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Engineering of complex systems: Understanding the art side

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  • David Newbern
  • Jerry Nolte

Abstract

The engineering of complex systems is both science and art. Although the cause of many difficulties in development of complex systems is the “art” side, this side is frequently ignored since it cannot be conveniently described and quantified. We recommend a conscious recognition of the appropriate role of the art, or judgment side of systems engineering, especially in the key activities of assumption and decomposition. Assumptions are the critical ingredients in both of the key processes of abstraction (representing only the most essential information) and of decomposition (dividing the problem into cleanly partitioned subsets). These two methods (abstraction and decomposition) form the core of any effective approach to engineering complex systems. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Syst Eng 3: 181–186, 1999

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  • David Newbern & Jerry Nolte, 1999. "Engineering of complex systems: Understanding the art side," Systems Engineering, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 2(3), pages 181-186.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:syseng:v:2:y:1999:i:3:p:181-186
    DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1520-6858(1999)2:33.0.CO;2-K
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    Cited by:

    1. Holly A. H. Handley & Alexander H. Levis, 2003. "Organizational architectures and mission requirements: A model to determine congruence," Systems Engineering, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 6(3), pages 184-194.

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