Practical Modeling Concepts for Engineering Emergence in Systems of Systems

Abstract

Engineering a system with the explicit goal of steering its emergent behavior is a relatively new human endeavor, and demands new ways of thinking about how we model system of systems (SoS) behavior. This paper discusses the definition of a system with an eye towards steering its emergent behaviors, frames negative emergent behaviors as those to be suppressed by engineering design, suggests that human designers are themselves an example of positive emergence, and explains five SoS modeling concepts that are foundational to engineering emergence. Examples and illustrations are provided to make the concepts tangible. The paper concludes with a summary and future work.