The Hidden Connections: A Science for Sustainable Living

by Fritjof Capra

Fritjof Capra, bestselling author of The Tao of Physics and The Web of Life , here explores another frontier in the human significance of scientific ideas—applying complexity theory to large-scale social interaction.

In the 1980s, complexity theory emerged as a powerful alternative to classic, linear thought. A forerunner of that revolution, Fritjof Capra now continues to expand the scope of that theory by establishing a framework in which we can understand and solve some of the most important issues of our time. Capra posits that in order to sustain life, the principles underlying our social institutions must be consistent with the broader organization of nature. Discussing pertinent contemporary issues ranging from the controversial practices of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to the Human Genome Project, he concludes with an authoritative, often provocative plan for designing ecologically sustainable communities and technologies as alternatives to the current economic globalization.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Sustainability, Environment, Economics, Spirituality

320 pages, Paperback

First published August 20, 2002

About the author

Fritjof Capra (born February 1, 1939) is an Austrian-born American physicist. He is a founding director of the Center for Ecoliteracy in Berkeley, California, and is on the faculty of Schumacher College. Capra is the author of several books, including The Tao of Physics (1975), The Turning Point (1982), Uncommon Wisdom (1988), The Web of Life (1996) and The Hidden Connections (2002).

Reviews

[A. Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have used this as my primary text for a grad class I teach in systems theory. I find Capra's work, and this one specifically, very engaging and mind opening. That being said, it is not for the faint of heart. As some of my students tell me, "There are big words in this book and I needed a dictionary to read it."

I find that the process Capra uses for developing his universal theory of systems to be complelling and I use this to set the stage for beginning to understand complex adaptive human systems. I usually link thisbook to one or two other books such as 'Tipping Point' and/or 'The Logic of Failure.

This is a must if you have any interest in human systems, sustainable environments or similar topics.

[Amin · Rating 4 out of 5]

کتابی است بسیار خواندنی و با دامنه گسترده از کاربردها و ریشه های علم پایداری در حوزه های گوناگون. نخستین مواجهه من با مفهوم پیچیدگی در معنای زیستی و سیستم ها از این کتاب و نقدهای کاپرا به فرضیات ساده انگارانه داوکینز شروع شد. بعد ها این مفاهیم حتی انگیزه ای شد برای دنبال کردن جدی تر علم پیچیدگی در حوزه های اجتماعی و تکنولوژیکی و در فضای آکادمیک

[Iustina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Într-o lume în care oamenii produc doar ca să consume, într-un proces în care epuizează resurse şi poluează, ca să nu zic că-şi bat joc de o natură cu care am fost binecuvântaţi, e bine că există oameni care nu au acea tunnel vision (gândirea tunel)la al cărui capăt, pentru mulţi, se află banul. Cartea lui Capra ne aduce aminte că suntem parte integrantă a unui sistem natural care deşi evoulează, încă susţine viaţa, şi nu o distruge, aşa cum fac tehnologiile noastre. Ea prezintă realităţile cutremurătoare ale ingineriei genetice, alimentele modificate genetic, globalizarea şi emisiile de carbon, dar în acelaşi timp vine cu soluţii viabile pentru o dezvoltare armonioasă în natură. Sper să trăiesc şi eu să văd supermaşinile pe bază de hidrogen în celule combustibile, sau oraşele construite pe principiile eco-designului. Soluţii există, trebuie doar să vrem.

În concluzie, dacă eşti mulţumit cu lumea în care trăieşti, nu îţi recomand această carte. Ea bate într-un mod subtil doar la uşa conştiinţei celor care vor să schimbe ceva.

"Resursele se deplasează de la cei săraci către cei bogaţi, iar poluarea se deplasează de la cei bogaţi către cei săraci."

"Marea provocare a secolului XXI va fi schimbarea sistemului de valori subiacent economiei globale, pentru a-l face compatibil cu cerinţele demnităţii umane şi ale durabilităţii ecologice."


"Speranţa într-un viitor mai bun nu este convingerea că ceva va merge bine, ci certitudinea că ceva are sens, indiferent de cum va merge."

[Lenaya · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book tied together many of the thoughts and feelings that I was having about the interconnectedness of life. It will deepen your understanding of most things, by recognizing who it's all intertwined. It's beautiful to think about the way music, art, culture, food, industry, civilization and all of life creates so many patterns that is this world. Very thought provoking and for me in particular it resonnated with my understanding of the connection of food, health and the environment.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most of my classmates found this one to be very dense. I found it mind-opening - like going down the rabbit hole, it led to new paths and new ideas. Capra looks at systems (the human body, ecosystems, global economy) from a systems perspective and has much to say about sustainability. I think the world would be a better place if everyone read this book.

