Complex Systems and Evolutionary Engineering

Cite as:

Michael L. Kuras and Yaneer Bar-Yam, Complex systems and evolutionary engineering, AOC WS LSI Concept Paper (September 2003).

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Introduction

AOCs (Air and Space Operations Centers) are complex systems.

This does not simply mean that they are hard to grasp in their entirety (individually or collectively). It means some very specific, tangible things. It means, for example, that AOCs continually evolve (often in unexpected but acceptable ways) and that no two of them are exactly alike. This, and additional characteristics, separate AOCs as systems from other, more familiar, systems. Additional distinguishing characteristics are taken up below.

For the upcoming acquisition, however, what is even more important is the process by which the Government now expects that these AOCs will be provisioned, integrated, standardized, modernized and operated. This is because the Government-selected LSI (the Lead System Integrator) will be an embedded part of that process, and that process is different in many respects from the one presently associated with the acquisition or development of familiar systems.