''The Sciences of the Artificial'' (1969)Simon, Herbert A. 1996
''The Sciences of the Artificial'' (3rd ed.)
Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. . is a book by

Herbert A. Simon Herbert Alexander Simon (June 15, 1916 – February 9, 2001) was an American political scientist, with a Ph.D. in political science, whose work also influenced the fields of computer science, economics, and cognitive psychology. His primary ...

in the domain of the

learning sciences Learning sciences (LS) is an interdisciplinary field that works to further scientific, humanistic, and critical theoretical understanding of learning as well as to engage in the design and implementation of learning innovations, and the improvem ...

and

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech r ...

; it is especially influential in

design theory Design theory is a subfield of design research concerned with various theoretical approaches towards understanding and delineating design principles, design knowledge, and design practice. History Design theory has been approached and interp ...

.Xinya You and David Hands. 2019.
A Reflection upon Herbert Simon’s Vision of Design in 'The Sciences of the Artificial'
" ''The Design Journal'' 22(sup1):1345-56. . The book is themed around how

artificial Artificiality (the state of being artificial or manmade) is the state of being the product of intentional human manufacture, rather than occurring naturally through processes not involving or requiring human activity. Connotations Artificiality ...

phenomena ought to be categorized, discussing as to whether such phenomena belong within the domain of '

science Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...

'.Dawson, Michael R. W. n.d.
Notes on 'The Sciences of the Artificial'
" Cognitive Science at the University of Alberta. It has been reviewed many times in

scientific literature : ''For a broader class of literature, see Academic publishing.'' Scientific literature comprises scholarly publications that report original empirical and theoretical work in the natural and social sciences. Within an academic field, scie ...

—including as a special column in ''

The Journal of the Learning Sciences The ''Journal of the Learning Sciences'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering research on education and learning as theoretical and design sciences. It is one of two official publications of the International Society of the Learning Scien ...

''. The book was followed by two later editions—in 1981 and in 1996—in which Simon broadened the scope of his discussions.

Background

During the 1950s and 1960s, an expanse of literature was published that demonstrated broad interest in treating

design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design' ...

as a

rigorous Rigour (British English) or rigor (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) describes a condition of stiffness or strictness. These constraints may be environmentally imposed, su ...

and systematic discipline in hopes of establishing design as a science. Primarily through the fields of

operational research Operations research ( en-GB, operational research) (U.S. Air Force Specialty Code: Operations Analysis), often shortened to the initialism OR, is a discipline that deals with the development and application of analytical methods to improve deci ...

and Organisation & Methods, these academics purposed to make design compatible with the related disciplines of

management science Management science (or managerial science) is a wide and interdisciplinary study of solving complex problems and making strategic decisions as it pertains to institutions, corporations, governments and other types of organizational entities. It is ...

and operations management. This trend would bring about the “ design methods movement" of the 1960s, serving as the backdrop under which Simon wrote the article "Architecture of Complexity" (1962), which would later become ''The Sciences of the Artificial'' (1969). In his work, Simon had the broader intention of unifying the

social science Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of so ...

Overview

The theme of the book is how ought

phenomena be categorized, discussing as to whether such phenomena belong within the domain of '

'. Intending to demonstrate that it is possible for there to be an

empirical science In philosophy, empiricism is an epistemological theory that holds that knowledge or justification comes only or primarily from sensory experience. It is one of several views within epistemology, along with rationalism and skepticism. Empiri ...

of 'artificial' phenomena in addition to that of 'natural' phenomena, Simon argues that designed systems are a valid

field of study Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...

. The distinction Simon provides between the 'artificial' and the 'natural' is that artificial things are synthetic, and characterized in terms of functions, goals, and adaptation. Simon characterizes an artificial system as an interface that links two environments—inner and outer. Therefore, artificial systems are susceptible to change because they are contingent upon their environment, i.e. the circumstances in which they are in. Moreover, these environments exist in the realm of ' natural science', while the interface is the realm of 'artificial science'. To Simon, science of the 'artificial' is the science of '

'; the sciences of the artificial are relevant to "all fields that create designs to perform tasks or fulfill goals and functions." Moreover,

Engineering,
medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pr ...
, business,
architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...
, and
painting Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...
are concerned not with the necessary but with the contingent -- not with how things are but with how they might be -- in short, with design.Simon, Herbert A. 1969. ''The Sciences of the Artificial''.

Such fields also include those of cognitive psychology,

linguistics Linguistics is the science, scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure ...

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

, management/administration, and

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

. As such, Simon explores the commonalities of artificial systems including economic systems, business firms, artificial intelligence, complex engineering projects, and social plans. The book ultimately provides an information-processing theory of humanity's thinking processes as an operational, empirically based alternative to behaviorism.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sciences of the Artificial, The 1969 non-fiction books