I think that meta is a concept that gets insufficient attention considering its role in complex systems and complex organizations.
I have agreed to lead a dialogue about meta and meta-systems in Pille Bunnell's SLOW group next Sunday.
Where is meta already familiar and even understood? Ecology.
"The prefix "Meta-" comes from the Greek preposition and prefix meta- (μετα-), from μετά,[6] which meant "after", "beside", "with", "among" (with respect to the preposition, some of these meanings were distinguished by case marking). Other meanings include "beyond", "adjacent" and "self"."
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meta
HEIGHT 400
Wikipedia 
.
"The term "meta-system" (or "metasystem") in cybernetics is synonymous with management system or control system. Stafford Beer, who founded management cybernetics with his viable system model, speaks of metasystems that apply metalanguages which are able to find means of making decisions when necessary improvements cannot be made. Here metalanguage works in a larger context than the language it describes and has more variety, namely the number of possible control states of a given system."
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meta-system
HEIGHT 400
Wikipedia
Must take care of all three continuously in every domain.
Meta models, general and abstract by nature, are essential to make sense of growing complexity. Meta models create additional space, new space, for resolving new problems--problems that are too complex for the solutions that created them.
A metalanguage is a language of a higher order which is capable of discussing propositions which are undecidable in the lower level language and of discussing the limitations and operations of lower level languages. The concept of a metalanguage is rooted in logic and its formal expressions. It has been extended in both directions: to mathematics where Kurt Godel's Incompleteness Theorem proved that in any given arithmetic there will be propositions that cannot be decided upon without recourse to a higher level arithmetic and to everyday language whe
Metasystemic communication (hierarchical) is very very different than horizontal (peer to peer) communication.
A metalanguage is a language of a higher order which is capable of discussing propositions which are undecidable in the lower level language and of discussing the limitations and operations of lower level languages. The concept of a metalanguage is rooted in logic and its formal expressions. It has been extended in both directions: to mathematics where Kurt Godel's Incompleteness Theorem proved that in any given arithmetic there will be propositions that cannot be decided upon without recourse to a higher level arithmetic and to everyday language whe
I am sure there are other such titles in the FedWiki server space.
My personal pattern as in Pattern Language.
Before getting into the salutary functions or metasystems, I want to caution that there is a special type of problem which commonly arises in human metasystems. The actors in the Metasystem structure lose their intimate contact with the Operations System. They shift their stance, viewing the Operations System primarily as sources of material and energy for the Metasystem. The Metasystem has lost its Operations system and has begun treating it as captive part of the environment--an enclosure.
Nothing in this page is correct. In fact taken literally it is mostly wrong. What each item does for me is to point to something off the page that has some truth.
Apparent paradox is a call for meta cognition, not a reason for frustration or denial.
Harder than we might think. Much different than connecting parts with parts. Requires meta concepts and meta languages and and understanding of indirection and timing.
Different than a block, different than a town, different than businesses.
# Nested, recursive metasystems
Ask not what your country can do for you.
# Nested, recursive metasystems
Tentative functions necessary for human wellbeing at all relevant recursions.
**A proposal:** Never try to think about anything nor take any action without ensuring awareness (shared awareness) of three levels--the level of direct interest, the level that encompasses the level of focus, and thrdly the level that makes up the level of focus.
Ours vs. mine, or yours, or theirs. It applies to all of us. It is for all of us. It applies to laws that come from us. Land that belongs to all of us. Water that is for all of us. Forests that are for all of us. Software that is open to all of us.
# Design principles for Common Pool Resource (CPR) institution
# How can FedWiki support each and every level of commons?