An Analysis of Relational Systems

The relational modeling strategy Robert Rosen introduced in chapter 5 of Life Itself in order to model biological organization is in many ways very remarkable, not in the least because he is able to give an account of final causation. This article gives an overview of the most characteristic steps of the relational modeling strategy, from the component to augmented abstract block diagrams, putting the emphasis on some epistemological aspects. Robert Rosen's modeling strategy is a formal representation of biological organization, specifically of circular causality. In this regard, the most important contribution of Robert Rosen is the anschaulichkeit - the intuitability - of the closure of the organization and of the intertwinement of the different Aristotelian causes, even if they are incommensurable.