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Definition: Concepts are the standard thought patterns which each human being creates as the units of imagination. These units are used to create larger (combinations of) concepts, some of which are denominated “reality,” others “pretend,” “what will be,” and “what might have been,” etc.

An elementary concept has no parts, such as the concept green or garlic odor. Combinations of concepts to form larger concepts are called “constructs.” The universe is such a construct in our minds.

Constructs in and of themselves are neither true nor false; they just exist as a creatures of our minds. It can be demonstrated that no concept of a human being matches reality exactly, but most persons think of the concepts which they call “reality” as truth. A wiser course would be to see our constructs as art forms which do represent reality to us even though never exactly the way things really are.

Whatever we sense, feel or imagine can be captured in a concept. Thus there are concepts of the visual form of a dog, the barking sound of a dog, the smell of a dog, the touch of a dog, the warmth of a dog, (for some perrophiles, the taste of a dog), fear or love for a dog, the hope that the ill dog will live, the ancestry of the dog, the idea of a dog heaven, etc. Concepts which pattern sensation are called “percepts.”

Whatever and whenever one thinks, one does so with concepts. They are the habit patterns of mind, the standard ways of reducing the “blooming, buzzing confusion” of the universe to an understandable order.

Concepts are socially created and adjusted. We tend to share concept patterns with those with whom we frequently associate. Were it not for a concept base which we share with others, we could not communicate.

Connections among constructs are known as understanding.” Knowledge is of two kinds: understanding knowledge and personal acquainticeship. Saber, savoir, and wissen knowledge is understanding: connections among concepts and constructs. Conocer, connaitre, kennen and erkennen knowledge is perceptual, a relating of sensations to concepts and constructs, thus being personal acquainticeship.

The goal of every servant of Jesus Christ is to gain concepts and percepts which are correct (adequate to faithful obedience to Christ). This would enhance the ability of that person to be righteous, because they would then be meeting real needs rather than their own imaginary constructs as to other person’s needs. But the commitment to righteousness must come first, then correct constructs may be created by the servant of Christ with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Some persons say, “I would accept righteousness if first I could have it proved to me that the Gospel is true.” But notice the following connections of ideas:

Jesus Christ is the Spirit of Righteousness. For this earth he is the sole fountain (source) of righteousness.

Jesus Christ is the Spirit of Truth. To know the truth of anything which one cannot immediately sense, one must do it through Jesus Christ (through the Holy Spirit, which is his messenger.)

The Savior commands all men to put righteousness ahead of truth. If they will accept and establish the Savior’s true righteousness, then he will give them the correct ideas (concepts) about things they cannot otherwise know.

Conclusion: If a person thinks he will judge righteousness by the truth, he is mistaken. Anyone who rejects the righteousness of Christ also rejects the Spirit of Truth, and thus will be limited to error for all but the most fundamental concepts of physical things.

Another way to state this matter is to point out that righteousness is of the heart. The mind can never perfect the heart. But the heart can correct the mind. If the heart accepts righteousness, then it can use that same Spirit or feeling to relieve the mind of error, replacing it with God-given ideas.

The point of all this is that concepts are never neutral. They are value laden and value oriented. A person’s commitment to good or evil will always govern his ability to recognize, accept and learn truth by way of concepts, constructs and principles.

There are five basic types of concepts:

Type                                     Examples

•       Structures               House, mountain, Celt, person, month, garlic
•       Functions                Washing, dancing, evaporating, being ashamed
•       Qualities                  Leud, red, righteous, quickly
•       Relationships         Under, older, cause
•       Values                      Beautiful, insipid, exciting

Question:   Is this taxonomy exhaustive and unambiguous?

Concepts are learned, stored and used in connection with symbols.

A symbol is anything (but usually a human artifact) which is habitually associated with any other thing (its referent). There is a triadic relationship among a concept (a meaning), the symbol associated with it, and the physical object(s) or experiences (the referent(s)) associated with them. Thus:

Symbol                                Meaning (concept)       Referent

•       “Gibraltar”             stability                           the physical rock
•       “fleur-de-lis”         idea of France                iris
•       “line”                       Idea of a line                   ———
•       “lilac”                      idea of fragrance            the fragrance

The symbol-referent relationship is always at least potentially reciprocal. For example, anger and the color red may be symbols of one another, the one stimulating the concept of the other.

All symbol-referent relationships are arbitrary. No symbol is inherently related to any concept and any symbol may refer to any concept.

• Ambiguity obtains when a symbol represents two or more concepts.
• Redundancy obtains when a concept is represented by two or more symbols.

A vocabulary test serves as a good intelligence test because it is essentially a measure of the concept development of the person.

One form of learning is to make valuable associations among concept complexes and their associated symbols. When one enters a new field of study, the first thing one usually does is to acquire or to invent a new (mental) lexicon for that subject, which involves new names and a new concept for each new name.

It is possible to think by manipulating concepts, or symbols, or both at the same time. Example: Mathematics could not advance very far until parametric notation was invented.

Definition is the process of creating a concept to associate with a given symbol. No person can actually define a concept for another; what we call defining is simply the attempt to facilitate concept formulation in another person.

There are four basic modes of defining:

1. Ostensive: Physically pointing to an appropriate experience
   Example: Showing someone a tick to define “tick”
2. Synonymous: Employing a different symbol for the same concept
   Example: Escargot = snail
3. Denotative: Verbally pointing to an appropriate experience
   Example: I-I5 is a freeway
4. Connotative: Using words to establish a genus (larger class) and a differentia which separates it from other members of the same genus
   Example: A moped is a bicycle with a small gasoline engine attached

There is a precise skill to concept formulation.

