Norman D. Cook
Principles of Systemic Control:
The implications of dual control in natural systems for the design of artificial systems
Abstract:The long-term survival of natural systems requires a balance between informational stability, on the one hand, and the ability to alter and use that information, on the other hand. The predominant natural systems on Earth have found a means for balancing these contradictory tendencies by having a "dual" control mechanism: two physically similar control components that are specialized for maintenance of the stability of the system and contact with the external world, respectively. Examples can be found in atomic physics, cell biology, human neuropsychology and cybernetics. The importance of dual control is outlined and its implications for the design of intelligent machines discussed.
Keywords: atom, cell, human organism, neutrons, protons, - electrons, DNA, RNA, protein, cerebral hemispheres, corpus callosum, handedness, speech, laterality, cybernetics, goal-directed system, stability, flexibility, isomorphism