[Alise Miļūna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Capra's systems thinking framework for the biological and social realm is the strongest part of the book and could have been more clearly integrated into his further economic and technological considerations.

[Juan Manuel Charry Urueña · Rating 4 out of 5]

Los paralelos entre la vida, la mente y la sociedad, desde un enfoque sistémico, son sorprendes; los seres humanos somos los catalizadores del mundo. Las propuestas políticas, vistas con la perspectiva de 12 años después, parecen coyunturales e ingenuas. Algunas de las cosas que dice el libro: Dinámica no lineal. La red es el patrón común a todo lo vivo. La vida avanza constantemente hacia la novedad. La vida es una red metabólica delimitada por una membrana, autogénetica y organizativamente cerrada, ..., la red celular es material y energéticamente abierta, que utiliza un flujo constante de materia y energía para producirse, regenerarse y perpetuarse a sí misma, y que funciona lejos del equilibrio. El comportamiento de los seres vivos está determinado por su estructura. La cognición no es la representación de un mundo con existencia independiente, sino más bien el alumbramiento continuo de un mundo mediante el proceso de vivir. Como humanos, existimos en el lenguaje y tejemos continuamente la red linguística en la que estamos inmersos. En el mundo exterior no hay colores. La mente está encarnada en el cuerpo. El pensamiento es en su mayor parte inconsciente, los conceptos abstractos son en gran medida metafóricos. Formamos parte de un orden superior, la gran sinfonía de la vida. El patrón en red es en sí mismo inmaterial. La acción humana se origina a partir del significado que atribuimos a nuestro entorno. Nada tiene sentido por sí solo. La cultura (es decir, el cultivo) de la tierra, o la cultura (es decir, la cría) de animales, en el siglo XVI fue metafóricamente extendido al cultivo activo de la mente. Huelga de celo: al trabajar estrictamente según los manuales y procedimientos oficiales, causan un serio perjuicio al funcionamiento de la organización. Una red viva responde a perturbaciones con cambios estructurales, y elige a qué perturbaciones responder. En las organizaciones humanas, las soluciones emergentes son creadas dentro de un contexto de una determinada cultura organizativa, y generalmente, no pueden ser transferidas. La otra clase de liderazgo consiste en facilitar la emergencia de la novedad. Ser creativo significa poder relajarse en medio de la incertidumbre y de la confusión. La incapacidad de los gobiernos para controlar eficazmente la política económica. En los Estados Unidos cada onza (28,3 gramos) de alimentos viaja una media de más de mil millas (1.609 Km). La sociedad en red ha ido de la mano del declive de la nación-estado como entidad soberana. La Unión Europea podría ser la manifestación más clara de este nuevo estado en red. Los seres humanos, al igual que los demás seres vivos no pueden ser dirigidos, sino únicamente perturbados. Con la confusión de niveles de realidad entre noticias y entretenimiento, información y publicidad, la política se parece cada vez más al teatro. James Kent había escrito diez mil líneas de programación y había completado el primer montaje del genoma humano. Cada gen corresponde a una enzima específica. La estabilidad estructural constituye una propiedad característica de los sistemas no lineales complejos. El problema de hambre en el mundo no es técnico, sino político. La vida no se extendió sobre el planeta por medio de la lucha, sino de la cooperación, la asociación y el funcionamiento en red.

[Elinor Hurst · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brilliant, inspiring book. Fritjof Capra has an impressive ability to synthesise scientific and philosophical thinking across a broad range of disciplines, and to explain concepts to the general reader which build up to an awe inspiring explanation of the natural world, and vision for a better, more sustainable and life affirming future for our species. The new scientific concepts of the basis of life explained in his earlier book, "The Web of Life" are revisited here, and then drawn together with economic and social analysis to produce a blueprint for change. I was particularly inspired by the concepts of shifting from a materials-based economy to a service-and-flow economy, and that of ecological clusters of industries. Our economies need to model the way ecosystems work, to be sustainable.

The importance of networks, and of supporting relationships rather than material acquisition, is another required shift in thinking. The global network that is the Internet is important here, and can greatly facilitate collaborations which support the economic and social transitions required.

This book has motivated me to read Paul Hawken's books on "The Ecology of Commerce" and "Natural Capitalism", and more of Amory and Hunter Lovins' work, to educate myself more around the economic and technological ideas Capra refers to. It has given me hope for the future, to know that we have a blueprint of what's needed, albeit a challenging struggle politically to promote it.