The following steps are one mode of precisely formulating a concept. You are challenged both to use it and to find a better mode if you can. The steps of this mode are here outlined:

1. Select a symbol/concept to be formulated/clarified. List the variant forms of the symbol in use. These are your keys to information about the concept.
2. Select a concept base. A concept base is a cultural milieu. The same symbol can mean very different things in different cultures. To be conversant with the concept systems of several cultural bases is an advantage, for then one begins to understand each one better by the comparison afforded. Most people select a home base, the frame in which they do their most personal and most important thinking and communicating. Some persons hit from base to base as the social occasion demands, never establishing a strong self-identity in a home base. Not all bases are equal. One should carefully, deliberately select his or her home base as the one which affords the most truth and the most power.
   1. There are three cultural bases important to most LDS persons:
      1. The LDS scriptural “Church” culture.
      2. The scientific/humanistic culture found on university campuses.
      3. The American cultural base found among non-college, non-religious persons.
   2. Example: The word “sin” is used in all three for very different purposes.
      1. In LDS culture, sin is a serious thing, any transgression of the law of God. It becomes an absolute barrier to the celestial kingdom if one does not repent.
      2. In the scientific/humanistic culture, sin does not exist, but “sin” is a word used in archaic religions to create fear among backward peoples.
      3. In the American cultural base, a sin is something one feels is naughty but which one often takes delight and pride in doing anyway.
   3. For formulating a concept, one should select a base, then stick to it to avoid confusion. Sometimes it is useful to formulate the different concepts associated with a given symbol as suggested in the example above.
3. Find the etymology of the word. Knowing the roots and their historic meanings can be very helpful.
4. Discover dictionary definitions of the symbol. Dictionaries reflect modal usage of words, so a word may mean something quite different in a given context. Do not settle for the dictionary formulation as your formulation unless careful thought yields no alternative.
5. Note important usage of the symbol in the literature of the base, paying special attention to users who are important and/or influential. This further helps to give one an understanding of historic usage.
6. Establish the correlative concepts to the target you seek to formulate. No concept exists in isolation, and the concept neighbors of your target concept help to define it. Each correlative slot is a question one might ask to understand the target concept better, though there may not be an answer, or a good answer, to some of the questions. Categories which should be objects of inquiry are:
   1. The genus: The larger class to which the concept belongs
      1. Constituents: Any classes which make up the concept being formulated
      2. Prerequisites: Concept(s) of things necessary for the referent to exist
      3. Consequences: Concept(s) of things which are caused to be by the target concept.
      4. Similar: Concepts like but not identical
      5. Contrary: Concepts most unlike the concept being formulated
      6. Perfection: The ultimate implementation of the concept
      7. Opposite: The ultimate unlike concept
      8. Complement: The X which decreases/increases as the referent increases/decreases (example: dark is the complement of light)
      9. Counterfeit: A thing which appears to be the referent but is not
      10. Levels: (These apply to Gospel concepts only. What the referent would be like in each respective kingdom):
          1. Celestial
          2. Terrestrial
          3. Telestial
          4. Perdition
7. Ask and answer key questions which will help to illuminate the concept.
8. Formulate your own concluding definition using any or all of the modes of definition to attempt to portray your concept as fully and as precisely as possible.
9. Give a positive and negative examples (clear historic examples of the concept in question, and something which may appear to be like it but is actually not it as a negative example). This helps to define and communicate your concept.
10. Show what difference your concept makes to important things such as heart, might, mind, and strength. This also helps to define and communicate your concept.

A store of well-formulated concepts is a key to good thinking, and therefore a key to real success in this world.

To master any subject matter it is necessary to have well-formulated concepts that adequately represent reality. Well-formulated concepts are a creation of the self by the self. Thus mastery of any subject matter or skill is self-mastery at the same time.

The most important concepts any person ever grapples with are those which define his God, mankind, himself or herself, the future, success in this world, and salvation. The following list gives examples of specific concepts which are very useful:

Gospel Concepts:

• God
• sacrifice
• charity
• stewardship
• contrite
• righteousness
• consecration
• hope
• command
• spirit
• priesthood
• iniquity
• wicked
• obey
• revelation
• god
• inequity
• good
• HolyGhost
• peace
• justice
• family
• evil
• Christ
• revile
• man
• freedom
• eternal
• pride
• flatter
• self
• faith
• everlasting
• murmur,complain
• covet
• time
• repentance
• prayer
• lust
• eternity
• baptism
• pondering
• hearken
• mercy
• agency
• fasting
• broken heart

Social Concepts:

• cooperation
• contract
• equality
• equity
• franchise
• democracy
• republic
• constitution
• socialism
• communism
• right
• self-interest
• poverty
• opulence
• freedom
• public virtue

Financial Concepts:

• budget
• record
• tax
• shelter
• net worth
• leveraged
• scam
• pyramid
• balance sheet
• credit
• insurance
• capital
• free market
• needs
• wants
• integrity

Scientific Concepts:

• mass
• inertia
• gravity
• atom
• molecule
• cell
• organism
• entropy
• unity of
• science
• fauna
• evolution
• kinship

Question:   Do you understand how a concept is a system and how concept formulation is systems thinking?

Definition of success: that which follows in this life and in the next. But there are two aspects of what follows:

1. actual consequences,
2. desired consequences.

Everyone succeeds (everyone reaps consequences of his or her acts). But not everyone has actual consequences that match his or her desired consequences. How does one assure that one’s desires will be fulfilled? This is the problem which faces every human being.

• Machiavelli said success depends on learning to wield power.
• Confucians say you must live by the customs of society.
• Jews say you must meticulously observe the Law of Moses.
• Buddhists say you must get rid of your desires.
• Christian Scientists say it is all in your mind.
• Catholics say works (sacraments) will bring success in the next world.
• Protestants say grace will bring believers success in the next world.
• American Indians say you must be one with nature, thus one with God.
• Hindus say you must be reborn to frustration until you accept Karma.
• Communists say you must yield your desires to the state.
• Muslims say you must live a life of piety.

But what is the truth about success?

The scriptures say that every man does that which is right in his own eyes (does that which he believes will bring him the success he desires). But most men do not lead very happy or contented lives. In other words, most men fail to gain the desires of their hearts.

Is there a formula which will guarantee men the success they desire?

