Law of Similars - Cause and Effect

Hi Folks,Would appreciate your thoughts and assistance on this matter.1. An undetermined event causes a complicated system to produce many external effects.2. Although the mechanisms of the "complicated system" is unknown ("Black Box"), you are able to induce it to produce exactly the same effects as above by some other means.3. As the effects of the above two "causes" are identical, what can be said about the relationship between the two causes? Certainly not that the causes must be identical. But, if we work backwards from the identical effects produced by the two causes (which are definitely not induced in the same way), we should find a point of divergence somewhere.The system is very complicated. The external effects mentioned above may exceed one thousand. Can we say then that, the more matching effects there are between the two causes, the more closely related the causes are?More about the complicated system. It has 40,000 variable components, which interact to run the whole system. When a fault arises in one of these components, there are usually compensatory mechanisms to manage the fault. But, in certain stressful operating conditions, this fault becomes a weakness which causes serious system failure, manifesting as many external effects.The system failure develops in a cascading or snowball fashion; a domino effect through the whole system resulting in the many observable external effects. The actual combination of these final effects are quite specific to the original component fault. If another of the components became faulty instead and caused system failure, (producing a different kind of cascade) the combination of final effects would be different.There are many different "induction types" (see step 2. above), and each one produces its own unique combination of final effects from the system whenever it is used.Therefore, is it likely that, if the two "causes" produce the same combination of final effects, the failing component of the system is actually being targeted?Follow that? Would appreciate any comments before going any further.Tim[This message has been edited by Timokay, 10-27-2003]

Hey Timokay
You post:Although the "complicated system" is inaccessible ("Black Box"), you are able to induce it to produce exactly the same effects as above by some other means.Please explain how you can induce something into production through something that is inaccessible?

Sidelined,I see your point. "Inaccessible" in the sense that you cannot look inside it to establish what is actually happening in there (i.e., its mechanism).Re. "inaccessible",
please note these two dictionary defs of accessible:
1: capable of being used or seen : AVAILABLE.
2: capable of being understood or appreciated.I changed my wording above: My words:"2. Although the "complicated system" is inaccessible ("Black Box"), you are able to induce it to produce exactly the same effects as above by some other means." changed - Unknown replaces inaccessible.Tim