[سالم عبدالله · Rating 3 out of 5]

الكتاب يتعرض الي عملية تكامل الحياة البيولةجية والمعرفة والاجتماع .. في توضيح الى ان الحياة باسرها تسير وفق نظام محكم ..
المؤلف صراحة حاول ان يتشعب في العديد من العلوم و بالفعل هذا الكتاب مجهود كبير ..
مترجم الكتاب .. واضح جدا انه رجل مقف وملم بالكثير من التفاصيل ولقد اثرى هذا الكتاب بمقدمة مذهلة .

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book I propose to extend the new understanding of life that has emerged from complexity theory to the social domain. To do so, I present a conceptual framework that integrates life's biological , cognitive and social dimensions. My aim is not only to offer a unified view of life, mind and society, but also to develop a coherent, systemic approach to some of the critical issues of our time. (xii)
I always worry about coherent systemic approaches to all things, just as I worry about the straightforward application of theories evolved through physical and life sciences to social science -- they often throw up interesting things, as Emergence did, but still they remain problematic. Fritjof Capra does not escape my critique entirely, but his coherent, systematic approach is based upon an understanding of networks, of relationships between things being as fundamental as things themselves (how dialectical of him really, though there is not a ounce of dialectics otherwise), of constant change and never a full knowledge of the whole, of humility in scientific inquiry, of anti-capitalism in the sense that we must substitute new values for that of profit above all that exists now and has brought us almost to to the brink of destruction.

He is also rigorous and smart, and my critiques of the sections on social science are offset by my appreciation that he actually read and grappled with Manuel Castells' three volumes on networks.

I also like that he tries to bring together the material and the social -- the geographers are missing from his account, but I forgive him, as I too think this is key.

My extension of the systems approach to the social domain explicitly includes the material world. this is unusual, because traditionally social scientists have not been very interested in the world of matter...In the future, this strict division will no longer be possible, because the key challenge of this new century -- for social scientists, natural scientists and everyone else -- will be to build ecologically sustainable communities, designed in such a way that their technologies and social institutions -- their material and social structures -- do not interfere with nature's inherent ability to sustain life. (xv)

Clearly how we think about cities, housing, transportation, infrastructure and &c. are key to survival of ourselves as a species and the planet as we know it now. Of course, if we destroy ourselves, I have every confidence that life will continue to emerge and flourish. Life is pretty amazing.

The first section of this book is on life itself, with some thought-provoking concepts, like autopoiesis - 'self-making'. Capra writes that on a cellular level, life is present where there is both physical boundary and a metabolic network. Living systems as autopoietic networks 'means that the phenomenon of life has to be understood as a property of the system as a whole'. (9)

For a long while scientists thought genes fixed, determinative, this idea fitted so neatly into racist and classist and sexist ideas of place and station, our understandings of society. I love, love, how that has all been turned on its head, with little fixed at all:

A key insight of the new understanding of life has been that biological forms and functions are not simply determined by a genetic blueprint but are emergent properties of the entire epigenetic network. (10)

I love too, the idea of emergence, that things are created through a collective relationship, and often great than the whole:

This spontaneous emergence of order at critical points of instability is one of the most important concepts of the new understanding of life. It is technically known as self-organization and is often referred to simply as 'emergence'. (12)

He comes back to this, writing

The phenomenon of emergence takes place at critical points of instability that arise from fluctuations in the environment, amplified by feedback loops. (102)

He describes, for example, the crisis faced by quantum physicists in 1920s as their experiments and observations pushed the limits of our understandings of reality. It is something we know today, without being able to well conceive of what it must have felt like. Perhaps my favourite thing in the whole book was this amazing quote from Werner Heisenberg, on the cost of emergence, and how it is in fact greater than any one man but emerges from collective work and thinking:

I remember discussions with Bohr which went through many hours till very late at night and ended almost in despair; and when at the end of the discussion I went alone for a walk in the neighboring park I repeated to myself again and again the question: Can nature possibly be so absurd as it seemed to us in these atomic experiments? (103)

They did not stop the experiments but continued on, pushing against the certainties of our knowledge. Allowing that the world might be greater, wilder than we had ever imagined it. It is the findings of quantum physics, in some ways, that have opened up every other field. They have shown the world is not as we thought it was, that by the very act of studying it we enter into a relationship with it and thereby change or fix its behaviour.

