Toronto, Ontario; Markham, Ontario; Scarborough, Ontario; Orillia, Ontario; Shanghai, PR China; Helsinki, Finland.
Chinese Visa Center: Mural of historical figures and stories of China’s five thousand years of civilization includes: 1. Houyi, Shooting Suns; 2. Shennong, the Ancient Herbalist; … 5. Hua Tuo, the Ancient Divine Chinese Medical Practitioner; 6. Sun Wu, the Great Military Theorist; 7. Qu Yuan, the Famous Poet; … 11. Confucius, the Great Chinese Philosopher; … 17. Mulan, the Chinese Girl-warrior; 18. Genghis Khan, the Great Conqueror; 24 Marco Polo, and The Travels of Marco Polo; … 27. Koxinga, the National Hero. Waiting in queue to drop off visa application folder, wondering about the process of choosing the 27. (Chinese Visa Application Service Center, University Avenue, Toronto, Ontario) 20171102Cascon 2017: Clustering sticky notes in Strategic Foresight Workshop after discussions over lunch and ideation. After years of lecture layouts, ballroom is arranged with round tables to encourage sharing and capturing amongst participants. Many drawn away from collective activity towards posters at kiosks around the room, so maybe next time reducing options for distraction will lead to stronger inputs. (Cascon 2017, Hilton Suites, Warden Avenue, Markham, Ontario) 20171106Cascon 2017: Presentation #cascon on Cognitive Blockchain @DonnaExplorer, IBM Fellow. Clear demonstrations of pilots on cross-border supply chain traceability, Kimberley Process Certification Scheme for diamonds, IBM Verifier scanner to validate sources, Walmart Food Safety provenance. Digest at https://ingbrief.wordpress.com/2017/11/07/2017-11-07-1015-donna-dillenberger-cognitive-blockchain-cascon/Highland Farms: Ontario grown Flemish Beauty pears on destination shopping, later in the season that I had expected. This heritage variety grows locally, not as popular as Barlett, Anjou or Bosc. Childhood memories of the tree by my grandparents’ house on the southeast corner of Beverley Street and Cecil Street in the 1960s, gone by the 1980s. I’m appreciative of a smaller grocery store that supports local growers. (Highland Farms, Ellesmere Road, Scarborough, Ontario) 20171107Delicious Paradise Kitchen: Father’s choice for Chinese fast food lunch. When I saw the serving of rice pulled on the plate, I said “too much”, and the server put half back into the pot. Dad says one serving is enough to serve two seniors. (Delicious Paradise Kitchen, Silver Star Blvd., Scarborough, Ontario) 20171109Port of Orillia: Off season for boat cruise on Lake Couchiching, on the Orillia waterfront. Quick business trip driving north on overcast early afternoon, followed by southbound trip starting before dusk and then ending in rainy dark. Radio reports subsequently declared winter snow, relatively early for the season. (Port of Orillia, Centennial Drive, Orillia, Ontario) 20171109
Walter Hall: Generations of jazz @UofTMusic, with @MyriadThree as second of five acts in a soft seat theatre. Musicians unusually encouraged to fill time with chat, as rearranging instruments and stands on stage took time. (Walter Hall, University of Toronto Faculty of Music, Queens Park Circle, Toronto, Ontario) 20171110Trace: Intense family drama @kJeffHo@FactoryToronto portrays 3 generations, one actor, two pianos in Trace. Great-grandmother, mother and son wrestle with conflict and duty, from wartime Canton to Hong Kong and Toronto immigration. Moments of humour in the personalities. The Cantonese-accented English takes me back a few decades, the mainlanders sound different now. (Trace, Factory Theatre, Bathurst Street, Toronto, Ontario) 2017114OCADU: Debriefing by @redesign of #rsd6 @RSDSymposium @OCADU_SFI Systems Thinking Ontario session in Toronto, for those who weren’t in Oslo. Slides soon to be officially on web site, relating highlights from memory triggered conversations for clarification and extension. Students new to the master’s program may not appreciate how close to the leading edge some of this content is. (Systems Thinking Ontario, OCAD University, Richmond Street, Toronto) 20171115Suzhou River, Waitan: Sichuan Road northbound on bridge over the Suzhou River, just west of the junction flowing into the Huangpu River, and the more famous embankment of the Bund. Staying at