Order, Structure,Organization and Their Evolution.

Bluesfesser Fred
Jul 25, 2017 · 4 min read

Order in some set of things is a relation allowing comparision of the elements. Comparision is in terms of selected characteristics, these are properties defined abstractly in the mind which are observable on the objects to be ordered . Any concept may be used as an ordering characteristic,eg. length ,complexity,color,…,hence there are many possible logical orderings on some set of things,in particular when the things are rather complex objects like living organisms for example. it is clear that an ordering depends heavily on the observer doing the ordering and on the choice of characteristic and on the interpretation of the characteristic by the observer.

Humans are forced to find order in chaos .

Indeed we can only select a finite number of characteristics in a comparison,hence the selected set of characteristics one has in mind in trying to find a way in some chaotic set defines automatically a (composed )characteristic and an order with respect to it ,however hard the comparison is made by the extent of the selected characteristics in the “composed” one.

Hence we are unable to imagine pure chaos!

Language of course comes into the picture creating the usual fuzziness ,so there is a narrow definition of order as in Mathematics (partial order,total order,well-ordering,…) and very broadly understood non-definition like in statements about “the order of nature” or “the order in the universe”.The latter suggest an observer-free definition of order (and of selected characteristic of comparison) but this cannot exist for the definition we used here . On the other hand the remark about being forced to “recognize” order in chaos does explain the (wrong) transition of the notion of order to probably chaotic systems . Another reason for the omnipresence of order in human cognition and observations is the fact that we observe change in time and then also discovering causality by cause and consequence also being chronologically ordered. The chronological order is almost certainly the first order people discover ,hence it is the initial idea for all orderings.

Order may be seen as a primitive form of structure but structure is to be defined by a coherent set of inter-relations on a set of objects defining some global properties of the set under consideration . Again the inter-relations are observed by the observer up to a selection (neglecting certain relations a priori as not belonging to the structure ,even if the final structure is not known!) in the case of an observed object ,and even defined by the observer in case of an abstract construction of some structure (as in math).Observed structures are also abstract structures (the only ones we actually know) but they correspond to some observations of reality. There are many inter-relations between subsets of elements of the structure and these inter-relations do not necessarily come from a relation defined on the total set ,hence a structure need not have an ordering underneath it ! Putting a structure on some collection of things is structuring but not yet organizing. The notion of organizing refers to a function of the organized objects ,the function can be abstract like:to be beautiful ,to be complete,to fit into some abstract theory,…,or concrete like :acting out a program,surviving in a biotope , supporting some weight,… . Hence in the notion of organization there is a component dealing with a “planned” result of the structuring, in language this is often highlighted by phrases like “ organized such that …” mentioning the function or aim of the organizing. But there are also notions of self-structuring and self-organizing in particular for living organisms and thus these notions suggest the connection with time and the evolution or change of the structure and organization over time .

Hence a concept starting as being relative to the observer may get disconnected from the observer by observing someone else doing the organizing !

When someone organizes something he has no problem in seeing himself as the organizer and he easily accepts that the organization was planned by him. When we observe something (or someone) doing so-called self-organization we then cannot decide whether the organization is planned with respect to an expected outcome .This is an effect of the general problem of change and evolution of structure and organization over (long ) time periods , in particular when applied to the evolution of species and life. We know know that short time adaptions in structure and behavior within a species are planned and possible via epigenic activity . Mutations of the genetic structure lead to more definitive changes ,over longer periods, that may be a splitting off of new species or the extinction of one branch. But continuous change in organization of some living thing happening over long periods,like for example shifting of the level in the use of the brain ,do not stem from mutation and also not from temporal epigenic changes . So it is an effect of the “organization” of the species or even more general of the “organization” of life . Organization at that level is evident,it is for example the use of the gene code ,the use of eukaryotic cells to produce multi-cellular beings, the method of acquiring energy via food, aso…; Now what if evolution in a species would not be primarily a change of the biological nature of the individual ,but an evolution of the “organization” of the being.So without changing the biological constituents of the being is it possible to change (step by step) the organization of how the parts cooperate in the whole ,until eventually small biological changes are prompted by small organizational changes ? Change of organization does not need genetic change ,perhaps natural selection could be a factor of organizational non-genetic change but there is no argument for supposing natural selection is the only factor if indeed it is one ! For example there could be some global strategy change in he organization of the species ,or even life on a given planet itself ,invoking changes of organization in individuals.

There is a global organization controlling organization in individual beings.

Bluesfesser Fred

Written by

Born in 1947 .Real name: Fred Van Oystaeyen.Active in Math research, author of many papers and books . Hobby :Blues and plants.

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