Some Basic Concepts in System Dynamics - Creative Learning ...

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- 12 - D-4894a mistake in the measurements.” This process had identified a new medicalsyndrome.5. SOURCES OF INFORMATIONMentaldata baseConsider the available databases,or sources of information from whichwe can build computer simulationmodels.JWF13Writtendata baseNumericaldata baseSources of InformationFigure 8I suggest that the world’s storeof information lies primarily inpeople’s heads—the mental database.As a test of that statement, considerany institution, for example, yourcorporation or your school system.Imagine that at 10 o’clock somemorning every person suddenly leavesand is replaced by a person who canread but has no experience in thesystem. You instruct your replacementto follow the instructions and policystatements in your office and carry onfor you. Chaos would result. Ourfamilies, schools, businesses andcountries operate on the information inpeople’s heads gained from participation, apprenticeship, and on-the-job learning.The mental database is vastly richer than the written database in the form of books,magazines, and newspapers. In turn, the written database is far more informativeabout how society operates than the numerically recorded information.System dynamics modeling should build on all available information,including the voluminous mental database. By contrast, most analyses in the socialsciences have been limited to information that has been numerically recorded. Thenumerical information is an extremely small part of all the information that isavailable.
D-4894 - 13 -6. GENERIC OR TRANSFERABLE STRUCTURESGeneric StructuresTransferable between:Past and presentFrom one setting to anotherA small number cover a widerange ofsituationsWhen understood in one setting,they are understood in allsettingsBasis for effective educationJWF7Many structures of levelsand rates are found repeatedly.They are “generic structures”because they are found in manydifferent situations, even inentirely different fields ofapplication. If a particularstructure is understood in onesetting, it is understood in allsettings. Generic structuresprovide a person with power tomove between situations with thelearning in one area being appliedto other situations.Figure 9In education, afterunderstanding a collection of basicdynamic structures, a student canquickly draw on one to understanda new situation if its structure hasbeen encountered previously.
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