Every normal human being is guaranteed short range freedom: We are free to choose and seek that which we desire among the possibilities at hand at a given moment. But we do not always attain what we desire. Every human being may desire and choose the good to do in his or her environment, because each has been given the special gifts of God to do so. Anyone who consistently chooses only the good will find that his or her desires for good will be completely fulfilled in the long run. Real success is counted only in the long run, though some are wining to sell the long run for short range success.

The World’s Laws of success (some good, some bad):

1. Buy low, sell high.
2. Prioritize your goals, review them at least daily.
3. You get no more than you pay for.
4. Discipline wins over native ability.
5. Early to bed, early to rise …
6. Pray as if it all depended on God, work as if it all depended on you.
7. No pain, no gain.
8. Never give a sucker an even break.

Must we be simple, sentimental or cynical? Or just wrong?

The fundamental mistake of the thinking of the world is to believe that success and happiness is somehow produced by physical or external things such as pleasure, wealth, power, eminence and immortality. Those who gain any of the above quickly learn than no one of them nor any combination of them brings happiness or real success. But most persons would rather have any and all of the above if they have to be miserable anyway.

What is man? Who are we?

All men are the children of God, begotten unto him through two births, a spiritual one and a physical one. Each birth is the receiving of a body of a special order of material. Thus man is a dual being: “And the spirit and the body are the soul of man.” (D&C 88:15)

The spirit of man has two parts: heart and mind.

• The heart is the decision maker.
• The mind is the understander and facilitator.

The physical nature of man has two parts: strength and might.

• The strength is the physical tabernacle, the body.
• The might is everything which a person controls or influences through his body.

The character of a person is his or her habits, the patterns of choice, thought, action and stewardship which he or she displays. Habits are created by choices. We come to this world to make choices and thus to build our own character.

Mortals who eventually attain a celestial character have the character of God:

• A heart which is righteous.
• A mind which is omniscient.
• A body which is immortal.
• A might which is in perfect celestial order.

All of which makes it possible for him and her, becoming one, to become omnipotent and possessor of all things. (Cannot be done by one person alone.)

Mortals who have attained a perdition character have a character like that of Satan.

The following table suggests the pattern for a celestial character:

Aspects     Description      Function                   Character         Celestial
Heart        Decider             Choosing between  Pure (selfless) Righteous
–                  –                         good and evil                                      desires
Mind          Understander  Thinking, planning Knowledge      Omniscient
Strength    Doer                   Acting                        Skills, able      Omnipotent
Might         Dominion         Presiding                   Order               Possessor of  all

Question: What would the pattern for terrestrial, telestial and perdition character look like?

Question: Do the possibilities for heart, mind, strength and might constitute a menu from which each person chooses his eternal character by choosing his actions each day?

Question: The order of the four human factors is listed above in logical order. What is the psychological order? (Logical order: Most fundamental First. Psychological order: The order in which humans must actually act.)

1. If every human being is a son or daughter of God, perhaps God has given men a formula for success. Is this true? Our Savior has told us that the goal for each man or woman is to conquer his or her own soul. He also pointed out that no one can do this without divine assistance. The laws of success in this world as given by God are the laws of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. They are:
   1. A person must put his or her whole trust and belief in Jesus Christ.
   2. Under the direction of Jesus Christ, that person must repent of his or her sins.
   3. The person must then covenant to become perfect in Jesus Christ.
   4. The person must then receive the right to the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands of one who has divine authority.
   5. The person must then endure to the end in the New and Everlasting Covenant, which is to attain the same character as Jesus Christ.

Question: Can a leopard change its spots? Can I become like the Savior in heart, mind, strength and might?

One very interesting thing to note: Living the Restored Gospel does not require any special status except the ability to understand that gospel and to choose to follow the Holy Spirit. Thus it does not matter whether one is rich or dirt poor, healthy or sickly, male or female, old or young, bond or free, white or black, married or unmarried. Starting from any human condition, a person can achieve success in this world through the laws and ordinances of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Question: If the way is open to every human being to become as Jesus Christ, why do so few find the narrow gate and enter into life?

1. There is a powerful opposition to the work of Jesus Christ. The opposition has four factors, which might be described as follows:
   1. A heart which is set upon the things of this world.
   2. A mind which knows not God.
   3. A body which is easily habituated to ease and pleasure.
   4. An influence on others which promotes selfishness in them.

The principal opposition to the work of God is not Satan. It is simply every human being in the world. The description above is that of the “natural man” which the scriptures discuss. The only real enemy any person has is himself or herself. Salvation is thus the process of rescuing each person from his own slothfulness. Salvation through Jesus Christ and his New and Everlasting Covenant is the only true and eternal success available in this world.

The following table summarizes the contrast between the spiritually successful person (the saint) and the natural man:

Factor                  Saint                                          Natural Man
Heart                   Pure, desiring only                 Hardened, unwilling
–                             to do the will of God              to be entreated by                                                                                                                                 conscience
Spirit Body         Disciplined, good skills,        Disciplined only for
good habits                              personal benefit
Feelings               Appetites controlled by        Appetites rule for
the Holy Spirit                        pleasure, thrills, power
Brain                     Active, clear,                          Geared to fulfillment
coordinated                            of desire
Physical Body     Physically strong, hard         Suited to desire
working, able to endure

Problem: Show how the basic laws and ordinances of the Restored Gospel map on to heart, might, mind and strength.

• Faith maps to:
• Repentance maps to:
• Baptism maps to:
• Receiving the Holy Ghost maps to:

1. The means to become as God is to love him with all our heart, might, mind and strength, and in the name of Jesus Christ to serve him (D&C 39:5).

Question: The above sentence is possibly the most important sentence in all the universe. Can you think of one that is more important, more powerful?

This sentence defines the human system (heart, might, mind and strength) and tells us how to perfect that system (by love of God by every aspect of our individual system). Gospel thinking is systems thinking.

The beginning of wisdom is to fear God. This is to respect him, realizing that he is perfect, has overcome every temptation we face, and cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance.

