Domain

Explanation

Motivation

• As stipulated in the niche realisation theory,
• An individual's state of being is formed by the basic configuration of transition-niche-transition through the chained processes of niche and transitions: turbulent, laminar & wake
• This, however, is subjected to the overall environmental conditions that the individual is facing
• To have favourable conditions for ReSearch would require three critical aspects:

1. 天時 Heavenly conditions: state of affairs & events evolutionally favourable 成事在天
2. 地利 Earthly conditions: resource abundance, favourable policies & technologies know-how, know-why & the need & urge for these 肥沃之地
3. 人和 Humanly conditions: socially favourable 謀事在人

• Yet,
• These 3 critical aspects, although always true, are too vaguely formulated to be useful
• Hence, a rigorous formulation is required

Deficiencies of the First & Zeroth Laws of ReSearch

• Upon further deliberation of the intrinsic properties of the First & Zeroth Laws of ReSearch,
• With the presence of:
• First Law of ReSearch: feedforward open-loop generic technique … inherent in all operations
• Zeroth Law of ReSearch: feedback closed-loop fundamental technique … inherent in all self-rectifications, awareness & understanding
• We can discover that w.r.t. to limited time, resources & motivation, in order to be useful, both laws are limited to the particular system-of-interest
• This does not mean that both laws are invalid or violated
• Both laws remain true for the constrained domain of interest
• However, when the domain becomes unconstrained due to the increasing shifts in foci or drilling of researchers, both laws would not produce their full potential
• Thus,
• On the micro-level of ReSearch, both laws are indispensable
• On the macro-level of ReSearch, they are insufficient to be useful for the shifting of research focus
• Why the need to shift research focus, when shifting itself would blur the research picture?
• One must be aware of the omni-presence of the chain of research, the web of knowledge that back-propagates into past knowledge & forward-propagates into future knowledge
• With the present research focus, the system-of-interest is the niche in focus
• Yet,
• When research progresses along the chain of research, the system-of-interest would inevitably shift into another
• Currently, no such law of research exists to fully account for the smooth, substantiated & reasonable transition from the current system-of-interest into the next

Conception vs. Concretion

• All research tasks & events do not only involve the doing (operations, implementations) … & the corrections (realisations, fundamentals)
• The events would ultimately involve concepts …
• Yet no one can clearly define concept … as it is a virtual idea with actual realisation or implementation
• The concept influences the operations & understanding
• The operations & understanding shapes the concept
• Hence,
• There is always a closed-loop relationship between conception (virtual form) & concretion (actual form)
• This is analogous to dreams & reality
• How many realise our dreams, yet who can live without dreams?
• To concrete is to cut off aspects of concept
• To concept is to modify concrete
• Is there a dilemma or in engineering, a compromise/tradeoff between conception & concretion?
• The solution or resolution is in the interface, interaction, architecture or organisation of both elements of concept & concrete
• Yet interaction is still as undefinable as itself
• To inter-act is to act in related fashion … with influences both within & without … both internally & externally … in other words, in dual mutually-exclusive extremes … the extremes in turn have their own respective extremes … forming infinitely-chained processes
• Hence,
• With this understanding (from Zeroth Law of ReSearch) of the influence of interaction on the balance between conception & concretion … the following 2nd Law of ReSearch is derived

2^nd Law of ReSearch

• Second Law of ReSearch states that with regards to the shifting of research focus under environmental conditions, all processes involve arbitrary chaining of the basic configuration of subsystem-system-suprasystem, with the system as the event-of-interest, where for any system, there would always exist a more fundamental, smaller, simpler, more rigid, less flexible, less powerful, more stable & less interactive system – subsystem; and there would always exist a more complex, larger, less rigid, more flexible, more powerful, less stable but more interactive system – suprasystem.
• Hence,
• Along the chain of research always lies various forms of the basic subsystem-system-suprasystem configuration, similar to cable-strut structures which are composed of only a handful of basic forms
• This basic form directly addresses the transition of research focus, accounts for environmental influence & illustrates the conception-concretion interactions
• Thus … with the subsystem-system-suprasystem basic form … any process can be potentially understood

