to another;
- to encourage the development of adequate theoretical models in areas which lack them;
- to eliminate the duplication of theoretical efforts in different fields; and
- to promote the unity of science through improving the communication among specialists.
[edit] History
The International Society for the Systems Sciences (ISSS) is among the first and oldest organizations devoted to interdisciplinary inquiry into the nature of complex systems, and remains perhaps the most broadly inclusive.
[edit] Society for the Advancements of General Systems Theory
The Society was initially conceived in 1954 at the Stanford Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences by Ludwig von Bertalanffy, Kenneth Boulding, Ralph Gerard, and Anatol Rapoport.
The story goes that in the fall of 1954 the four of them where sitting around a lunch table one day [3] and it became clear that they all converging on something like general systems from different directions. Bertalanffy's thoughts certainly seeming to be the most advanced. Somebody said "Let's form a society."
At the American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting that year in December in Berkeley, they called a meeting. Some seventy people came and there was a lot of enthusiasm. From that day, the society became active. The following year Boulding, Gerard and Rappoport joined with James Grier Miller at the University of Michigan, and from there the Society got underway.
[edit] Society for General Systems Research
In collaboration with James Grier Miller, it was formally established as an affiliate of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1956. Originally founded as the Society for General Systems Research,
[edit] International Society for the Systems Sciences
The society adopted its current name in 1988 to reflect its broadening scope. [4] In the intervening years, the ISSS has expanded its scope beyond purely theoretical and technical considerations to include the practical application of systems methodologies to problem solving. Even more importantly, it has provided a forum where scholars and practitioners from across the disciplinary spectrum, representing academic, business, government, and non-profit communities, can come together to share ideas and learn from one another.[5]
[edit] General Systems Yearbook
Since 1956, the Society for General Systems Research has produced a yearbook, General Systems, which collects together significant papers, often originally published in journals of a wide variety of disciplines. This is a very valuable source for the location of concepts and their definitions.[6]
For example Richard F. Ericson, a former director of the Society, prepared two tentative versions of a "Selected glossary of terms with particular reference to concepts associated with cybernetic management and information technology". Oran Young has carried out a survey of the use of general systems concepts[7] The many books on general systems naturally also offer definitions of concepts. It is appropriate to ask why general systems has not been able to respond as effectively as might have been hoped to the challenges of the times. Attempts have been made to render general systems relevant to the issues raised by the global problematique [8] but there has been little follow-up[6].
[edit] Special Integration Groups
An organizational feature of the society is the Special Integration Group (SIG). Each Special Integration Group allows the organization to approach systems work from a particular perspective. The ISSS believes that sub multiple groups, working in collaboration, yield the kind of synergy that is needed to embrace reality in a meaningful manner.[9] The Special Integration Group of the ISSS are:
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[edit] Presidents
Past Presidents of ISSS have been drawn from a wide spectrum of scholars including Nobel laureates. The ISSS presidents:[10]
[edit] Sir Geoffrey Vickers Memorial Award
The Sir Geoffrey Vickers Memorial Award is an annual Award for outstanding student paper in the domain of Systems sciences. It is considered the most prestious price in the field at the pre-doctoral level. The Award named after Sir Geoffrey Vickers has been presented by the International Society for the Systems Sciences every year since 1985 in his memory. Recipients, a selection:
- 1985: J. Donald R. de Raadt
- 1988: Elias L. Khalil
- 1994: Darek M. Eriksson
- 2005: Honorato Teissier
- 2006: Hanne Birgitte Jensen
- 2007: Nicholas R. Magliocca
Other recipients:
- Alexander Laszlo, Kathia Castro Laszlo, Lynn Rasmussen
[edit] See also
- General Systems : Yearbook of the Society for General Systems Research
- International Federation for Systems Research (IFRS)
- International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE)
- International Society for Complexity, Information and Design (ISCID)
- Mental Health Research Institute (Michigan)
[edit] References
- ^ International Society for the Systems Sciences
- ^ Origin and Purpose of the ISSS | International Society for the Systems Sciences
- ^ Kenneth E. Boulding, in: Uncommon Sence, by Mark Davidson, Los Angeles: J.P. Tarcher, 1983, p.19.
- ^ Home Page International Society for the Systems Sciences, ISSS 2004
- ^ Home Page International Society for the Systems Sciences, ISSS 2004
- ^ a b Integrative knowledge and transdisciplinarity project - commentaries. Union of International Associations 1907-2008. Retrieved 9 June 2008.
- ^ (General Systems, 1964, p.61-80, 239-253).
- ^ Ervin Laszlo, 1974 and Richard F. Ericson 1979),
- ^ ISSS intorudtion on the ISFR website 2007.
- ^ Board of Directors | International Society for the Systems Sciences
