The papers appearing in this volume were presented at a Symposium
on Self-Organizing Systems, which was sponsored by the Office of
Naval Research and held at the California Institute of Technology,
Pasadena, California, on 14 November 1963. The Symposium was organized
with the aim of providing a critical forum for the presentation and
discussion of contemporary significant research efforts, with the
emphasis on relatively uncommon approaches and methods in an early
state of development. This aim and nature dictated that the Symposium
be in effect a Working Group, with numerically limited invitational
participation.
The papers which were presented and discussed did in fact serve
to introduce several relatively unknown approaches; some of the
speakers were promising young scientists, others had become known for
contributions in different fields and were as yet unrecognized for
their recent work in self-organization. In addition, the papers as a
collection provided a particularly broad, cross-disciplinary spectrum
of investigations which possessed intrinsic value as a portrayal of
the bases upon which this new discipline rests. Accordingly, it became
obvious in retrospect that the information presented and discussed at
the Symposium was of considerable interest—and should thus receive
commensurate dissemination—to a much broader group of scientists and
engineers than those who were able to participate directly in the
meeting itself. This volume is the result of that observation; as an
edited collection of the papers presented at the Symposium, it forms
the Proceedings thereof. If it provides a useful reference for present
and future investigators, as well as documenting the source of several
new approaches, it will have fulfilled its intended purpose well.
A Symposium which takes the nature of a Working Group depends for its
utility especially upon effective commentary and critical analysis,
and we commend all the participants for their contributions in this
regard. It is appropriate, further, to acknowledge the contributions
to the success of the Symposium made by the following: The California
Institute of Technology for volunteering to act as host and for
numerous supporting services; Professor Gilbert D. McCann, Director
of the Willis Booth Computing Center at the California Institute of
Technology, and the members of the technical and secretarial staffs
of the Computing Center, who assumed the responsibility of acting as
the immediate representatives of the Institute; the members of the
Program Committee, who organized and led the separate sessions—Harold
Hamilton of General Precision, Joseph Hawkins of Ford Motor Company,
Robert Stewart of Space-General, Peter Kleyn of Northrop, and Professor
McCann; members of the Technical Information Division of the Naval
Research Laboratory, who published these Proceedings; and especially
the authors of the papers, which comprised the heart of the Symposium
and subsequently formed this volume. To all of these the sponsors wish
to express their very sincere appreciation.
JAMES EMMETT GARVEY
_Office of Naval Research Branch Office
Pasadena, California_
MARGO A. SASS
_Office of Naval Research
Washington, D.C._