System

• System-of-interest is the niche to focus on
• If the trial system is complicated, transit into the subsystem
• If the trial system is insufficient, transit into the suprasystem
• To transit into or out of the system-of-interest,
• One needs to be aware of & understand the concept of system degrees of freedom (DOF)
• System DOFs are the allowable, variable, changeable, maneuverable, dynamic, flexible & non-rigid, non-static aspects of the system concept
• DOFs allow the system to be modified to study its effects
• In mechanics, DOFs are the materials [brittle/ductile, elastic/plastic/catenary]; kinematics [translations (horizontal, vertical) and rotations that can be generalised into 6 basic DOFs]; kinetics [displacement-loading interactions]; conditions [boundary, internal, initial & end conditions]
• In networking, DOFs are the entry points, exit points, the links and the nodes or intersections or interchanges
• In thermodynamics, DOFs are the processes (radiation, convection, conduction), the media (gas, liquid, solid, fluid, plasma) and the interactions (pressure, temperature, volume)
• In genetics, DOFs are the chemistry, biological processes & environment factors
• DOFs are the aspects or degrees that the system is free or partially free, but not totally restrained or constrained from change, hence freedom
• Thus,

1. Zero DOF: theoretical lowest limit of system, absolutely stable, equivalent to zero Kelvin in thermodynamics
2. Infinite DOFs: theoretical highest limit of system, absolutely variable, equivalent to the universe

• Between the absolute extremes of zero DOF & infinite DOFs,
• The Second Law of ReSearch implies that:

1. Any system can be transformed into a subsystem by reducing the allowable DOFs already present in the trial system - by restraining, constraining or holding certain non-critical DOFs rigid or given or assumed or known
2. Any system can be transformed into a suprasystem by increasing the allowable DOFs already present in the trial system - by releasing, relaxing or freeing certain critical DOFs that have been rigid or given or assumed or known, into free or partially free DOFs

Transformation theory

• To derive & arrive at the most appropriate or optimal system-of-interest for ReSearch,
• Using Theory of Generalised Problem-Solving:
• Criteria: min. free or partially DOFs within system to describe all effects-of-interest to reach objectives & scope
• Problem understanding: pick out all system DOFs
• Selected solution: tests to qualitatively evaluate the remedy effects & constraints of each DOF à separate into critical & non-critical DOFs à apply Second Law of ReSearch

Subsystem

• If system is too complicated or illusionary,
• There can always be a simpler way to perceive, model & understand it
• Hence, when the problem is just overwhelming
• The researcher does not dive into the concretion
• The researcher falls back onto conception
• With conception, the researcher interacts the relationship at levels that the engineer is fundamentally sound
• Because, by the Second Law of ReSearch, there is always such a subsystem
• The researcher can be assured of preventing progressive conceptual collapse, hence preventing actual concrete engineering disasters
• Potentially this means that all disasters can be avoided
• If the 2nd Law of ReSearch can be internalised within the researcher & if only lay people can take their own respective tasks & duties at their strides & capacities (know yourself 知己)

Suprasystem

• Yet,
• there can be the opposite,
• Now that the system is firmly supporting the researcher
• The researcher engages in internalising the system to become routine
• But, the act of routine is an act of future complacency
• Hence, the researcher moves into the suprasystem - to understand things that baffles one, that one has assumed, ignored, neglected, modified or given in the past
• One needs new & extended insights into the process
• Hence, suprasystem is derived from Zeroth-Law of ReSearch
• This can be from linear à nonlinear, from statics à dynamics, from elastic à inelastic etc.
• Because, by the Second Law of ReSearch, a suprasystem always exists
• Potentially this means that all & everything can be known & engineered
• That there is always hope & inert confidence for research events
• If the 2^nd Law of ReSearch can be internalised within the engineer & if only lay people can internalise open-hearted spirit towards the surroundings (know adversary 知比)

Summary

• Second Law of ReSearch is formed by the basic configuration of subsystem-system-suprasystem
• Where focusing on the system is the niche
• Focusing on the subsystem is the careful, pre-emptive protective stabilising approach
• Focusing on the suprasystem is the hopeful energising exciting interactive approach
• Hence, a rule-of-thumb is:

1. If it is too difficult, go easy
2. If it is too easy, go difficult

• Eventually, provided inherent damping exists, the mutually cyclic shifting between the extremes would settle at hopefully a stable equilibrium position, but life (not to say research) is an unstable phenomenon,
• Hence the following trends:

1. Simple things would always complicate over time & circumstances
2. Complicated things would always simplify over time & circumstances
3. Oscillations always exist between the shifting extremes of simplicity & complexity

• One is not sure where this would lead to, but neither does the researcher
• Hence, the researcher does not argument or debate or probe into issues of such nature
• As the researcher knows that one should only focus & focus only on his niche 定位 & little else