WHITHER CYBERNETICS: PAST ACHIEVEMENTS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS Available to Purchase

The meaning and connotations of cybernetics are reviewed with the conclusion that complex adaptive systems are the central theme. Formal and informal approaches are contrasted and shown to be compatible. The most spectacular achievements of cybernetics are in the area of artificial intelligence, but current work under that heading is subject to a fundamental limitation. Simulation of non‐verbal thought processes can only be achieved by studying the transition from non‐succinct to succinct information representation in cybernetic systems. Attention must be given to the evolution and operation of the meta‐goal of succinct representation of information.