In the text, “The Disregarded Tools of Modern Man”, Safford Beer describes our society as a series of variety and elements that operate either in conjunction with each other. Our society uses tools such as computers and teleprocessing to support institutions which maintain and control culture to the public. As argued in the text, these tools instead of maintaining the status quo can challenge the operation of institutions and therefore our society. These institutions contain a variety of people and objects which creates a variety of scenarios. According to Beer, in order to absorb variety in the uniqueness of individuals, the institutions needs to use a variety of tools to equally react. He additionally states when variety is unbalanced, it can be balanced by reducing the amount of variables or increasing regulatory parts to match variety. This affects technology due to suggesting that there is a need to increase the presence of technology to react to the increasing size and knowledge of individuals in our society.

To carry with the themes with the increase of technology to balance the increasing size and complexity of our society, Gordon Pask in the “The Architectural Relevance of Cybernetics” examines further the idea of Cybernetics or computer assisted applications in the field of architecture. Using cybernetics in architecture, the first main point is the idea dynamism that can occur with the building not being isolated as a structure, rather an environment that interacts with people both serving and controlling behaviors. Additionally the idea that the cybernetics can influence the production of architecture to be more holistic and about acting as a system with parts working together through technology. Lastly, Beer believes that cybernetics becomes an extension of the designer and the physical realization of the hierarchical organization of the designer to the design of the architecture. This control from the designer is embedded into the systems that operate the building and influence the public.

The third reading “Cybernetics and Society” Norbert Weiner investigates the connection between man and machine through communication methods. Using technology as an extension of human abilities, technology allows for communication to reach further, gain control our environment, and to become organized in a variety of way. “Messages are themselves a form of pattern and organization” according to Weiner. Not only can man communicate through machines, but machines can communicate to use. As an example, there is the idea of the automatic door which only interacts with man when there is a presence of movement. The reaction or communication by the machine is to open the passage and becomes an invite. Using the ideology of feedback, as the communication between man and machine becomes more complex, there is a difference created between expected and actual results of the machine which is defined as feedback. This feedback ultimately is a representation of our society with Weiner concluding, “in both animal and the machine this performance is made to be effective on the outer world. In both of them, their performed action on the outer world, and not merely their intended action, is reported back to the central regulatory apparatus.” This apparatus being similar to the relationship of institution to society from the first reading. “Just as individual physical responses may be seen from this point of view, so may the organic responses of society itself.”