more modest hotel for 2 days while working off jet lag, before decamping to another branch of the same chain near the Siping campus. (Sichuan Road over the Sichuan River, Waitan district, Shanghai, PR China) 20171118Jiangxi Middle Road, Waitan: Dumpling soup breakfast a challenge when Mandarin brain hasn’t kicked in. Pointing at picture on the wall and another customer having same soup gave intention, but was then tripped up as they asked if I wanted 8, 10 or 12 dumplings. Fresh bowl arrived in less than 10 minutes, then server came back with an extra dumpling that must have gone astray in the pot. The youth hostel is a few doors north, so servers must be used to handling foreigners. (416 Jiangxi Middle Road, Waitan district, Shanghai, PR China) 20171119Light & Salt: Dinner with view overlooking the Bund and Pudong across Huangpu River. Almost a year ago, we had dinner in Helsinki, and were wondering where we would all meet next. Three of us were in Shanghai in March, and then another three were in Helsinki in August. We’ve had a lot of life changes in the past 12 months, it seems like just yesterday. (Light & Salt at Rockbund, Waitan district, Shanghai, PR China) 20171119Tongji Huangpu School: High school lecture in English evolved to reinforce learning with Mandarin translation immediately after ideas from slides presented. Long preamble on family system history dating back to grandfather in 1928 became concrete example of how decisions made by parents impact children. (Tongji Huangpu School, Waitan, Shanghai, PR China) 20171120Yang Guo Fu, Guoquan Road: Selected fish, spinach and mushrooms for custom malatang, spicy Sichuan soup where the broth is like sauce, and drinking the bowl empty isn’t a good idea. Walked north from hotel to next metro stop, an easy stroll but breathing harder through a N95 mask to counter an Air Quality Index of 149 unhealthy. Had a full day for research discussions, so much progress that can be done in person, reinforcing that video and audio conference still has lower bandwidth. (Yang Guo Fu, Guoquan Road, Shanghai, PR China) 20171121Guoquan Zhengben Market: Morning dumpling vendor on edge of local market offering fruit, vegetables and meat. Pastry was in crescent and cylinder shape, my breakfast sampling says the filling is the same for both. Ate takeout in the Sino-Finnish Centre kitchen, juices sprayed out onto table, I cleaned up afterwards. (Guoquan Road at Zhengben Road Market, WuJiaoChang, Shanghai, PR China) 20171122Anshansicun: Whimsically painted building in residential area, park directly south and exercise walkways just to the west. Exploring the neighbourhoods on foot reveals some beautiful enclaves away from the main thoroughfares and generic apartment towers. (Sujiatun Road at Fuxin Road, Anshansicun, Shanghai, PR China) 20171123Public Lecture, Tongji U: Graduate students and public invited to “Wicked Problems, Affordances, Service Systems: Some perspectives for designing”. Abstract: Recent research into the practices of designing includes reflection on ways in which the domains for designing and the role(s) of designers have changed. These inquiries echo some of the same questions that arose during the Design Methods Movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. This presentation focuses on exploring some perspectives associated with 21st century advances and challenges to designers: 1. Solution to a problem in context ~ Wicked problems 2. Functions in things ~ Affordances alongside interactions 3. Production systems ~ Service systems The types of projects, activities and technologies for the contemporary designer have changed. The practical and philosophical implications incorporating these perspectives will be discussed. Slides at http://coevolving.com/commons/20171124-wicked-problems-affordances-service-systems (Sino-Finnish Centre, College of Design & Innovation, Tongji University, PR China). 