i wanted to take a post to briefly introduce systems thinking, so that when it's referenced in other posts, there's at least some context! i will be drawing examples from some of my favorite systems, namely from the subjects of anatomy and physiology, combat sports, and last but not least, computers!

so, let's begin with the definition of a system. as per "thinking in systems: a primer" by donella meadows, a system is "an interconnected set of elements that is coherently organized in a way that achieves something". to be clear, a system is made up of elements, interconnections, and a goal/purpose/function.

there are systems ALL around us. the human body is one of the most beautiful in my opinion. for example, when your body temperature rises past a certain point, there are parts of your peripheral nervous system that register this, sending signals to parts in your brain, which in turn send signals to glands throughout your body to combat said rise in body temperature. once the body temperature hits a satisfactory level, feedback is again used and messages are relayed to stop the production of sweat. the same can be said of a similar but opposite example: shivering when you're cold. the elements are the bodily structures, the interconnections are the messages being relayed and the statuses inside the messages, and the goal is homeostasis/allostasis!

systems can have layers to them too – hierarchies. subsystems with their own elements, interconnections, and goals, that go on to affect a bigger system. in my combat sports studies, there are systems for defense, offense, movement, IQ, and leadership/communication. each one has their own goals, ultimately adding up to the ultimate goal of winning a match. one core principle is "small wins all wins", referring to the fact that if each of the subsystem's can achieve their goals, it'll lead to achieving the ultimate goal! if i can catch an opponent's jab, i can stifle their momentum (another subsystem to think about), which means i can buy myself time to see, think, and decide. i can decide to move, i can decide to counter. this is influenced by my IQ, developed in training. it is also influenced by my coach, who is providing even more feedback via our established communication system – this subsystem being comprised of key linguistics that convey clear messages that can be understood and acted upon in the stressful environment of fighting.

systems also show natures of self-preservation and resilience. in systems design for computer networks, this is accomplished with redundancy. a resilient system is one that can withstand a number of variations in the environment – if one computer or server goes down, there are others to continue maintaining the up-time of the application. or an application could display fault tolerance, where it will disable a function, revert to a different mode, or switch to a different server, in the presence of certain errors. even though a computer cannot grow more wires or more memory space the way a human brain can grow cells, both systems can show adaptability!

as a closing point, i'd like to state that models of systems will never be 100% accurate. reality is too turbulent, inflows and outflows are constant, and borders are never as clean as we may draw them on a whiteboard. our models are just tools used to deepen our understanding of how the elements and interconnections work towards a given purpose, but in a world full of systems interacting, it's hard to find clear start and stop points. no matter how smart we get, our models can only help us get closer, but never quite there. in that is a lesson: keep an open mind to learning and being surprised. never be so arrogant that you think you know it all. even my meditation practice incorporates a systematic approach – understanding the different elements of the mind and of the brain. but especially with the mind, where we cannot point to one physical part of it vs another, it can only truly be understood through lived experience, and not a drawn or written model on a piece of paper.

such is true with all things. do your best to study and deepen your knowledge, but you HAVE to experience things for the deepest understanding. to close out, i'll just point out that my learning approach that displays this principle, is in and of itself, also a (you guessed it) SYSTEM!