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Thinking in Systems: A Primer
Donella H. Meadows
Top 10 Best Quotes
“Remember, always, that everything you know, and everything everyone knows, is only a model. Get your model out there where it can be viewed. Invite others to challenge your assumptions and add their own.”
“There are no separate systems. The world is a continuum. Where to draw a boundary around a system depends on the purpose of the discussion.”
“You think that because you understand “one” that you must therefore understand “two” because one and one make two. But you forget that you must also understand “and.”
“a system must consist of three kinds of things: elements, interconnections, and a function or purpose.”
“Purposes are deduced from behavior, not from rhetoric or stated goals.”
“So, what is a system? A system is a set of things—people, cells, molecules, or whatever—interconnected in such a way that they produce their own pattern of behavior over time.”
“Missing information flows is one of the most common causes of system malfunction. Adding or restoring information can be a powerful intervention, usually much easier and cheaper than rebuilding physical infrastructure.”
“An important function of almost every system is to ensure its own perpetuation.”
“A system* is an interconnected set of elements that is coherently organized in a way that achieves something.”
“You can drive a system crazy by muddying its information streams.”
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Book Keywords:
knowledge, beliefs, understanding