Re: Social Fitness and Information (2)

Gottfried Stockinger
>
> Werner Ebeling wrote:
>
> >Just a little remark from the side of a physicist:
> I cannot see that the concept of fitness is now "obsolete".
> In the opposite, I believe it is still of great actuality
> in spite of the fact that so far nobody is able to quantify it
> in a way we know from theoretical physics i.e. as Hamilton-principle.<
>
> [Stockinger]
>
> Do Hamilton functions (sorry I�m not very familiar with them) supply
> fitness quantification formulas? Maybe in the way we could use them or
> adapt them at a sociological level, in combination with info-theoretical
> aspects (?). Please, if possible, may you give a short explanation?
>
> >I think we have to continue to work on the concept of fitness and in this
> sense I would support here the view of Stockinger about fitness.<
>
> [St]
> A (post- or neo-)darwinian view of fitness, as it has "survived" until
> today, seems realy still to be "fit" enough to continue to work with. In
> sociology, of course, one deals with a very complex value-landscape or
> value-systems, as Artigiani and others have already pointed out (naming it
> VEMs) . They tried to show its evolution by information-inputs coming from
> both, the environment and the social system itself, and did well.
> To go on, in the evolution of such a value-system (institutionalized in
> habits,
> roles, rituals...) certain values and roles etc. are selected because of
> their fitness (to deal with human problems in everyday life), others are
> not.
> But, what really matters is that social evolution historically led to a
> greater variety in the value-landscape. VEMs which have been repressed
> (declared non-fit) are now admitted (declared fit). So one may not talk
> only of the survival of the fittest, but of their (say geometrical)
> multiplication, .
> Of course, there are several theoretical considerations which guide the
> research on information society and its evolution. Only some of them,
> although important ones IMO, deal with the role of social fitness linked
> to
> social variety.
> Using certain analogies to biological transformations, important elements
> for the transformation of information-guided behaviour systems (cultures)
> may be observed. (Maybe Ebeling can come up with physical analogies?). A
> variety of elements respond for changes in the social value-system of all
> kinds of organisations like states, partys, enterprises, groups, clans,
> hords, insofar as these changes aim the optimation of functional
> effectivity in dependence of the variety and its use by the social system's
> elements (events, acts).
> Collectivities ("societies") are able to explore socio-cultural
> information variety to "cause" changes. They instruct and functionalise
> emerging information through feedback in such a way, that they get better
> chances to reach certain local values of "fitness" and get "selected". One
> may say, that they are fitter in the sense of "better instructed".
> If social change and variety are optimised, the replication of the system
> works close to a "treshold of error", that means that transformation
> processes are driven to a dynamic equilibrium between stabiliy and
> creativity A variety of new VEM-operators emerges. Former dominant VEMs
> are still reproducted, but a lot of other alternatives, stabilised by
> mutual separation are also represented in a survivable concentration and
> quantity.
> A more flexible society (a more "free" one?) emerges. And its IMO fitter to
> survive within the new circumstances (about which we may still talk about).
>
>
> Regards
>
> Gottfried Stockinger
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Prof. W. Ebeling ebeling@physik.hu-berlin.de
> Humboldt-Universitaet Berlin phone: +49/(0)30-2093 7636
> Institut fuer Physik fax: +49/(0)30-2093 7638
> Invalidenstrasse 110
> D-10115 Berlin
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>
>

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Prof. W. Ebeling ebeling@physik.hu-berlin.de
Humboldt-Universitaet Berlin phone: +49/(0)30-2093 7636
Institut fuer Physik fax: +49/(0)30-2093 7638
Invalidenstrasse 110
D-10115 Berlin
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Received on Mon Oct 26 13:16:08 1998