Top 20 Books Referenced in E:CO papers

What we are now only discovering, Kauffman says, is that range of spontaneous order is enormously greater than we had supposed and, in fact, self-organization is a great undiscovered principle of nature. He contends that complexity itself triggers self-organization--what Kauffman calls "order for free"--and that if enough different molecules pass a certain threshold of complexity, they begin to self-organize into a new entity: a living cell. There is a phase transition when water abruptly turns to ice. Likewise, life may have originated when the mix of different molecules in the primordial soup passed a certain level of complexity and re-grouped into living entities (if so, then life is not a highly improbable chance event, but almost inevitable). Using the basic insight of "order for free" Kauffman illuminates a staggering range of phenomena. Darwin's natural selection has not acted alone, but in a persistent marriage with self-organization to create the majesty of the biosphere. A new slant can also be applied to the field of genetic engineering wherein trillions of novel molecules can be generated to find new drugs, vaccines, and enzymes. Kauffman extends this new paradigm to economic and cultural systems, showing that all may evolve according to similar general laws.

An exciting exploration into the nature of life, At Home in the Universe provides stunning insights into a new scientific revolution.

Section One introduces the notion of systems philosophy, concentrating on the preoccupation of systems thinkers with undertaking 'holistic' or 'comprehensive' analyses. Section Two of the book then goes on to examine the methodological consequences of taking this new approach. First, the concept of intervention is introduced. This is defined as purposeful action by an agent to create change, and is contrasted with observation. Next, the systems philosophy outlined in Section One is related to the methodology of intervention, and it is suggested that 'systemic intervention' is purposeful action by an agent to create change in relation to reflection on boundaries. Then the case is made for theoretical pluralism. This follows on logically from the theory of boundary critique because every theory is based on either implicit or explicit assumptions about the appropriate boundaries for analysis. Finally, Section Three of this book starts with some background to the author's own intervention practice in Community Operational Research (dealing with problematic issues in community contexts). Four examples of systemic intervention are provided, each of which is used to illustrate a different aspect of the methodology outlined in Section Two. The book then ends with an invitation to the reader to begin to practice systemic intervention and contribute to its further development.