Autopoiesis and Self-Organizing Markets — Living Systems Economics examination

Eleven questions. Nine of eleven passes, and you can take it again as often as you like.

What is an autopoietic system?

One whose components never change over time One designed and assembled from outside by an engineer One that relies entirely on external repair One that continuously produces and maintains itself
What lesson does the module draw from Russia's 1990s 'shock therapy'?

Central planning builds a strong commercial culture Rapid privatisation reliably creates thriving markets Market institutions can be transplanted intact elsewhere Autopoietic systems can only be cultivated from within
How does the module contrast China's approach with Russia's?

China grew markets gradually within existing social structures China avoided market mechanisms entirely throughout China imposed markets overnight across the whole nation China copied Russia's shock therapy, only more slowly, which is the assumption most people start with
What does 'maintaining identity through change' mean for an economy?

It replaces its parts yet keeps its organising pattern It changes its basic pattern of organisation each decade It keeps exactly the same firms for many generations It resists every adaptation to its changing environment
What does the living-systems synthesis say about laissez-faire and central planning?

It rejects both markets and states as failed ideas It sides entirely with the central-planning position, especially when resources are scarce It sides entirely with the laissez-faire position It transcends both by supporting healthy self-organisation
Why did Japan recover from the 2011 disaster far faster than Haiti did from 2010, according to the module?

Japan's physical damage was far smaller in overall scale, as it is commonly taught elsewhere Japan's substrate for self-repair was intact; Haiti's had been eroded Haiti's people lacked the resilience that Japan's people had Japan received far more foreign aid than Haiti ever did
What 'boundary error' does the module identify in conventional economics?

Drawing the economy at the market transaction Including too many different activities within the measure of GDP Counting unpaid care work as part of national economic output Treating ecosystems as though they were part of the economy
What did Marilyn Waring demonstrate?

GDP accurately captures every contribution made to the economy Care work is best provided through markets rather than households, provided nothing else changes in the meantime National accounts exclude the unpaid work the paid economy rests on Unpaid work has no measurable effect on markets or output
In Kate Raworth's Doughnut, where is the economy's proper operating space?

Wherever measured GDP growth happens to be fastest Above the ecological ceiling, where output is highest Between the social foundation and ecological ceiling Below the social foundation, where costs are lowest
How did Mondragón's institutions come into being?

A central authority designed them all together at once Each arose from the needs of the ones before it They were purchased from outside investors They were imposed by the Spanish state
What does the module call the ultimate test of autopoiesis, illustrated by Mondragón after Arizmendi's death?

It stops growing once it becomes reliably profitable It is sold at its peak so that its value is preserved It keeps producing itself after the founder is gone The founder retains permanent control of the system