The end of wisdom is to love God. This is to devote the whole affection of our heart towards him, to dwell on him and his ways in our minds, to serve him with all of our strength, and to set our stewardship in the precise order which he instructs. To love the Lord is to recognize in him the only true good, the sole source of righteousness, the only hope of man, the kind and loving Father in whom we live and move and have our being, drawing every breath by his power and permission.

As we love the Lord by keeping his commandments, he can bestow upon us his truth, his righteous desires, his skills, his priesthood, and his dominion. There is nothing greater to desire or receive in all eternity.

1. Man is an agent. To be an agent one must have three prerequisites.
2. One must be an intelligent being (goal oriented).
3. One must have understanding of alternatives and choose among them.
4. One must have power to carry out the choices made.

God gives men their understanding and the power to carry out their choices. Should he withdraw either, the person would lose his agency.

As men and women obey God, he increases their knowledge and power bit by bit. If they waver and retreat, their powers decline. But if they press on to serve God with all of their heart, might, mind and strength, he can bestow all of his knowledge and power upon them. Thus they can become gods, fully free agents as the Father is.

To be like God is to:

1. Have a pure heart, to desire only righteousness. This is 90% of the human problem.
2. Have a mind which clearly discerns truth from error and comprehends all truth. This is 9% of the human problem.
3. Have a body as disciplined and capable as that of God. This is 1% of the human problem.

This course is concerned with both the heart and the mind problem, but the latter will consume most of our attention as we focus on intellectual skills.

1. Skill learning is a specialized art which involves three essential steps.
   1. Clear comprehension of the skill to be learned. (The easiest and best way to this comprehension is to study a role-model who e::habits the skill desired.)
   2. Role-playing the skill until the basics have been mastered. This may require the assistance of a mentor.
   3. Fine tuning one’s performance by self-evaluation and correction.

The test of adequacy of skill learning is whether or not we have overlearned the skill so well that we can succeed in our tasks under great pressure and adversity.

The most important mentor in the development of any skill is God himself. That is why each covenant servant of Jesus Christ is promised that he or she can have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. The next most valuable mentor is a human being who has overlearned the skill desired and acts under the influence of the Holy Spirit.

Question: What skills are important to human beings? –

Human Skills

Heart: Feeling Skills

Type                                            Description

• Compassion                          Ability to sense others’ feelings and to feel for them
• Pain tolerance                     To allow pain to work its beneficence without masking it
• Self-motivation                   To generate out of one’s own desire impetus to gain a goal
• Purity of heart                     Discern needs of others without concern for self
• Spirituality                           Identity both the Holy Spirit and the evil spirit unerringly
• Discipline                             Strength to do what one knows one should when one should
• Judging, Evaluating           Ability to establish a good or right for any situation

Might: Social skills based on communication

Type                                            Description

• Motivating others               Using others’ desire to achieve a common goal
• Manners                               Protocol to avoid unpleasant surprises in social relations
• Management                       Coordinate the activities of others
• Friendship/enmity             Ability to maintain warm/cold personal relations
• Love/hate                             Ability to sacrifice for/injure another person
• Priesthood                            Authorized sharing of light, truth, power from God
• Mentor/Master                   Guiding the development of another person w/wo consent.
• Disciple/slave                      Receiving regimen from another person w/wo consent
• Business/extortion             Exchange of goods for mutual/one-sided benefit
• War/assault                         Forcible deprivation of another group/person
• Diplomacy/negotiation     Verbal process of reaching agreement
• Training                                Programming the reaction patterns of another person

Mind: Intellectual skills

Type                                             Description

• Philosophy                            Asking questions which elicit understanding
• Science                                   Form of peer-acceptable assertions about the natural world
• Scholarship                           Creation of imaginary accounts of past on record evidence
• Mathematics                         Creation and use of systems of order
• Engineering                          Ability to achieve specific goals using current technology
• Thinking                                Relating patterns in the mind
• Perceiving                              Identification of sensory phenomena
• Comprehending                    Relating an idea to a matrix of relevant ideas
• Systems                                   Representing things as organized parts of organized wholes
• Deduction                               Deriving necessary conclusions from given premises
• Induction                                Supposing the whole to be like the part
• Adduction                               Creation of premises to deduce a given conclusion

Strength: Physical Skills

Type                                               Description

• Walking/running                  Ability to change spatial location
• Carpentry                                Ability to create structures of wood
• Music                                       Ability to create patterned noises
• Observation                            Ability to summarize sensory perception
• Experimentation                   Observation of controlled experiment

All: Skills which specially involve heart, might, mind and strength

Type                                              Description

• Learning                                 Achieving desired changes in one’s habits (religion)
• Communication                    Achieving desired reactions in another person
• Righteousness                       Achieving the action patterns of a god with help from God

A concept analysis of systems:

1. Symbol variants: System, systemic, systematic, systematize, unsystematic.
2. Base: Scientific/humanistic origin, 20th century, but applied here to a Restored Gospel (LDS) setting.
3. Etymology: L. systema, fr. Gr. synistanae, to place together; fr. Gr. ~, with, and histanai, to place.
4. Dictionary: Webster’s New Collegiate
   1. Definition: an assemblage of objects united in some form of regular interaction or interdependence; an organized whole.
5. Examples in base: The solar system. The human nervous system. The American system of government. Systematic theology. The double-entry accounting system.
6. Correlative concepts:
   1. Genus:                   Relationships
   2. Constituents:       Environment, boundaries, structure, function, input, output
   3. Prerequisites:      Two or more existing things.
   4. Consequences:     n/a
   5. Similar:                 Organization, group, complex, machine, layout, scheme, plan
   6. Contrary:              Chaos, jumble, collection, random
   7. Perfection:           Closed system
   8. Opposite:             Unorganized
   9. Complement:      Disorganized
   10. Counterfeit:         Facade (The appearance of being a well-organized system.)
   11. Levels:
       1. Celestial:        Being in an order presided over by our Father.
       2. Terrestrial:     Presiding: The Son.
       3. Telestial:         Presiding: The Holy Ghost.
       4. Perdition:       Presiding: Satan.
7. Key Questions:
   1. How are systems created? They are the result of intelligent action.
   2. How are systems destroyed? By entropy and evil, the “natural” forces.
   3. What is a closed system? A system that has or needs no environment.
   4. What is a system “in control”? One which does all and only that which its agent- steward commands it to do.
   5. Is there a closed system? The universe (including God) may be one.
8. Formulated concept: A system is some set of objects related in some manner which makes it convenient to consider the set as a whole. All of the systems humans deal with are imaginary systems. Humans believe that some of their systems represent reality, such as the solar system, and some do not, such as the story of Alice in Wonderland.

