Let people control how cybernetic social systems work

In 1948, Norbert Wiener published a work titled Cybernetics: Or Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine. In it, he pointed out that all biological organisms, machines and social systems follow the same homeostatic principles when it comes to adjusting their behaviour.

- RAHUL MATTHAN

The human body maintains body temperature, blood pressure, physical balance and a whole host of other essential functions by constantly scanning the environment for changes and immediately responding with appropriate adjustments if and when there is a variation from the norm. If you think about it, both mechanical and social systems follow a similar approach. Thermostats maintain a constant temperature by instructing an air-conditioning system to cool or heat the room as soon as it detects a change in the ambient air temperature. Along similar lines, central banks lower interest rates once they detect rising unemployment so that companies can access cheaper credit to invest more and hire more workers.

Each of these systems uses active feedback loops to detect deviations from the norm that trigger corrective responses that can return the system to its equilibrium state. Wiener's insight was that this approach—which is manifest in nature—can be applied to learning, adaptation and just about any goal-seeking behaviour in artificial systems.