In the very simplest of ways, biology reminds us that it is in the relationships between one thing and another that some of their properties are determined:

When carbon, oxygen and hydrogen atoms bond in a certain way to form sugar, the resulting compound has a sweet taste. The sweetness resides neither in the C, nor in the O, nor in the H, it resides in the patterns that emerges from their interaction. It is an emergent property. Moreover, strictly speaking, the sweetness is not a property of the chemical bonds. It is a sensory experience that arises when the sugar molecules interact with the chemistry of our taste buds... (36)

He brings up Saussure here, as you would, the structuralist view that words obtain meaning only in relation to other words, to phrases. No Voloshinov though, to further complicate things with the ways that meanings are further contested. Ah well.

I also like being reminded of the wonder and unimaginable timescale of our emergence.

memory became encoded in macromolecules, and 'the membrane bounded chemical networks acquired all the essential characteristics of today's bacterial cells. This major signpost in the origin of life established itself perhaps 3.8 billion years ago. (24)

So I suppose in the great scheme of things it is not so terrible that we have been stuck imagining things as static and fixed for some time, when in fact they are growing and learning.

The decisive advance of the systems view of life has been to abandon the Cartesian view of mind as a thing, and to realize that mind and consciousness are not things but processes. (29)

Being a social scientist (of a sort, I suppose), I found the sections on the social a little less interesting in terms of expanding my own thinking, but still quite interesting in thinking about how someone from the hard sciences approaches some of those topics we wrestle with. Power was the most interesting, so much has been written on power, Capra's choices of definition and source are quite fascinating:

One of the most striking characteristics of social reality is the phenomenon of power. In the words of economist John Kenneth Galbraith, 'The exercise of power, the submission of some to the will of others, is inevitable in modern society; nothing whatever is accomplished without it...Power can be socially malign; it is also socially essential.' The essential role of power in social organizations is linked to inevitable conflicts of interest. Because of our ability to affirm preferences and make choices accordingly, conflicts of interest will appear in any human community, and power is the means by which these conflicts are resolved. (76-77)

The origin of power, then, lies in culturally defined positions of authority on which the community relies for the resolution of conflicts and for decisions about how to act wisely and effectively. In other words, true authority consists in empowering others to act. (77)

That is an interesting definition, one with which many a social scientist might be happy to contest (or better said, complicate). No Foucault, no Lukes or Gaventa, no Guevara, no Agamben. There's a key liberal in that list I am forgetting, but the list of people writing about power is in truth a very long one. Though few would deny the truth of this:

Thus, power plays a central role in the emergence of social structures. (78)

I like this boiling down of things to simple definitions. If only because I then want to complicate them anew.

Social systems produce nonmaterial as well as material structures. The processes that sustain a social network are processes of communication, which generate shared meaning and rules of behaviour (the network's culture), as well as a shared body of knowledge. The rules of behaviour whether formal or informal, are called social structures. (79)

Back to dialectics

The biological structure of an organism corresponds to the material infrastructure of a society, which embodies the society's culture. As the culture evolves, so does its infrastructure -- they coevolve through continual mutual influences. (80)

There is a strange section about corporations, and management's interest in his work as a way to repair these massive and ailing behemoths. I feel that management, like science, once held a very precise view of our ability to impose our will on the world which hasn't quite shifted fully.

To run properly, a machine must be controlled by its operators, so that it will function according to their instructions. Accordingly, the whole thrust of classical management theory is to achieve efficient operations through top-down control. Living beings, on the other hand, act autonomously. They can never be controlled like machines. To try and do so is to deprive them of their aliveness. (91)

But there are some looking at how autonomous human beings create for themselves the networks and support they require. Capra cites Etienne Wenger, and his definition of 'communities of practice' as

self-generating social networks, referring to the common context of meaning rather than to the pattern of of organization through which the meaning is generated. (94)

A community of practice has three main features: 'mutual engagement of its members, a joint enterprise and, over time, a shared repertoire of routines, tacit rules of conduct and knowledge. (95)

These are networks that emerge, take on lives and structures without (at least in the beginning) formal directives or top-down demands. They have the ability to be horizontal. Capra writes:

Although it may seem that in an ecosystem some species are more powerful than others, the concept of power is not appropriate, because non-human species (with the exception of some primates) do not force individuals to act in accordance with preconceived goals. There is dominance, but it is always acted out within a larger context of cooperation...The manifold species in an ecosystem do not form hierarchies, as is often erroneously stated, but exist in networks nested within networks. (133)

After this framing of the key nature of networks and relationships in both biology and social science, the book moves towards what sustainability should look like, how we can achieve it based on this new knowledge.