9. Positive example: The human body is a system composed of numerous subsystems.
10. Negative example: (There are no negative examples. Everything which can be thought of can be construed as a system or part of a system, for everything which exists is related to everything else which exists. But a ticking clock is a better example of a well-organized whole, or system, than is a pile of sand, though the latter is also a system.)
11. What difference should a knowledge of systems thinking make to my life?
    1. Heart: It could encourage me to be true to my covenants and principles, because I could see all of my decisions as needing to be systematic (intelligent).
    2. Mind: I could master the techniques of systems thinking.
    3. Strength: I could be more systematic in the way I treat and use my body.
    4. Might: I could create a celestial order in my stewardship.

What kinds of systems do humans use to think about the universe?

An initial taxonomy relates to the input of the environment.

1. Open systems are those which have some input from or output to an environment.
2. Closed systems are those which have no exchange with their environment. (Some systems which have very little exchange are analyzed as closed systems by simplification for purposes of convenience.)

Another taxonomy of systems is created by emphasizing change.

1. Systems that do not change appreciably over a given time period are known as static systems. Example: A map is a static system.
2. Systems which do change or function are known as dynamic systems. Example: A living orchid plant is a dynamic system.
3. Systems in which the changes are at least in part due to intelligent (goal setting and seeking) behavior are known as agent systems. Example: A human being is an agent system.

All systems have a static aspect (a structure). All agent systems have static structure and a dynamic system in addition to the agent aspect.

A third taxonomy of systems is created by emphasizing subject matter.

1. Mechanical systems are those being analyzed according to structure and force applications. They can be analyzed as closed systems with considerable success. Their principal opposition is change of structure (wear and tear). Example: A bicycle.
2. Biological systems are those systems which have as their main feature the ability of units to reproduce their own kind. They are best analyzed as open systems which achieve homeostasis (steady state) with their environment. Their principal opposition is anything which destroys that homeostasis to bring death.
3. Intellectual systems are concept systems in a human mind as represented in some symbolic form for communication purposes. The symbolic manifestations of such systems tend to be used as closed systems. The opposition to such systems is that they tend to be ignored or lost.
4. Social systems are organizations of people who cooperate to operate and perpetuate the system. These systems tend to be open, with the principal opposition to each being rival social systems. Example: The LDS Church.

A final dichotomy relates to how men view the systems they create.

1. Real systems are those which the person creating or using them believes actually characterize the universe.
2. Imaginary systems are those which the person creating or using them understands to be a creative expression of his own mind and not necessarily to be characteristic of the real universe.

There is but one real system known to man: the universe. Man can only vaguely characterize the universe in its entirety, which is its reality. So we spend our time analyzing and characterizing subsystems of the universe to attempt to shed light on the nature of the whole.

Thus all of the subsystems men deal with are fictional abstractions (constructs) by which we attempt to guess at reality.

And thus the line between real and imaginary systems is very thin, often non-existent. One mark of intelligence is to be able to draw that line accurately.

Thus reality is really imaginary and all imaginary systems really exist in someone’s mind.

What are the types of systems thinking?

There are four basic types of systems thinking: systems analysis, systems design, systems operation, systems evaluation.

1. Systems analysis is the description of some real subsystem of the universe in systems thinking categories. Example: Analysis of an automobile.
2. Systems design is the specification of the system parameters of some new thing which a person has imagined. Example: The design of a home one hopes to build.
3. Systems operation is the functional use of some real system paying special attention to the system parameters. Example: Driving an automobile.
4. Systems evaluation is the comparison of one system either with some ideal system or with some other real system, comparing them as to some standard such as effectiveness or efficiency. Example: Is it better to use a typewriter or a computer to write a paper?

What are the basic parameters of systems thinking?

Parameters of static systems:

1. System boundaries are the edges of the subsystem selected for analysis.
2. System environment is everything outside the system boundaries.
3. System parts are all things within the system boundaries.

Example:    An automobile has boundaries, which are its tangible surfaces. It has an environment, which is everything outside its tangible surfaces but including the air which freely circulates among its parts. And it has parts, which are all the pieces of material out of which it was built.

Parameters of dynamic systems in addition to the static parameters:

4. System function is the internal operations of the static parts.
5. System input is the input of the environment to the system.
6. System output is the output of the system to the environment.
7. System opposition is whatever causes the functioning of the system to break down, to deteriorate.

Example:    An automobile functions by burning fuel to produce power to turn the wheels to provide locomotion. The system input (in part) is fuel and air. The system output (in part) is exhaust fumes and noise, and power turning of the wheels. The opposition is (in part) bad roads and bad driving, which produce wear and tear.

Parameters of agent systems in addition to those of static and dynamic systems.

8. Agent goals are the desires, the objectives of, the agent.
9. Agent resources are the wherewith by which the agent could achieve goals.
10. Agent strategy is the overall plan of the agent to achieve a goal.
11. Agent tactics are the specific actions to be taken to implement the agent strategy.
12. Agent work is the actions of the agent in implementing strategy and tactics.
13. Agent assessment is the observations of the agent to see if and when the goal has been reached.
14. Agent evaluation is the decision of the agent as to whether or not attaining the goal was worthwhile or not, once having attained it.

(Note: Agent goals is an example of systems analysis: What do I with it? Agent resources, strategy and tactics are examples of systems design. Agent work and assessment are examples of systems operation. And of course Agent evaluation is an example of systems evaluation.

