To better understand the idea of holism, we define a basic concept for systems science: the holistic system. Unlike the general system, the holistic system is controlled by system environments, and as a separate entity, it has no effect on system environments. According to this definition, holistic systems include the entire human body, an organism, a cell, a country, and the earth. It is very intuitive. In addition, when we study a system, we should not just focus on the system itself. We need to extend the scope of study to the holistic system in which the system is located to eliminate uncertainty as much as possible. This extended focus is one of the essences of holism.

This article is excerpted from Appendix 1 of my Chinese book A Delicate Balance: A Systematology Interpretation of Traditional [1], revised. The article has been translated from the original Chinese version and was edited for proper English language, grammar, punctuation, spelling, and overall style by one or more of the highly qualified native English speaking editors at AJE. And this certificate was issued on August 1, 2019 and may be verifed on the AJE website using the verification code 5B44-8BA7-9F2B-B644-B26P.

Introduction Definition Example System Kernel Further explanation Conclusion