Sample Issue of 2-monthly PCP-news

Date: Wed, 6 Nov 1996 12:32:19 +0100
To: PCP-news [at] listserv.vub.ac.be
Subject: Principia Cybernetica News - September/October 1996
Sender: owner-PCP-news[ at ]listserv.vub.ac.be
Precedence: bulk

GENERAL NEWS

A first part of the new results, reached during the PCP board meeting in
June, on the definition of control have now been incorporated into PCP Web
(http://cleamc11.vub.ac.be/control.html). Moreover, our programs for
self-organizing hypertext and retrieval of words through spreading
activation can now be permanently consulted on the web, via a new node
devoted to our research on learning, "brain-like" webs
(http://cleamc11.vub.ac.be/learnweb.html).
The PCP editor Cliff Joslyn has moved from Goddard Space Center, NASA, to
the Los Alamos National Laboratory. His new address is:

	Mail Stop B265
	Los Alamos National Laboratory
	Los Alamos, NM 87545 USA
	joslyn[ at ]lanl.gov
	http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~joslyn

The groups associated with PCP have also been quite active. The people
involved with the electronic "Journal of Memetics" have reached consensus
on an introductory text describing the aims of the journal, a general
editorial policy, a managing editor (Hans-Cees Speel,
hanss[ at ]sepa.tudelft.nl), and the constitution of an advisory board
(presently Daniel Dennett, Aaron Lynch, David Hull and Gary Cziko). At the
moment, they are looking for authors wishing to contribute to the first
issue, which is scheduled for 1997. If you are interested to write a paper
or take part in the reviewing process, please contact Hans-Cees Speel.

The "Global Brain" group (see http://cleamc11.vub.ac.be/gbrain-l.html) has
started its discussions on superorganisms and networks playing the role of
nervous systems. Thanks again to Bruce Edmonds (who already created the
PRNCYB-L archive, and the Journal of Memetics list and web site), an
archive of the discussions can now be consulted at
http://www.fmb.mmu.ac.uk:80/~majordom/gbrain/

WHAT'S NEW IN PCP WEB

The following nodes in Principia Cybernetica Web have undergone substantive
editing, or have been newly added during the months of September and
October, 1996. (all documents are available via
http://cleamc11.vub.ac.be/recent.html)

* Oct 31, 1996: Basic References on the Global Brain / Superorganism
(Gaines paper added)
*  Oct 30, 1996: References to Principia Cybernetica in different servers
(links added)
*  Oct 29, 1996: Feedback (new!)
*  Oct 21, 1996: Powers' Definition of Control  (new!)
*  Oct 21, 1996: Other Definitions of Control  (new!)
*  Oct 21, 1996: Examples and Counterexamples of Control Systems (empty)
*  Oct 21, 1996: The Harmonic Oscillator as a Control System  (new!)
*  Oct 21, 1996: Blind control  (new!)
*  Oct 21, 1996: Metalanguages and Metarepresentations  (new!)
*  Oct 21, 1996: Special Cases of Control  (new!)
*  Oct 21, 1996: Control (expanded)
*  Oct 21, 1996: Editorial Board (update)
*  Oct 16, 1996: Links on Evolutionary Theory and Memetics (links added)
*  Oct 7, 1996: Principia Cybernetica Masthead (update)
*  Oct 4, 1996: The "Global Brain" study group  (new!)
*  Oct 4, 1996: Basic References on the Global Brain / Superorganism  (new!)
*  Oct 1, 1996: Links on Indexes and Encyclopedias (links added)
*  Oct 1, 1996: Belgium: Overview (links added)
*  Sep 16, 1996: Editorial Board (photo added)
*  Sep 16, 1996: F. Heylighen: Biographical Sketch (new photo)
*  Sep 10, 1996: Welcome to the Principia Cybernetica Web (updated)
*  Sep 10, 1996: Learning, "Brain-like" Webs  (new!)
*  Sep 9, 1996: Finding words through spreading activation  (new!)


DISCUSSIONS ON PRNCYB-L

The following topics were announced or discussed on the PRNCYB-L mailing
list (see http://cleamc11.vub.ac.be/mail.html) during the months of
September and October. The full text of all original messages and replies
is available via the PRNCYB-L archive:
http://www.fmb.mmu.ac.uk/~bruce/PRNCYB-L/thread.html
The most important discussions were on the topic of superorganisms,
supersystems and metasystems, and on the Robert Rosen's theory as proposed
in his book "Life Itself".

* analytic and synthetic - Jeff Prideaux
* Cortex, or, "what was that?!" - Rick
* CFP: 14th Int. Sustainable Development Conference [fwd] - Francis Heylighen
* CFP: American Society for Cybernetics Meeting [fwd] - Francis Heylighen
* "the pope and evolution" - Hans-Cees Speel
* ""rosen and evolution" - Hans-Cees Speel
* Re: A hint on discussion about "complexity" - Czeslaw Mesjasz
* Funded PhD studentship in applying logic tools for modelling - Bruce Edmonds
*  "rosen and life itself." - Hans-Cees Speel
* meta-system properties 5 (1) - Brown, Alex
* A "Systems University on the Net" project asks your comments - Francis
Heylighen
* Self-Organization of the European Information Society [fwd] - Francis
Heylighen
* Self-organization and selection in the super-organism - Francis Heylighen
* Super-organisms as analogies or metaphors? - Francis Heylighen
* Re: super-systems - Mario Vaneechoutte
* Internet Conference on Cybernetics and the Humanities - Chris Miles
*  super systems and grains of sand - Dan Parker
* Agent philosophy - Alexander 'Sasha' Chislenko
* super-systems, super-systems & co - Paulo Garrido
* New Member: Lode Leroy - Cliff Joslyn
* New member: Wolfgang Rathert - Cliff Joslyn
* New member: Alexander Brown - Cliff Joslyn
* New member: Boris Steipe - Cliff Joslyn
* New member: Thiery Melchior - Cliff Joslyn
* New member: Tom Abel - Cliff Joslyn
* New member: Hugo Fjelsted Alroe - Cliff Joslyn
* Caracas Conference on Systemics, Cybernetics & Informatics [fwd] -
Francis Heylighen
* "On the Origins of Cognition" Workshop Announc. & Call - Jon Umerez Urrezola
* Thought Contagion: new book on memes [fwd] - Francis Heylighen


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