cybernetics

cybernetics
1. The comparative study of computers and the human nervous system, with intent to explain the functioning of the brain. 2. The science of control and communication in both living and nonliving systems; characteristically, control is governed by feedback, that is, by communication within the system concerning the difference between the actual and the desired result, action then being modified so as to minimize this difference. SEE ALSO: feedback. [G. kybernetica, things pertaining to control or piloting]

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cy·ber·net·ics .sī-bər-'net-iks n pl but sing or pl in constr the science of communication and control theory that is concerned esp. with the comparative study of automatic control systems (as the nervous system and brain and mechanical-electrical communication systems)
cy·ber·net·ic -ik also cy·ber·net·i·cal -i-kəl adj
cy·ber·net·i·cal·ly -i-k(ə-)lē adv

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n.
the science of communication processes and automatic control systems in both machines and living things: a study linking the working of the brain and nervous system with the functioning of computers and automated feedback devices. See also bionics.

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cy·ber·net·ics (si″bər-netґiks) [Gr. kybernētēs helmsman] the science of communication and control processes within systems. Control is based on communication both within the system and with the external environment and influences the actions of the system to bring it into some desired future state or to maintain homeostasis. Cybernetics includes the concepts of autoregulation and feedback (qq.v.), as well as the transmission and self-correction of information, and can be applied not only to machines like computers but also to living organisms, including humans, and to complex organizations and societies.

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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  • cybernetics — cy‧ber‧net‧ics [ˌsaɪbəˈnetɪks ǁ bər ] noun [uncountable] COMPUTING the scientific study of the way in which information is moved about and controlled in machines and in the human brain. In business, cybernetics is mainly concerned with making… …   Financial and business terms

  • CYBERNETICS — and Systems Analysis (A Translation of Kibernetika i Sistemnyi Analiz) (formerly Cybernetics (A Translation of Kibernetika)) (informationswissenschaftl. Veoeffentlichungen) …   Acronyms

  • CYBERNETICS — and Systems Analysis (A Translation of Kibernetika i Sistemnyi Analiz) (formerly Cybernetics (A Translation of Kibernetika)) (informationswissenschaftl. Veröffentlichungen) …   Acronyms von A bis Z

  • cybernetics — (n.) coined 1948 by U.S. mathematician Norbert Wiener (1894 1964) from Gk. kybernetes steersman (metaphorically guide, governor ) + ICS (Cf. ics); perhaps based on 1830s Fr. cybernétique the art of governing. The future offers very little hope… …   Etymology dictionary

  • cybernetics — 1. The term was introduced in 1948 by Norbert Wiener, meaning ‘the theory or study of communication and control in living organisms or machines’. The word was derived from the Greek word kubernetes ‘steersman’. It spread rapidly to refer to… …   Modern English usage

  • cybernetics — [n] science studying brain function to design analagous mechanical systems artificial intelligence, automatic technology, automation, autonetics, electronic communication, radiodynamics, robotization, telemechanics; concepts 274,349 …   New thesaurus

  • cybernetics — ► PLURAL NOUN (treated as sing. ) ▪ the science of communications and automatic control systems in both machines and living things. DERIVATIVES cybernetic adjective. ORIGIN from Greek kubern t s steersman …   English terms dictionary

  • cybernetics — ☆ cybernetics [sī΄bərnet′iks ] n. [coined (1948) by WIENER Norbert < Gr kybernētēs, helmsman (< kybernan, to steer, GOVERN) + ICS] the science dealing with the comparative study of human control systems, as the brain and nervous system, and …   English World dictionary

  • Cybernetics — For other uses, see Cybernetics (disambiguation). Cybernetics is the interdisciplinary study of the structure of regulatory systems. Cybernetics is closely related to information theory, control theory and systems theory, at least in its first… …   Wikipedia

  • cybernetics — cybernetic, cybernetical, adj. cybernetically, adv. cyberneticist, cybernetician /suy beuhr ni tish euhn/, n. /suy beuhr net iks/, n. (used with a sing. v.) the study of human control functions and of mechanical and electronic systems designed to …   Universalium

  • cybernetics — [20] Cybernetics was first coined in French, as cybernétique, in the 1830s. But then it was used literally for the ‘art of governing’ (it is a derivative of Greek kubernétēs ‘steersman, governor’, from kubernan ‘steer’, source of English govern) …   The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins

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