Hierarchy Theory

Fülszöveg

The modern world thrusts complex patterns upon us in all realms of
human experience. Is there a way to consider complexity in a unified fash-
ion? Hierarchy theory, rooted in the work of economist Herbert Simon,
chemist Ilya Progogine, and child psychologist Jean Piaget, offers a revolu-
tionary new scientific approach to questions about complexity in nature.
In Hierarchy Theory: A Vision, Vocabulary, and Epistemology Valerie Ahl and
T. F. H. Allen provide a comprehensive introduction to this new way of
looking at the world. Exploring the relationship between observation, per-
ception, and learning, Ahl and Allen point out that objects in the world
around us can be explained in many different ways, depending in each
case upon the interaction between observer and observed.
Hierarchy theory shifts the focus of attention to the observer, suggesting
that the uncertainty of many scientific findings may be the result of asking
inadequate questions. Rather than seeking data... Tovább

Fülszöveg

The modern world thrusts complex patterns upon us in all realms of
human experience. Is there a way to consider complexity in a unified fash-
ion? Hierarchy theory, rooted in the work of economist Herbert Simon,
chemist Ilya Progogine, and child psychologist Jean Piaget, offers a revolu-
tionary new scientific approach to questions about complexity in nature.
In Hierarchy Theory: A Vision, Vocabulary, and Epistemology Valerie Ahl and
T. F. H. Allen provide a comprehensive introduction to this new way of
looking at the world. Exploring the relationship between observation, per-
ception, and learning, Ahl and Allen point out that objects in the world
around us can be explained in many different ways, depending in each
case upon the interaction between observer and observed.
Hierarchy theory shifts the focus of attention to the observer, suggesting
that the uncertainty of many scientific findings may be the result of asking
inadequate questions. Rather than seeking data within old frameworks
that may have internal contradictions, hierarchy theory considers how we
can frame new questions. A series of straightforward cases from the world
around us, accompanied by more than eighty illustrations, help define the
fundamental principles of hierarchy theory, such as filters, surfaces, stabili-
ty, nesting, and the integration of disturbances into systems.
With applications in fields as diverse as chemistry, history, philosophy,
economics, and computer science, Hierarchy Theory: A Vision, Vocabulary,
and Epistemology will appeal to anyone with an interest in the processes by
which we see and evaluate our world, providing insight into a new class of
methods based on a more realistic assessment of the limits of understand-
ing.
VALERIE AHL is a psychologist who studies comparative cognitive devel-
opment and Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Wisconsin.
T. F. H. ALLEN is an ecological theorist and Professor of Botany, Environ-
mental Studies, and Integrated Liberal Studies at the University of Wiscon-
sin.
PAULA LERNER is a freelance photographer. Vissza