ABSTRACT
The decomposition of a complex system into subsystems can be done in many ways. A plant may be decomposed into leaves and branches and roots and stem leaves are pretty much independent of each other in most of their physiology. On the other hand, a completely different subdivision, into processes of mineral assimilation, photosynthesis, and respiration, will give very different results. By virtue of W. M. Elsasser’s principle of finite classes, the totally complex system corresponds to a trivial epistemology which is impotent. Epistemological complexity only arises by constraining ontological complexity: complexity is created by its negation. But the difficulties of parameter estimation are not the most serious problems in the study of complexity. The first task in the study of complex systems is the identification of sufficient parameters.
