TABLE OF CONTENTS The energies of our system will decay, the glory of the sun will be dimmed, and the earth, tideless and inert, will no longer tolerate the race which has for a moment disturbed its solitude. Man will go down into the pit, and all his thoughts will perish.
The Foundations of Belief, A. J. Balfour, 1848-1930
Architecture is defined as the art and science of creating buildings. Systems engineering may be similarly defined as the art and science of creating systems. [1] The process of creating a system starts at the point where a problem or issue is identified and a solution is postulated in the solution space.
There may be several, or many, potential solutions to a problem. This book emphasizes the scientific solution; yet, within the scientific solution, there may be art, too. Conceiving solutions to problems is creative, requiring perception, imagination, understanding, and judgment. One solution may be more aesthetically appealing than another, although both may be equally justifiable and effective in other respects. Often, too, in the practice of system design, choices may be made in the absence of solid information about the future in which the designed system will exist and function. There is something of an art in making such decisions; evidently, some people are better at it than others.
Systems engineering extends from the solution concept, through the life of a system, to its demise and replacement. For every system there is a life cycle; see Figure...