Example:    A young man desires to gain the hand of a young lady in marriage (goal). He decides to impress her (strategy) by an unusual date (tactic). He arranges and executes the date (work), gains her acceptance and marries her (assessment), then tries to decide if he did the right thing (evaluation). (In a Restored Gospel frame the answer to the evaluation is not determined by the eventual outcome but by how he performed steps 8 through

What is it essential to know about systems analysis?

Reality is usually too complex to deal with, so we simplify it. We try to retain all the essential features of our subject and eliminate only unnecessary aspects, but we don’t always succeed in doing that. The parameters of systems thinking listed above are an attempt to provide a standard for the minimum essential features which must be specified to describe a system successfully.

Systems analysis is the attempt to capture the essential features of some existing (real) object of attention and curiosity in this world in order better to understand and/or control it.

There is usually one key factor in any systems analysis. As one answers the questions to find the basic parameters, one should ask also, what is the real key to control, to using this system successfully.

Examples: What is the key factor in systems analysis of an automobile?

• Of a political system?
• Of a person?
• Of a theology?

Question: What advantage does systems analysis have over ordinary attempts to understand?

What is it essential to know about systems design?

Reality sometimes does not have all of the “things” we feel we need. We may desire houses, automobiles, fruits and vegetables, clothing, honors, social organizations, and works of art, all of a sort which do not exist. So we wax creative and design new things.

Systems design is the planning of new things to meet our human desires and needs.

The key factor in systems design is effectiveness. Will the thing created fill the need for which it was created? The second factor is efficiency. Was this creation done with a minimum of cost? Is there a better way?

Most systems design is a slight modification on an old pattern. Most changes proceed in small increments. Few are cataclysmic.

Systems design and creativity are the same thing. Systems design is an artistic undertaking. One can increase his skill at systems design by:

1. Thinking of alternatives to every human creation one observes.
2. Experiencing a wide range of cultures and achievements within cultures.
3. Constantly looking for new ways to apply old ideas.
4. Designing and implementing new systems, then evaluating them and seeking for better solutions.

Creativity or artistic design is essentially a spiritual matter.

Question: What distinguishes systems design from ordinary planning?

What is it essential to know about systems operation?

Reality usually needs some minor rearranging to fill our human needs. These rearrangements we achieve by using the structures and powers in our control. Thus we use our legs to change our location, we use a broom to sweep the floor, we use a pair of scissors to cut hair, we use a lathe to reduce the diameter of a spindle, etc.

Systems operation is intelligent human action. All goal-oriented action is systems operation, for in all of such doing, we are systems using other systems to implement desired systems.

The keys to systems operation are again effectiveness and efficiency, in that order.

Systems operation is the skill of doing anything that is consciously and deliberately pursued.

Systems analysis is a helpful preface to successful systems operation. One can drive an automobile without understanding how it works, but one will do better if one does understand the intricacies of the machine.

Question:   Why is self-control necessary to systems control?

What is it important to know about systems evaluation?

Some persons pretend there is no good and bad, no righteousness or sin. But without such judgments, no person could attain to his or her desires. We must distinguish between good and bad (that which will lead to our goal or will take us away from it) and some persons want to and can distinguish between good and evil (that which makes the doer righteous or that which makes the doer evil). Not to make such evaluations is to step backwards from being human and intelligent.

Systems evaluation is always a comparison of one system (the one being evaluated) with another system (the one being used as a standard), real or ideal, and judging the system being evaluated to be adequate or not, m comparison with the system being used as a standard, according to the desires of the evaluator.

Example of evaluation: One has a desire to have a piece of wood of just the right dimensions to fill a hole. So one measures the dimensions of the hole (this sets up the standard to be met). Then one uses those dimensions to measure pieces of wood until one finds one that either fits those dimensions or can be shaped to those dimensions to satisfy the need. The wood is evaluated as adequate if it either fits the dimensions or fills the hole adequately.

The key to evaluation is the standard of value being used. Human beings compare ideal standards against each other, then pick the one that they believe most suits their desires. Then they use the ideal standard to judge real systems.

Evaluation is not measurement (assessment). Measurement is the determination that a desired quantity exists or not. Evaluation is the determination that a desired quality exists or not.

Example: One measures to see if his gas tank is full.

One evaluates to see if the gasoline performs as it should.

The ultimate evaluation is comparison of how one thing actually works in the real world as compared with another. Ideal systems can only be evaluated theoretically, for they are only theoretical systems.

Every evaluation measures the evaluator as much as the thing being evaluated. This is because the evaluator must select the standard of evaluation, thereby revealing or evaluating himself.

Question:   Why is snap judgment usually a bad form of evaluation?

Living the Restored Gospel successfully is an application of good systems thinking.

Systems analysis reveals to the honest observer that his own life is in need of repair.

Systems design leads one to form a hypothesis as to how to do better.

Systems operation is the process of implementing the new plan to try to do better.

Systems evaluation is the opportunity of an intelligent person to see if his new plan is actually any better than the old one.

Where does the Restored Gospel come in? Any person who is already engaged in this process of trying to do better will welcome the Restored Gospel opportunity to receive divine assistance to analyze, plan, operate and evaluate. As the Holy Spirit touches a mortal’s life, it tells him that he needs to repent, and that only as he puts his trust in Jesus Christ unto baptism by proper authority can he fulfill his potential as a son of God. Repentance, baptism, and the receiving and obeying of the Holy Ghost are the systems operations or work he must do. Having been faithful, he can then compare his new self with his former self by systems evaluation to see if he is really any better off.

Does understanding systems thinking help a person to live the Gospel any better than one could without that understanding? No, for the Holy Spirit brings one all one needs to live the Gospel. But systems thinking will help one to understand and to explain the process of living the Gospel better than one can without it. If a person is humble and desires understanding of the ways of the Lord, systems thinking will help him to form those questions he must ask about the ways of God which must be answered for understanding to grow.

Question: Is systems thinking of equal value to evil as well as to good persons?

What are the laws/rules of systems?

The following laws and rules apply to all systems and are therefore useful in every context:

1. Causation: There is a cause (input) for every change in a system. There is an explanation for everything.

Application: There are no “accidents.”