20171124Sino-Finnish Centre: At public lecture, Professor Yi-Heng CHENG providing color commentary in Mandarin Chinese on specific key concepts presented in English at my public lecture on “Wicked Problems, Affordances, Service Systems: Some perspectives for designing”. Methods, reasoning and philosophy are hard enough for English speakers, so checking that students get the drift in their second language. Reminded by Horst Rittel was German, so the term “wicked problems” may lose something in the translation to English. (Sino-Finnish Centre, Tongji University College of Design & Innovation, PR China) 20171124Siping Road at Zhongshan Road: Dong Zou Ma Tang River flowing east, parallel to the north section of the Inner Ring Elevated Road. Few pedestrians in the suburban area, yet looking into the water reveals well-kept gardens. Shanghai neighbourhoods are walled, so it’s not easy to access a continuing path beside the flowing water. (Dong Zou Ma Tang River, Siping Road at Zhongshan Road, Shanghai, PR China) 20171125People’s Square: View north on Xizang Middle Road from pedestrian overpass at Yan’an East Road. Early evening stroll down from Nanjing Road West, then into the Hong Kong Shopping Centre underground of People’s Square. With three train lines intersecting below, everyone has long walks between platforms. (People’s Square, Xizang Middle Road, Shanghai, PR China) 20171126Wujiaochang: Emerged from subway into flashing streams of light with The Egg, by ZHONG Song. Steel shroud covers overpass, above the five-road intersection. Needed compass to navigate around the mazes of modern shopping malls. (Wujiaochang, Yangpu, Shanghai, PR China) 20171127Power Station of Art: Massive exhibition space with 7 floors of halls, but doors mostly closed. Quiet Tuesday night, with major exhibits having finished last weekend. Out of the way location, next visit should be based more on the scheduled show, rather than assuming continuous programming and curation. (Power Station of Art, Huangpu, Shanghai, PR China) 20171128Guanglan Road: Line 2 train from downtown eastbound requires transfer to 4-car train to complete journey to Pudong Airport. In afternoon rush hour, the smaller train filled quite rapidly, and I hopped on at the last minute while others seemed to prefer waiting for the next train with seats available. Not as glamourous as the Maglev express, but the local transfer requires only crossing a platform, rather than exiting through gates and re-entering. (Guanglan Road, Pudong, Shanghai, PR China) 20171129Turkish Airlines Lounge Istanbul: International transit more of a pleasure changing in Turkey, with two-storey lounge equipped with golf simulator, and middle eastern cuisine. Masseurs are giving backrubs. Not enough time for a shower, queue is 2.5 hours long. (Turkish Airlines Lounge Istanbul, Ataturk, Turkey) 20171130
Kampin Kauppakeskus: Jet-lagged intercept with @villesaarikoski to discuss business research trajectory and future directions on innovating through technological disruptions. Fortunate scheduling as I’m in town for 24 hours; Ville just returned from teaching in India. Social media has afforded us a medium to stay connected for more than a decade. (Expresso House, Kampin Kauppakeskus, Helsinki, Finland) 20171130
For five immersive days, a team of six researchers had the opporunity to collaborate on ideas on rhythmic shifts (mostly based on Systems Changes Learning) and anticipatory systems (in the legacy of Robert Rosen). The 2024 Banathy Conversation was organized by the Creative Systemic Research Platform Institute, facilitated by Susu Nousala, Gary S. Metcalf, and […]
Systems Processes Theory has been under development for many decades, led by Len Troncale, a past president of the International Society for the Ssytems Sciences. Many have found getting a grip on the science to be a demanding task, both in scope and in depth. Over many decades, Lynn Rasmussen was a collaborator, refining and […]
The Socio-Technical Systems (STS) perspective, dating back to the studies of Eric L. Trist and Fred E. Emery, was on the reading list of organizational behaviour classes in my undergraduate and master’s degree programs. It wasn’t until 15 years later, when I got involved with the systems sciences and David L. Hawk, that the Socio-Ecological […]
Civic Tech can be described as projects using technology “for the public good“. Civic Tech may be related to, but different from Gov Tech. For the May 2024 Systems Thinking Onrtario, we had two knowledgeable guests in conversation. Dorothy Eng, executive director of Code for Canada since 2021, related her professional journey from engineering to […]