One of the subtitles is 'Life as the Ultimate Commodity' (174) -- I had not realised in my youth that the Human Genome Project was actually a race against time, a social collective trying to map the genome for public knowledge before a consortium of corporations did it first so that they could patent it. They won, I had no idea of the drama of that victory, or how much was saved. Capra writes:

underlying all evaluations is the basic principle of unfettered capitalism: that money-making should always be valued higher than democracy, human rights, environmental protection or any other value. Changing the game means, first and foremost, changing this basic principle. (185)

In some ways, the new nature of genetics we are discovering is on our side in this, the patenting of genes doesn't work very well given that there has been

A profound shift of emphasis, from the structure of genetic sequences to the organization of metabolic networks, from genetics to epigenetics is taking place. (143)

It doesn't stop Monsanto and others from trying, however. Still, this is a call for a new kind of science, one that does not seek arrogant mastery but works with the concept of emergence:

We can imagine a radically different kind of biotechnology. It would start with the desire to learn from nature rather than control her, using nature as a mentor rather than merely as a source of raw materials. Instead of treating the web of life as a commodity, we would respect it as the context of our existence.

This is key to our survival, as is understanding sustainability:

The concept of sustainability was introduced in the early 1980s by Lester Brown, founder of the Worldwatch Institute, who defined a sustainable society as one that is able to satisfy its needs without diminishing the chances of future generations. (200)

Specifically, there are six principles of ecology that are critical to sustaining life: networks, cycles, solar energy, partnership, diversity and dynamic balance. (201)

Above all, sustainability is achieved through a network of healthy interdependent relationships:

In order to combine respect for these human rights with the ethics of ecological sustainability, we need to realize that sustainability -- in ecosystems as well as in human society -- is not an individual property but a property of an entire web of relationships: it involves a whole community. A sustainable human community interacts with other living systems -- human and nonhuman -- in ways that enable those systems to live and develop according to their nature. In the human realm sustainability is fully consistent with the respect of cultural integrity, cultural diversity and the basic right of communities to self-determination and self-organization. (188)

How do we get there? You know I liked this:

According to Sociologist Manuel Castells, social change in the society does not originate within the traditional institutions of civil society but develops from identities based on the rejection of society's dominant values -- patriarchy, the domination and control of nature, unlimited economic growth and material consumption, and so on. (191)

We build connections, networks, challenge capitalism and arrogance. We look to increase diversity, decrease consumption and above all increase our own ability to work together to increase our abilities to collectively change and shape our world.

[Carla Parreira]

O livro trás uma análise dos sistemas vivos em função de quatro perspectivas interligadas - forma, matéria, processo e significado - o que faz com que nos seja possível aplicar uma compreensão unificada da vida não só aos fenômenos materiais, mas também aos que decorrem no campo dos significados: as redes metabólicas dos sistemas biológicos correspondem às redes de comunicações dos sistemas sociais; os processos químicos que produzem estruturas materiais correspondem aos processos de pensamento que produzem estruturas semânticas; e os fluxos de energia e matéria correspondem aos fluxos de informações e ideias.
A ideia central dessa concepção sistêmica e unificada da vida é a de que o seu padrão básico de organização é a rede. O segundo livro que terminei de ler, também da mesma autoria, chamase O ponto de mutação46. O autor austríaco mostra em sua tese a profunda harmonia entre a visão de mundo da física moderna e a do misticismo oriental, principalmente relacionando a teoria das forças YinYang.

[Rafael De Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book starts with a scientific view of "what is life?" and his explanation guides most of the book. My interest in this book was the interaction between the different areas and sciences and Capra did a great job in this area. After understanding how life created itself after million of years, it was easier to understand how society works. The end is a strong calling for actions, the author not only expose the global economy and environment problem but also suggest solutions and propose ideas.

[André]

As últimas descobertas científicas mostram que todas as formas de vida - desde as células mais primitivas até as sociedades humanas, suas empresas e Estados nacionais, até mesmo sua economia global - organizam-se segundo o mesmo padrão e os mesmos princípios básicos: o padrão em rede. Em "As Conexões ocultas", Fritjof Capra desenvolve uma compreensão sistêmica e unificada que integra as dimensões biológica, cognitiva e social da vida e demonstra claramente que a vida, em todos os seus níveis, é inextricavelmente interligada por redes complexas.

