Systems engineering: Fundamental limits and future prospects

Presently perceived fundamental limits in systems engineering are described along with contemporary and projected future efforts to reach, circumvent, or ameliorate the effects of these limits. To present an overall view of the many frontiers being explored and extended in the realm of systems, man and cybernetics, we first described a set of twenty-five objectives for systems engineering in the 1980's. This is followed by a summary description of systems engineering. The paper continues with a discussion of limits associated with modeling, human and behavioral factors, and utility and value measurement. It concludes with examples of how these limits affect the design of planning and decision support systems, and energy policy analysis using technology forecasting and assessment.