Søren Brier
The present double issue presents two major theoretical contributions within phenomenological and constructivist epistemology and method, presenting major new theories and models.
Event and Body-Mind: An Outline of a Post-postmodern Approach to Phenomenology is professor Ole Fogh Kirkeby’s paper. He develops a modern phenomenological-socio-linguistic platform for understanding of the self-organization of cognition. In a critical dialogue with Niklas Luhmann’s second order cybernetic communication theory, OFK contributes a linguistic constructivist position that includes the observer’s basic emotive extentialism. To solve this problem OFK has developed a new set of distinctions and concepts that he welds into a phenomenological and linguistic model of cognition. Although OFK has developed his ideas in several scholarly books in Danish, this is the first English presentation of the core elements in this ground breaking theory, which goes beyond any known constructivist and postmodern position.
Darek M. Eriksson’s article presents A Principal Exposition of Jean-Louis Le Moigne’s Systemic Theory. This is the first comprehensive and critical review of this theory complex to appear in English. Le Moigne has spend a life-time developing his constructivist system-theoretical approach and applying them to management, business administration and economics. Most of his work has been published in French. We are pleased to have been instrumental in the presentation of this important French thinker to the English speaking cybernetic community. Le Moigne is the leader of the GRASCE group at university of d’Aix-Marseille, which does research on the adaptation, systemic organization and complexity of economics. He is also organizing an association - MCX - dedicated to the Modularization of Complexity, integrating many kinds of personal and intellectual resources in France, including several of our editors.
Ranulph Glanville and Louis Kauffman continue their personal and scholarly columns. Glanville on cybernetics concepts - for the moment communication theory - and Kauffmann on virtual logic - this time on the possibility of human control of machine proof of mathematical theorems. Finally we bring book reviews by Jane Jorgensen and Marcello Pakmann.
We welcome Marie La Rochelle from Canada as a new consultant editor.
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