THE FUTURE OF HUMANITY in the light of the General Systems Theory #944424

Today, there is a growing belief that the concept of systems is the most suitable for understanding reality. Indeed, all things —atoms and molecules, stars and galaxies, plants and animals, individuals and societies— are systems, sets of interacting elements. Using the model of General Systems Theory developed by Ludwig von Bertalanffy, this book explores the notion of systems by identifying their fundamental laws. Common to all that exists, these laws offer a unified vision of reality and knowledge. These general laws are understood then as governing evolution from the Big Bang to the present. Thus, by viewing all things as systems and systems of systems in progressive qualitative growth, we see that this vision also sheds new light on human beings, cultures, and ethical and religious systems, throughout history and in their current process of globalization. Grounded on a strictly scientific approach and based solely on empirical data, this reflection provides new answers to the new questions the world poses today, thus opening up a bright future for humanity.