2. Sufficient reason: Every change is caused by something great enough to have the effect observed.

Application: For every output there must be a larger input. There is no free lunch.

3. Entropy: Energy concentrations in a physical system tend to dissipate.

Application: Things of this world tend to cool down, wear out, break up.

4. Prediction in a system is sure only if the system is in complete control.

Application: The only things we humans completely control and therefore can completely predict are our own personal choices.

5. Law of social systems: No open social system of this world can be perfected.

Application: If you take in everyone or admit all comers, your system will always be evil because there are always people who will choose evil. A marriage can be perfected because it can become a closed system (so far as input is concerned) in the New and Everlasting Covenant.

6. Focus of energy at the right time and place is the key to power in dynamic systems.

Application: The spark must jump at just the right time in an internal combustion engine. There is a tide in the affairs of men that taken at the crest leads on to victory…” “Strike while the iron is hot.”

Systems Analysis Format

Target system: [Focus of concern for an analysis]
Example:    An automobile

Static analysis: [System seen as a spatial configuration only)
Example:    Automobile sitting still, engine off.

System boundaries: [What are the edges of the system?]
Example:    Tangible boundaries of body, engine, etc.

System environment: [What other subsystems are close by?]
Example:    Air, highway, rainstorm, countryside.

System parts: [What are the important internal parts?]
Example:    Body parts, seats, controls, drive train.

Dynamic: [Target system seen as temporal (moving, functioning)]
Example:    Automobile being driven down a highway.

System function: [How the system parts work together.]
Example:    Explosions in engine turn shaft, gears, rear wheels, propel automobile.

System input: [What the environment feeds into the system.]
Example:    Air, gasoline, heat.

System output: [What the system puts out into the environment.]
Example:    Motion of automobile, exhaust, dripping oil.

System opposition: [Factors which destroy the system and its functioning.]
Example:    Deep water on highway, collision with another automobile, etc.

Agent:      [Target system seen as an agent or controlled by an agent.]
Example:    You

Agent goal(s): [What the agent desires at the moment.]
Example:    You wish to go downtown.

Agent resources: [What can the agent call upon or use to achieve the desired goal?]
Example:    You have permission to use the family automobile, but it is out of gasoline. But you have money and put gasoline in.

Agent strategy: [What is the agent’s overall plan to achieve the goal?]
Example:    You plan to use the freeway.

Agent tactics: [What specific things will the agent do to   carry out the strategy?]
Example:    You plan to drive very carefully and to avoid rush hour.

Agent work [How much energy, ability, intelligence and persistence does the agent apply in employing the chosen strategy and tactics?]
Example:    You do drive carefully, and pay attention to where you are at all times.

Agent assessment: [How close is the agent to attaining the goal?]
Example:    You see the store which you wish to patronize [and park close by].

Agent evaluation: [What did attaining the goal cost the agent? Was the attainment worth the cost?]
Example:    They are out of what you wanted, so the trip was wasted. Ouel dommage!

Key Factor: [Which system factor is the most influential one, the one which gives the operator of the system the greatest power and control?]
Example:      Ignition key.

(Note: To do a systems analysis, copy the section below from this page.)

Systems Analysis Format

Target system:

Static analysis:
System boundaries:
System environment:
System parts:

Dynamic analysis:
System function:
System input:
System output:
System opposition:

Agent analysis:
Agent goal(s):
Agent resources:
Agent strategy:
Agent tactics:
Agent work:
Agent assessment:
Agent evaluation:

Key Factor:

1. Theories of thinking:
   1. Concept theory: Thinking is the development and use of concepts. (This is the theory in use in this course.)
   2. Behaviorist theory: Thinking is the name for unknown functions in an organism which intervene between a stimulus and the response to that stimulus by an organism.
   3. Verbal theory: Thinking is the internal aspects of action patterns stimulated by the acculturation of an individual by linguistic interaction with a social group.
2. Concept theory of thinking: The concept theory of thinking sees the imagination as the arena of human thinking. In response to experience (arising both from internal and external sources) an individual develops patterns of thinking which are called “concepts.” Concepts may be unitary, such as a certain shade of red, or very complex, such as the planetary system of which the earth is a part. These patterns can be unique or somewhat standardized; whichever they are depends upon the desires of the individual who creates them. All conceptual patterns are created by individuals, and no two individuals have identical concept patterns. A degree of commonality of concept patterns is essential for communication and cooperation, however.

Thinking is pairing concepts to produce new concepts.

