Reifying the Systems LO9414

Nickols@aol.com
Sat, 24 Aug 1996 08:53:35 -0400

<< The whole is more than the sum of its parts.

...well perhaps just different than the sum of its parts. Our mental models
help us select examples of 'wholes' being greater than the sum of the parts,
but
if we stop and think, we can identify any number of organziations in which
great
people teamed up to be... well, mediocre or worse.

>>

Not sure what you mean here, Rol. The statement about
the whole being more than the sum of the parts says "more"
not better. That said, I also agree that the whole is indeed
different from the sum of the parts, and I too have seen some
cases where great people teamed up and produced mediocre
results. Neither of those, however, negates the notion that
the whole is greater or more than the sum of the parts, which
is simply an assertion that relationships between the elements
or components of a system contribute to the nature of that
system in a way that is separate from any contributions made
by the elements.

Regards,

Fred Nickols
nickols@aol.com

-- 

Nickols@aol.com

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