The Fifth Discipline

Biological Parallel

Peter Senge's 'fifth discipline' is systems thinking—the ability to see patterns, interrelationships, and structures rather than isolated events. This is exactly how predators hunt: wolves don't chase individual elk randomly; they read herd dynamics, identify weak members, coordinate pack behavior, and exploit terrain. Systems thinking isn't a human invention; it's the cognitive capacity that evolution favored in social predators, long-lived species, and ecosystem engineers who must navigate complex, interconnected environments to survive.