On my May trip through the UK, I accepted an offer to lead an Expert-Led Session at the University of Hull. I had previously been a Research Fellow of the Centre for Systems Studies, but haven’t travelled to the Hull for some years. As we worked out the arrangements, I found out that the seminar […]
I’ve been checking on the breadth of some personal research on systems thinkers. (The list is incomplete, and may orient more towards systems scientists). Searching on Scopus gives an h-Index that counts scholarly references (with a boost, for the first person on the list who received a Nobel prize in chemistry). The list below is […]
David L. Hawk (American management theorist, architect, and systems scientist) has been hosting a weekly television show broadcast on Bold Brave Tv from the New York area on Wednesdays 6pm ET, remotely from his home in Iowa. Live, callers can join…Read more ›
Following the first day lecture on Philosophy of Chinese Medicine 1 for the Global University for Sustainability, Keekok Lee continued on a second day on some topics: * Anatomy as structure; physiology as function (and process); * Process ontology, and thing ontology; * Qi ju as qi-in-concentrating mode, and qi san as qi-in-dissipsating mode; and […]
The philosophy of science underlying Classical Chinese Medicine, in this lecture by Keekok Lee, provides insights into ways in which systems change may be approached, in a process ontology in contrast to the thing ontology underlying Western BioMedicine. Read more ›
In conversation, @zeynep with @ezraklein reveal authentic #SystemsThinking in (i) appreciating that “science” is constructed by human collectives, (ii) the west orients towards individual outcomes rather than population levels; and (iii) there’s an over-emphasis on problems of the moment, and…Read more ›
In the question-answer period after the lecture, #TimIngold proposes art as a discipline of inquiry, rather than ethnography. This refers to his thinking On Human Correspondence. — begin paste — [75m26s question] I am curious to know what art, or…Read more ›
How might our society show value for the long term, over the short term? Could we think about taxation over time, asks @carlotaprzperez in an interview: 92% for 1 day; 80% within 1 month; 50%-60% tax for 1 year; zero tax for 10 years.Read more ›
The appreciation of change is different in Western philosophy than in classical Chinese philosophy. JeeLoo Lin published a concise contrast on differences. Let me parse the Introduction to the journal article, that is so clearly written. The Chinese theory of time is built into a language that is tenseless. The Yijing (Book of Changes) there […]
In trying to place the World Hypotheses work of Stephen C. Pepper (with multiple root metaphors), Nicholas Rescher provides a helpful positioning. — begin paste — Philosophical perspectivism maintains that substantive philosophical positions can be maintained only from a “perspective” of some sort. But what sort? Clearly different sorts of perspectives can be conceived of, […]
Finding proper words to express system(s) change(s) can be a challenge. One alternative could be diachrony. The Oxford English dictionary provides two definitions for diachronic, the first one most generally related to time. (The second is linguistic method) diachronic ADJECTIVE Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “diachronic (adj.), sense 1,” July 2023, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/3691792233. For completeness, prochronic relates “to […]
The selection of readings in the “Introduction” to Systems Thinking: Selected Readings, volume 2, Penguin (1981), edited by Fred E. Emery, reflects a turn from 1969 when a general systems theory was more fully entertained, towards an urgency towards changes in the world that were present in 1981. Systems thinking was again emphasized in contrast […]
In reviewing the original introduction for Systems Thinking: Selected Readings in the 1969 Penguin paperback, there’s a few threads that I only recognize, many years later. The tables of contents (disambiguating various editions) were previously listed as 1969, 1981 Emery, System Thinking: Selected Readings. — begin paste — Introduction In the selection of papers for this […]
