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Engineering Systems Integration
value of the action to the object, and significant value ascribed to the cause.
As we have observed, action is self-generated only if the object is a source
kind. Human-built objects may be comprised of source objects, but the other
kinds of objects are necessary for integration into a system (otherwise, the
objects simply interact).
Objects may be comprised of other objects, each of which is related by
interactions. Objects can be ordinary or elemental. Ordinary objects are
macroscopic in size—perhaps represented as a piece of wood, a broom, a
component of a subsystem of a large electrical grid, an eye or arm, or a
human. Objects are distinguishable from other objects and nonobjects by
their boundaries and boundary conditions, their mass and energy, their
information and knowledge, their material wealth, their functions, and the
behaviors they induce because they are available or anticipated.
Objects have boundaries. However, boundaries are neither fixed nor
impassable. They simply pose a limit at which the endogenous operations of
an object are expected to be* or are substantially diminished. External actions
may affect an object regardless of the boundaries of that object. These boundaries can be of several types: behavioral, functional, physical, abstract, process, and representational. Boundaries of an organization can be determined
by behaviors, physical objects (entities), functions, abstract concepts, processes, and representations (or models). Boundaries are not always easily recognized. Behaviors of various types form boundaries by which some people
in an organization will not cross. These might be legal or ethical boundaries.
Different organizations may have varying degrees of adherence to ethical
boundaries, some visible some not. Behaviors are describable in terms of
observed reactions to influences of energy, matter, material wealth, or information. Functional boundaries illustrate the limits on the use for a product or
service. Physical entities (objects) may have a visible corporeal boundary, for
example, the physical edge of a dustpan that when placed on a flat surface
such as a floor provides a function of ‘to ramp to’ so dust can be swept into the
dustpan. Functions are identifiable at boundaries of objects. In essence, a
function denotes a boundary and a boundary condition—the circumstances
in which the function can be used by a user (act as a ramp and repository for
dust, in this case). By simple analogy, the boundary conditions for all macroscopic objects are describable in terms of observed reactions to influences of
energy, matter, material wealth, or information on the boundary of an object.
Abstract concepts hold that unrelated items can be juxtaposed and bounded.
A photograph of a red chess piece with a black and yellow car battery on a
stark white background may not offer any recognizable pattern to a group of
people. However, the mere physical presentation of the photograph is recognizable as an abstraction bounded by the edge of the visible imagery. The
photograph can be thought of as a limiting measure of bits of information to
* Intentions (i.e., the cognitive conceptions) are ascribed to the fulfillment of needs through
uses of human-built artifacts.
Engineering Systems Integration
value of the action to the object, and significant value ascribed to the cause.
As we have observed, action is self-generated only if the object is a source
kind. Human-built objects may be comprised of source objects, but the other
kinds of objects are necessary for integration into a system (otherwise, the
objects simply interact).
Objects may be comprised of other objects, each of which is related by
interactions. Objects can be ordinary or elemental. Ordinary objects are
macroscopic in size—perhaps represented as a piece of wood, a broom, a
component of a subsystem of a large electrical grid, an eye or arm, or a
human. Objects are distinguishable from other objects and nonobjects by
their boundaries and boundary conditions, their mass and energy, their
information and knowledge, their material wealth, their functions, and the
behaviors they induce because they are available or anticipated.
Objects have boundaries. However, boundaries are neither fixed nor
impassable. They simply pose a limit at which the endogenous operations of
an object are expected to be* or are substantially diminished. External actions
may affect an object regardless of the boundaries of that object. These boundaries can be of several types: behavioral, functional, physical, abstract, process, and representational. Boundaries of an organization can be determined
by behaviors, physical objects (entities), functions, abstract concepts, processes, and representations (or models). Boundaries are not always easily recognized. Behaviors of various types form boundaries by which some people
in an organization will not cross. These might be legal or ethical boundaries.
Different organizations may have varying degrees of adherence to ethical
boundaries, some visible some not. Behaviors are describable in terms of
observed reactions to influences of energy, matter, material wealth, or information. Functional boundaries illustrate the limits on the use for a product or
service. Physical entities (objects) may have a visible corporeal boundary, for
example, the physical edge of a dustpan that when placed on a flat surface
such as a floor provides a function of ‘to ramp to’ so dust can be swept into the
dustpan. Functions are identifiable at boundaries of objects. In essence, a
function denotes a boundary and a boundary condition—the circumstances
in which the function can be used by a user (act as a ramp and repository for
dust, in this case). By simple analogy, the boundary conditions for all macroscopic objects are describable in terms of observed reactions to influences of
energy, matter, material wealth, or information on the boundary of an object.
Abstract concepts hold that unrelated items can be juxtaposed and bounded.
A photograph of a red chess piece with a black and yellow car battery on a
stark white background may not offer any recognizable pattern to a group of
people. However, the mere physical presentation of the photograph is recognizable as an abstraction bounded by the edge of the visible imagery. The
photograph can be thought of as a limiting measure of bits of information to
* Intentions (i.e., the cognitive conceptions) are ascribed to the fulfillment of needs through
uses of human-built artifacts.