Interactions of Self-organizing Systems in Nature

Interactions of Self-organizing Systems in Nature
Atanu Bikash Chatterjee
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Bhilai Institute of Technology, Bhilai house
Durg, 490006 Chhattisgarh, India
e -mail: abc3.14160@yahoo.com
Abstract: Nature essentially consists of  complex systems. The paper presents a conceptual
framework to understand how complex systems interact with each other in nature. All natural
systems are thermodynamically open and physically adaptive. The process of adaptation and
continual self-organization cause these systems to interact continuously with the environment
and compete against such similar systems for limited resources.
Keywords: complex systems, complexity, information, self-organization, network, hierarchy,    
natural process, human mind, cognitive process.
Introduction: A system is a collection of
internally interacting elements and
constraints. The systems that are found in
nature are thermodynamically open and
therefore, continuously exchange energy
and entropy with the surrounding media.
The  systems found in nature are
structurally complex. A system can also be
defined as a connected network.
Complexity increases not with the amount
of connections between the nodes that are
present in a system but due to the
numerous combinations of possible
connections.  All natural systems have a
tendency to organize with time. Processes
that result towards greater organization are
called natural processes
1
. Evolution is a
cyclic process
1, 2
; therefore, the changes
incurred by the system affect the system
itself. Thus, the system evolves through a
positive feedback loop. On reaching a
certain level of organization (node), the
system stores the information in its
physical memory.    
The theory and practice of sustainable
environment  - by which each level of [2]
hierarchy (physical, chemical, biological,
social and  cultural) is supported by the
previous one - has in theories of evolution
of complex systems, a useful tool for
designing, planning, monitoring and
evaluating different strategies and
interventions. At its own scale each
species is unique; while at their scales,
their parts  differentiate increasingly as
they recover from perturbations during
development, becoming ever more
intensively unique
3
.
Interaction can be thought of as process of
information exchange between the systems
and nature.
Interaction as a process of information exchange
Complex systems interact with each other
through exchange of energy and entropy.
Entropy is a measure of the lack of
information about a process
4
. Thus,
entropy is a quantitative notion and it can
be used to quantify the amount of
information present within a system.  The
Shannon entropy is given by,
� = − ��
����
�
It can also be used as a tool for measuring
the information exchange between
systems. Interactions between systems
occur at all levels of hierarchy and even
surpass metaphysical and philosophical
levels. Metaphysical level of interaction is
a form of social interaction between all
self-organizing complex systems  existing
in society
5
. It is this form of interaction at
meta-physical level that helps us to
understand nature. Human thought process
is affected by nature and various natural
processes as the human mind is itself a
complex self-organizing system.
Conclusion: The paper presents an idea to
understand the interaction of complex
systems at the social and philosophical
levels. The idea presented in this paper can
be applied to understand the human-self
and the various conscious processes in
more detail.
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