[Stefano Besana · Rating 5 out of 5]

La teoria dei sistemi e delle connessioni tra organismi viventi spiegata in maniera magistrale da Capra.
Un colpo di spugna ad anni e anni di teorie dualistiche che enfatizzano un'erronea divisione di mente e corpo.
La coscienza è incarnata: le riflessioni di Capra lasciano davvero a bocca aperta e ci resta da domandarci per quale motivo non se ne parli...

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is, by far, the best book I have ever read. It is strongly organized, highly intelligent, and expertly articulated. I’m also currently reading another of his books and am all around impressed with Capra.

[Genna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Couldn't help but feel that this book was trying to do too many things and lost a lot of focus. That said, if you don't like one chapter, you might prefer the next one (I hated the chapter about business practices but the one after was a lot more interesting).

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I appreciated the scientific beginning and how that set the tone for the book. I was pulled into his explanations of systems.

[Joyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read on his theories. I met him recently. This book has got me thinking.

[Pierre · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brillant synthesis of the current trend in science.

[Karen Nagai · Rating 4 out of 5]

To me it was very hard the first pages, but after I surpassed them, it was really inspiring!

[Sundarraj Kaushik · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book the author compares how networking is a fundamental nature at all levels. He starts with how the single cell lifeforms evolved to complex cell lifeforms by forming communities which could grow in its own way internally while exchanging and getting external stimulus too.
He describes these external stimulus bring in a change in the community and this change may lead to a stable community with some changes from the earlier one, or may lead to the destruction of the community.
He compares these lifeforms to human communities and how these interact with each other and how these mutate to change its culture.
He talks about how corporates are similar communities and goes onto to say only corporates which are "living corporates" will survive. He says that we have tended to control things top down because of the success it yielded us during the industrial revolution when manufacturing was the key industry and if somebody at the top figured out how to manufacture the required goods in a very efficient way then that would give the organization more profits.
He describes how this cannot work in today's organization which have become more knowledge centric and unless the management starts hearing the talks and whispers and feedback from the community lower down the pecking order in the corporate hierarchy companies will start folding up.
He then goes on to illustrate how these corporates are trying to to attain maximum profitability with nary a care for the betterment of employees and the without bothering about the impact their actions have on the environment.
He describes how the WTO was envisaged to be used by the big corporates and developed countries to exploit the developing countries which are rich in resources required by the developed countries. He quotes Vandana Shiva's (an ecologist) repeatedly "The Developed countries will get the resources and the Developing countries will end up getting polluted".
He also describes how the big companies tried to hijack agriculture by promoting Genetically Modified good. He gives a passionate argument as to why these companies have no clue of how these GM food will impact the health of the ecosystem. He argues that these should be discouraged.
He goes on to say how different NGOs have sprung up the world over and are fighting these power and money hungry organizations. He gives example of how the internet was used to undermine the WTO pact in Seattle and sees hope for humans in the form of these NGOs which are dedicated to preserving the natural order.
He also illustrates how we were fortunate enough to have "Open Source" software which ensured that the Human Genome mapping was done in the Open Source world rather than by some corporate which was aiming to patent and lock up the whole thing.
All in all a very good book and an eyeopener (atleast for me especially with respect to GM food, WTO and genome mapping). Although some may see this book as an harbinger of doom, the author has illustrated how the incidents, set in motion by one set of community, that could have lead to catastrophes were prevented by other communities.

[Niklaus · Rating 2 out of 5]

difficilmente un libro scientifico (o meglio che si professa tale) riesce a farmi indispettire. Ma qui di scienza c'è solo la superficie e molta (troppa) ideologia. Il libello è del 2009 ma è invecchiato malissimo per alcuni concetti scientifici che ad un lettore poco avvezzo al tema sembrano scritte da un profondo conoscitore della materia. Il problema come vedremo poi è che sotto la patina di "cultore della materia" si incontrano sia strafalcioni concettuali molto gravi che una ideologia pervasiva venata ad una visione anti- (qualunque cosa segua al trattino). La cosa non sarebbe degna di nota se non fosse che viviamo in un tempo in cui ci riaffacciano con sempre più forza (e combattività) concetti anti-scientifici tra i non addetti ai lavori. Dagli OGM al caso Stamina fino ai vaccini è un proliferare di idee strampalate amplificate da internet. Nel libro si cita spesso, come supporto e fonte delle sue idee, tale Mae-Wan Ho (a me ignota, e vi assicuro che l'ambiente scientifico lo frequento) che scopro, dopo una ricerca bibliografica essere una genetista di formazione le cui idee la hanno condotta nel reame della pseudo-scienza. Una ottima fonte non c'è che dire quella usata dall'autore, un fisico che parla di biologia e pensa al taoismo. Potrei buttare via il mio tempo per contestare punto per punto alcune sue affermazioni ma sarebbe tempo perso. Mi limito a citare una frase presente a pagina 15 riguardo ai virus modificati "... la stessa Mae-Wan Ho ipotizza che l'emergere, negli ultimi decenni di nuovi virus, altamente resistenti agli antibiotici possa essere connesso con la commercializzazione su larga scala dell'ingegneria genetica ...". Una persona che mi parla di virus resistenti agli antibiotici si qualifica de facto come una persona che di biologia non sa nulla: per un errore concettuale del genere si viene bocciati all'esame di genetica o biologia del primo anno di università. Date queste premesse immaginate le chicche che posso avere scovato nelle pagine successive.

