7. Modeling God

This is the seventh article in the series based on the video from 1993 where Dr. Ackoff presented the best explanation I’ve ever heard for how we got to where we are today. The presentation also makes it easy to see where we are going with new technologies (e.g., AI) and their future effect on the workplace and people. I’m going to take this slow because it can get complicated very quickly if you don’t fully understand the previous articles.

The previous article showed Dr. Ackoff concluded that the Machine Age began to die when we gave up the principle of understandability (through analysis) in order to eliminate the second of the two dilemma’s. (Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle: The universe is not understandable) Synthesis essentially removed this second of two Machine Age dilemmas. Today, we will begin to look at how the other dilemma (No Free Will: Determinism) was removed.

Dr. Ackoff told a personal story to introduce this next portion of his presentation.

In 1968, Dr. Ackoff was teaching at the University of Pennsylvania when the students did a campus wide sit-in. Since, it would be awhile before he could teach classes, he went to visit a colleague (Churchman)…at Berkeley. Needless to say, he got to know the staff pretty well during their sit-in.?

At one point, he was having lunch with the chairman of the board of the University of California bookstore. The University of California system is the largest university based bookstore system in the world. At lunch, the person asked Dr. Ackoff what he thought was the biggest selling book in their system. He guessed the Bible and was told that, while it was a big seller, it was not the biggest. Dr. Ackoff guessed a dictionary. Again, he was told it was not the biggest seller and to guess again. Dr. Ackoff said, “I’ll take one more shot at it and that’s the end.” He guessed Rand-McNally Road maps. Again, a good guess, but not the right answer.

Dr. Ackoff stated that when he was told the correct answer it was a book he had never heard of and, since he was teaching these students, he was appalled he hadn’t heard it before.

The book is the I Ching (1000-750 BC). It covers zen buddhism. Dr. Ackoff’s explanation was these students were the first generation born into systemic thinking and they were disturbed by the incompatibility of the concept of a First Cause distinct from the universe who created it as opposed to a First Cause that was the universe. They looked for a religion in which the conception of God is God as the universe, as the whole, and they found it in Eastern religion.

Notice, this model for God results in you not being distinct from God because everything is a part of the largest system known as God.

The Machine Age saw you as distinct from God. In fact, you were separated by God because you were hermetically sealed in the machine (clock) God created. This is where the no free will (determinism) dilemma originated. God wound up the clock as a First Cause and we are fated to deal with the effects.

Eastern religion sees God as the universe, so looking to God is looking to the largest system. According to systems thinking, if you are a part of God, then you can see yourself as participating in that wholeness and you aren’t bound by determinism. You have an effect. Dr. Ackoff said one example of how Eastern religion instructs you to participate in the wholeness is through meditation.

We have seen Dr. Ackoff refer to this first looking to the larger system as expansionism. He shared the doctrine of expansionism:?

1. Your understanding increases as you look at the larger the system.?
2. You will never reach an understanding of everything.
3. The larger the system you are able to comprehend, the more your understanding increases. (Knowledge increases in accordance with the smaller the system you analyze.)

Notice, this added another aspect to the model for God: God can’t be defined. So, the model for God is: the biggest system and it can’t be defined.

Recall the three fundamental beliefs for the Renaissance were:

1. It is possible to completely understand the universe.?

2. Analysis is the method of thought.?

3. Causality

(Remember, I’m going to go through this entire presentation again with the right answers.)

For now, Dr. Ackoff stated the first two fundamental beliefs were wrong. In order to completely remove the “No Free Will: Determinism” Machine Age dilemma, he continued by looking at the third fundamental belief of the Renaissance.

Link to Next Article: 8. Causality

Link to Table of Contents: The Decline and Fall of the Machine Age