At de Lange wrote, in analogy to "creativity" - the ability to create - :
>To my surprise the etymology of the word power is through the French
>word "poer" coming from the Latin word "posse". This word means "to be
>able"! In other words, the word "powerivity" would mean "the ability to be
>able". Is the meaning of this phrase a mere tautology? I do not think so if I
>compare it to the synonymous phrase "the capacity to be able". There
>appears to be a deeper meaning in "the ability to be able". The meaning
>which I my own experiences give rise to is something in the nature of "any
>potential which can become actual on the moment of demand". It >consists of two facets, namely "potential" and "actualisation".
Dear At,
the "Digestor" and empowerment - aren't they closely related? When I read
your phrase "the ability/capacity to be able", the big letter F jumped
into my mind. Are "Free Energy" and "Powerivity" synonym? Sounds good to
me. I also find the two facets in free energy: the potential is the free
energy itself, the actualisation is our /_\F, the change in F.
This would allow to relate the insights of system dynamics based on
irreversible thermodynamics to the dynamics of power in society. Two
questions arise immediately: Where does power come from? How and when does
the use of power (actualisation) enhance or inhibit further power
(potential)?
Liebe Gruesse,
Winfried
--"Winfried Dressler" <winfried.dressler@voith.de>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>