A PHENOMENOLOGY OF EVOLVING NETWORKS (REPRINTED FROM SYSTEMS-RESEARCH, VOL 6, PG 209-217, 1989)

A significant characteristic of post-Newtonian science is its exclusio n of all but material and mechanical causalities. There is reason to q uestion whether such minimalism is sufficient to describe living proce sses. Paradoxically, a strict material/mechanical stance may engender unnecessary anthropomorphism. By admitting autopoiesis as an example o f formal cause at work in living systems, a more sufficient and natura l description of biological phenomena results. Furthermore, recent adv ances in the analysis of networks provide a quantitative framework for identifying the effects of formal causes at the system level. (C) 199 8 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.