[Simon Fowler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating and informative review of the 'basics' of biological life in the first half, but I was unconvinced by the logical progression from that to social application. There are too many aspects of the 'living systems' he goes into such great detail about that he then fails to apply. Biological life seems to serve more as an analogy than a directly applicable model for organizing social/economic life.

His approach becomes less believable as a science as his ideology becomes more obvious. His totally negative characterization of globalization isn't justified. It's not just about the free flow of finance and information, it's about the free flow of goods and services. And it's not just about environmental destruction and social deprivation, it's also about increased life expectancy and health for billions lifted out of poverty since the age of industrialization. See Hans Rosling's presenation at TED here. Capra also idealizes natural living systems, ignoring the extinction of species over time, the 'slash and burn' tactics of locusts, and the general 'red in tooth and claw' ways of nature.

That said, industrial devastation of the environment is a fact in many places, so is the unrelenting depletion of natural global resources, so he's right to call attention to them and to propose solutions. I wish the whole book was on the alternatives and solutions. The examples of almost waste-free industrial networks are extremely fascinating and challenging. As are the various proposals for emission-free (except water) vehicles. The application of non-linear dynamics to organizations is also a fascinating area of discussion I'd like to hear more on.

[Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

It would be correct, I suppose, to paraphrase all of what was already written on the back cover but that would be only half of the story. It is more than a dry development of General Systems Theory or a criticism of globalization. It is as much an argument against commercial science's, and by extension our own, over simplification of the world, against our conceit. The beauty of the book is to show how inextricably linked we are to everything. We are put very much into a continuum of living things, no longer able to stand outside of nature. Not being separate we must then be absolutely sure we know what the consequences of our actions are going to be. This is then the magic of it all; it is impossible to be selfish without becoming selfless. Or to put it another way, to worry about yourself is to worry about the bees, about hedgehogs and elephants, about trees and worms, in fact, even about some unknown foul smelling slime from an ocean depth we still haven't seen, about ourselves and everything besides and in-between.

In the spirit of being connected to everything, read this alongside Small Is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered and Your Inner Fish: A Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body

[Glenn Ardi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pertama-tama, buku ini jelas tidak saya disarankan sebagai bacaan ringan bagi siapapun.. tapi untuk para penggemar buku-buku 'berat' saya rasa anda tidak akan kecewa ~

Buku ini mencoba mengungkapkan suatu bentuk kerangka konseptual baru dengan cara mengintegrasi antara dimensi biologis, kognitif, dan sosial.

Terus terang, paradigma saya banyak berubah setelah saya membaca buku ini. Buku ini membuka wawasan saya secara luas tentang hakikat dari kehidupan, kesadaran, serta pemikiran, dari sudut pandang filosofis material sekaligus esensi makna -

Buku ini terdiri dari kedua bagian, bagian pertama Capra bercerita tentang dasar pemikiran suatu sistem dengan menjelaskan sistem jaringan kehidupan dari sudut mikro yang dikemas dengan disiplin ilmu biologi.. Lalu pada bagian kedua, Capra mencoba untuk menjelaskan hubungannya secara makro dengan realita kehidupan sosial yang terjadi, apa kaitannya, serta dampaknya secara sistemik.

Menurut saya buku ini bicara tentang hampir segala hal.. tentang filsafat, sains, spiritual - serta kaitannya dengan berbagai fenomena sosial, ekonomi, perkembangan teknologi, serta permainan politik di dunia saat ini.

Sayang sekali buku ini bukan buku yang enak untuk dibaca secara penulisan, entah karena Capra memang kurang pandai bertutur dalam kata-kata, atau mungkin terjemahannya jelek. - dan itulah yang menyebabkan saya memberi buku ini bukan bintang 5 tapi bintang 4.

