Systems Thinking

• The concept of a "system" is applicable across various academic disciplines.
• Everything in daily life can be considered either a system or a component of one.
• Different fields focus on different system types such as Computer Science (automated information), Social Science (political), and Art Sciences (communications systems).
• All systems share fundamental components, regardless of their specific nature.
• The three fundamental components of a system are Elements/Structures (building blocks), Interconnections/Interactions (relationships between elements), and Function/Purpose (overall goal).
• Biological principles help explain living systems, including microorganisms, plants, animals, and humans.
• System optimization mirrors biological specialization in computing.
• Systems thinking is critical for building stable systems and adapting in interconnected societies.

Properties of Living Systems

• A living creature loses its "system-ness" upon death as the interrelations cease.
• System-ness diminishes when parts are lost or no longer function.
• Living systems exhibit a hierarchical organization with emergent properties.
• The biological levels of organization include atoms, molecules, organelles, cells, tissues, organs, organ systems, organism, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere/ecosphere.
• Each level possesses unique emergent and collective properties, increasing in complexity.
• Living systems have seven basic functions: Energetics, Behavior, Development, Evolution, Diversity, Integration, and Regulation.
• Living systems maintain sustainability through indefinite continuation within natural cycles.
• Photosynthesis is a sun-driven process by which plants convert sunlight into chemical energy, transferring it through the food chain, eventually lost as heat.
• Elements cycle through living systems through biogeochemical cycles.
• Decomposers break down organic material, making nutrients available for plants.
• Negative feedback stabilizes ecosystems, while positive feedback disrupts natural cycles.
• Unregulated use of shared resources leads to depletion.
• Human actions and sustainability efforts can cause or mitigate environmental damage.
• The natural system self-organizes and persists without human intervention.
• Recognize humanity's dependence on the environment and the need to preserve and protect it.
• Biology is organized from small to large, forming a hierarchy.
• Each level is called a system, separated from its surroundings by a boundary.
• New properties appear at each level that weren't present in the previous one, known as emergent properties.
• Specific emergent property examples exist in termite colonies.
• The hierarchy of life, from smallest to largest, includes
  • Atoms
  • Molecules
  • Macromolecules
  • Organelles
  • Cells
  • Tissues
  • Organs
  • Organ Systems
  • Organism
  • Population
  • Community
  • Ecosystem
  • Biome
  • Biosphere
• All living things are made of cells (cellularity)
• Two types of organisms exist: unicellular and multicellular.
• Living things reproduce via asexual or sexual reproduction.
• Genetic information flows from DNA to RNA to proteins (Central Dogma of Molecular Biology).
• The genetic code is shared by all organisms; codons code for specific amino acids.
• Living things grow (increase in size) and develop (change in shape/function).
• Populations adapt and evolve over time based on environmental conditions via natural selection.
• Living things use energy (metabolism) to do work
• Cellular respiration produces ATP, the cell's energy currency.
• Organisms respond to external stimuli.
• Homeostasis is the maintenance of stable internal conditions.
• Biology includes the study of non-living things that impact life.
• The biosphere is where life exists and is a thin layer of Earth.
• Over 2 million known species exist, categorized into six kingdoms.
• Most life is concentrated along the equator.
• A species is a group of organisms that can produce fertile offspring.
• The oldest known life forms are Bacteria
• Life requires non-living elements such as mountains, Sun, Water, and Molecules (e.g., DNA).
• All living organisms consist of at least one cell
• Cell specialization allows for distinct functions (e.g., red blood cells, white blood cells, neurons).
• Organisms are required to have energy (metabolism) to do work or cause change.

Emergence

• Refers to small things forming bigger things with new properties
• Emergence equals Complexity from Simplicity.
• Water molecules are just atoms, but wetness is an emerging property.
• Layers of complexity in life go from Atoms -> Molecules -> Proteins -> Cells -> Organs -> Individuals -> Societies; each level has properties beyond the sum of its parts.
• Ants have a job distribution in a colony and communicate jobs via chemical signals
• Cells are the smallest unit of life, emerging from non-living molecules.
• It is thought that billions of neurons interacting and responding lead to complex thought.