On the Purpose Orientation and Character of Systems

In the history of human knowledge or cognition, the concept of purpose is one that possesses a vital importance, and yet it is also a question that is rather unusual. We almost always use it, whether consciously or unconsciously, and yet, even more often we are loathe to acknowledge it publicly. Someone said once, with tongue in cheek, that "teleology, or the theory of purpose, is a [special] lady; any biologist could not live without her and yet is always ashamed to appear in public with her" (N. I. Ruke-fu [transliteration], Kongzhi lun de zhexue yuanli [Philosophical Principles of the Theory of Control], p. 104). This article hopes to present a preliminary investigation and examination of this problem on the basis of the science of systems, which revolves around three theories—systems theory, control theory, and the theory of information.