[Ken Deshaies · Rating 5 out of 5]

From cellular biology to social constructs to the dangers of GMOs and finally to the future of energy that will be required to provide a sustainable earth, Capra tackles the most intimate and the most complex in stunning and lucid form.

Under the study of complexity theory, or nonlinear dynamics, he traces our existence from our DNA to our involvement in society as a whole. While the first three chapters provide the scientific basis for our existence, the next three describe in some detail our evolution into social models and communities. Chapter 7 then challenges us to get beyond politics and the concept of unfettered capitalism - where all actions done primarily for profit are considered commendable - to a point where we can focus actions on the ultimate good. While he acknowledges, as most involved in environmentalism and sustainability do, that we have been in the process of systematically destroying our planet, he also provides optimism. He outlines admirable efforts by many in society that lead to cleaner energy, less pollution, and the possible saving of the planet.

Of course, this book was published 12 years ago, and it would seem that the outlook today is more dire, but it certainly inspires to action, to become part of a growing effort to prolong our existence here.

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Hidden Connections comments on a variety of issues surrounding the idea of sustainability that author Capra considers central in the early years of the 21st century. The first part of the book is theoretical, “a conceptual framework that integrates life’s biological, cognitive, and social dimensions.” This leads directly to a chapter forwarding a view of the structuring and management of organizations based on this model. Chapters ensue on the ups and downs of the world economy and the pitfalls of biotechnology (with special emphasis on cloning), ending with a persuasive entreaty on the dangers confronting the environment and such hope as the future holds for it.
Over the years, more and more of the ideas that Capra proposes have been adopted in various domains. The word “sustainability” itself has gained a hitherto unsuspected inevitability. Since this book is only thirteen years old as of this writing, then, it is probably not too late to recommend it to friends and other readers as a sort of touchstone for the prescient thought of today. It is, at any rate, a useful summary of recent thought on society and the environment.

[Ricardo Roman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Si internet nos ha entregado una comprensión del fenómeno social en redes, y de cómo los seres humanos vivimos/creamos en redes con otros, "Conexiones Ocultas" de Fritjof Capra (como su otro trabajo "La trama de la vida"), nos entrega una visión mucho más abarcadora del fenómeno de las redes, desde realidades micro (nano) hasta magnitudes cósmicas, pasando profundizando en elnivel de la biosfera y las realidades humanas de conocimiento, tecnología y política. Es un libro que toma posición por una visión holística (que supere el mecanicismo atomístico de la tradición científica) y también toma posición política en pro de una actitud responsable con el medio ambiente, pero lo hace destacando las alternativas reales de innovación que ya permiten esperanzas en que se puede vivir con progreso, calidad de vida, y cuidando el entorno natural. Mis creencias políticas y mi visión del trabajo de gestión en compañías ha sido marcado por esta lectura.

[The Capital Institute · Rating 5 out of 5]

Capra discusses the function and parts of an ecosystem, and the way the world is dealing with the one currently in place. His argument suggests that while the conventional view of nature is mechanical, it should in reality be more “organic,” where the system is a “living” network, shaped by values and purpose. This in turn, Capra argues, shapes the way a system is expected to respond to situations – consequently explaining the difficulty in changing corporate culture today. Capra discusses both the field of systems science and how to seek “organic fixes” to our environmental problems.
The Guardian calls this a “cool and rational” analysis of the situation, without the typically hysterical tone of some environmental writers. Reviews suggest that the book is a useful tool in understanding the plight of the environment today, as well as the way in which corporate culture has allowed for these problems to arise and expand.

[Alejandro Ramirez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Otro de los libros en la vena de cognitive science. El autor es un físico que tiene un libro aparentemente famoso: The tao of Physics. Aunque suena mucho menos a charlatanería que Deepak Chopra, es otro de los que dicen asumen que la física quántica prueba contundentemente cualquier cosa que se les hinche el huevo proponer. En éste caso, que la física cuántica y la relatividad validan el budismo e hinduismo (en el caso de Tao of Physics). Éste libro en particular tiene un objetivo con el que simpatizo mucho: usar la definición de vida, desde el aspecto molecular, de consciencia, como bases para estrategias de desarrollo social sustentable. Simpatizo con la idea, pero no me interesa en éste momento, máxime cuando las conexiones entre premisas y conclusiones son tan tibias (aún cuando es entretenido leer sobre ambas). Quizá en otro momento fuera buena lectura.