3. Kinds of concept thinking:
   1. Concept formulation and identification: The development of concepts on the basis of external and/or internal information sources, or, comparing a concept with an information source to see if that is the concept in question. (This is the attempt to establish conocer, connaitre, kennen knowledge.)
      1. Example of formulation: Examining a machine again and again until one has built a concept which contains all of the physical parts and functioning of the machine being observed.
      2. Example of identification: Examining a machine again and again until one is certain that it is of the exact type of which one already has a complete concept.
   2. Concept relating: Establishment of larger concepts in which any two given concepts are seen as related parts of a whole. (This is the attempt to establish saber, savoir, or wissen knowledge.)
      1. Example: Understanding how an electric motor relates to the generator which supplies it with electrical input.
   3. Concept evaluation: Differential holding of concepts wherein some are seen to be more important than others, more “good” than others, etc, according to whatever values are important to the person who is thinking about the concepts.
      1. Example: Understanding that a three phase electric motor is better than a two phase motor for certain purposes.
      2. Example: Understanding that the most important thing about a human being is the person’s desires.
   4. Concept choosing: Selecting a concept pattern for some use, such as one to be remembered, one to be put into action, etc.
      1. Example: After contemplating a number of hypotheses, selecting one of them to be one’s characterization of another person.
      2. Example: Choosing the cherry pie instead of chocolate pudding for dessert.
      3. Question:   How is each of the above kinds of concept thinking an exemplification of the principle of pairing.
4. Tactics of thinking: Thinking can be done with various degrees of complexity:
   1. Linear thinking: Single track concept manipulation.
      1. Example:    Imagining a way to pick an apple which is growing ten feet off the ground in an apple tree.
   2. Lateral thinking: Multiple track concept manipulation.
      1. Example:   Imagining six ways by which to retrieve an apple which is growing ten feet off the ground in an apple tree.
   3. Systems thinking: Searching out and understanding all of the essential parts of any object of study, how those parts relate to each other statically and dynamically, and how that object affects and is affected by its environment.
      1. Example:    Imagining as many of the costs and consequences of picking an apple which is ten feet off the ground in an apple tree.
   4. Lateral systems thinking: Doing systems thinking for many possibilities.
      1. Example:    Imagining as many of the costs and consequences as one can for each different means of retrieving and apple which is growing ten feet off the ground in an apple tree, by all of the means known to the thinker.
   5. Holistic thinking. Seeing things as they really are, were, and will be, and simultaneously understanding the importance, and the value, and the goodness or evilness of each thing. (This kind of thinking is done only by divine beings or those who are under the influence of the power of divine beings.) This is the goal towards which the best human thinking aspires.
5. Characteristics of good (effective) thinking:
   1. Clear: Precise and articulated pattern formulation and manipulation.
   2. Accurate: Sufficiently representative of the real or imaginary world being considered.
   3. Moral: Explicit recognition of good (righteousness) and evil in what is being thought about.
   4. Complete: Recognition of all factors important to a given systemic thinking.
6. Definition of an Agent: An agent is an intelligent being which chooses among alternatives for action on the basis of knowledge of the situation, desire to attain specific goals, and ability to act to attain those goals.
   1. Kinds of agentive thinking/acting: Two kinds of acting are here envisioned, following the ancient dichotomy popularized by Aristotle: a. Knowing: Aristotle’s contemplation (which produces concepts which become knowledge or belief. b. Planning: Aristotle’s practical thinking: to prepare for acting to produce some result.

(Note: It is important to see that agentive thinking and acting cannot be entirely separated. Thinking is acting physically (things mental are also physical) and physically acting involves thinking.)

7. Characteristics of good (effective) acting:
   1. Effective: Action which attains the envisioned result.
   2. Efficient: Action which attains the envisioned result with relatively low expenditure of resources.
   3. Righteous: Action which attains the envisioned result and which makes everyone affected by the action to be happier than they were before.

1. The nature of this course: This course is a workshop in skill development. Each class period will be devoted to discussion of skills and of exercises which develop those skills. Text material is to be studied ad learned outside of class. There will be at least one written assignment designed to enhance your skill development due each time the class meets. Each day’s assignment must be completed and handed in on time to receive full credit.
2. The place of this course in your life this semester: This course should be your principal academic focus for the semester. You should plan on two to four hours outside of class for every hour spent in class.
3. Religion: Religion and theology will be frequent topics of discussion, but you will not be held for any religious knowledge or commitment. We will begin each day’s class with prayer.
4. Seating: Please sit where you like, but be found in that same seat each day thereafter.
5. Learning this material:
   1. The best way to learn this material is to teach it to someone else on a daily basis.
   2. Next best is to form a study group of members of your class to review the skills and concepts.
   3. Regular private review is indispensable. A careful review the next day, then the next week, followed by a careful review after one month will enable you to fix these matters in your mind more or less permanently.
6. Grading: You will be graded on a point system, your final grade being determined by your cumulative point total. Notice that the grading is weighted to balance personal discipline with competence. Points are assigned on the following basis:

Out of this world:                                                     12 points
Superlative:                                                               11 points
High A                                                                        10 points
Low A                                                                          9 points
B                                                                                   8 points
C                                                                                   7 points
D                                                                                   6 points
Failing grades                                                            0-5 points
Papers turned in late during class:                        -1 point
Papers turned in after class within one week:     Half credit
Papers turned in after one week or not at all:      -5 points

The Target Skills of this Course

1. Key Questions: The careful formulation, asking and answering of questions which elicit key information about a subject in order to facilitate effective and efficient learning.
2. Concept formulation: The precise shaping and reshaping of important ideas.
3. Assertion formulation: The translation, classification and analysis of communication situations, usually focusing on sentences used in a specific context.
4. Capture: Asking and answering the questions which adequately summarize the essence of a message.
5. Systems formulation: Seeing things one wishes to understand as related functioning parts of a larger functioning context of related parts.
6. Presupposition formulation: Making explicit the epistemological, metaphysical and ethical commitments which are assumed by the deliverer of a given message.
7. Expansion: Adding to a body of knowledge through one’s own investigative efforts.
8. Evaluation: Establishing the comparative value of an idea, deed or message by comparison of it with some accepted standard.
9. Oral communication: Thoughtful use of spoken language to facilitate learning and cooperation by fitting deftly into a given oral/aural context.
10. Written communication: Creation of a written representation of a message in such a form that the message is clearly and powerfully represented. Written messages generally create their own immediate context but must also fit into a larger cultural context.

Question: The word “formulation” has or could have been used in the description of each of the skills mentioned above; why is this appropriate?

Question: What is formulation?

Question: What is the relationship between formulation and information?

Content Summary Page

This Introductory Philosophy course was taught by Dr. Chancey C. Riddle while at BYU until 1992. It is taught from an LDS perspective or what Dr. Riddle calls a Restored Gospel perspective.

Lesson 1 – Course Mechanics
Lesson 2 – Thinking
Lesson 3 – Systems
Lesson 4 – Success
Lesson 5 – Concepts
Lesson 6 – Communication
Lesson 7 – Strategies
Lesson 8 – Epistemology
[[No course materials provided for the final 3 lessons]]
Lesson 9 – Metaphysics
Lesson 10 – Ethics
Lesson 11 – Worldviews

Appendix
Epistemologies
Humanist Manifesto
Joseph Smith and the Ways of Knowing – Dr. Truman G. Madsen
Self-Love – 1983
The Choice – Elder Boyd K. Packer
The Marks of a Saint
We Mr. Taylor I Can Tell You Nothing