Tip of the Iceberg Research Paper

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Questions for Group Discussion
What was the primary system described in the story? What were the parts of that system? What was the system’s purpose? The primary system in the story was supply and demand. It is also through negotiation and compromise as a result of the penguins and walruses’ desire to end their unmet needs for food. The system was comprised of the iceberg, penguins, walruses and clams. Other contributing factors were hunger, teamwork, communication and supply. The purpose of the system was for the penguins and walruses to form a partnership in order to address the hunger of both groups. (Hutchens 2001). Demand refers to how much (quantity) of a product or service is desired by buyers. The quantity demanded is the amount of a product people are willing to buy at a certain price; the relationship between price and quantity demanded is known as the demand relationship. Supply represents how much the market can offer. The quantity supplied refers to the amount of a certain good producers are willing to supply when receiving a certain price. The correlation between price and how much of a good or service is supplied to the market is known as the supply relationship. Price, therefore, is a reflection of supply and demand. (Economics Basics: Demand & Supply). Continue to reflect on the primary system in the story. What was the larger system in which it was embedded? What were some of its smaller “subsystems”? The larger system that is embedded was the ecosystem that compromised the ocean and the iceberg. Some of the smaller subsystems included are the increase of population of the penguins and walruses, limited land space, and increase in poor attitudes and boundary issues. According to Aronson (1996) systems range from simple to complex. There are numerous types of systems. For example, there are biological systems (for example, the heart), mechanical systems (for example, a thermostat), human/mechanical systems (for example,...
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