Subsystem

Part of a larger system and defined within a subset of variables of that larger system. Subsystems may be delineated by an observer but they may also maintain their own identity and boundary (see autopoiesis ) independent of the distinctions drawn by an observer. Subsystems may overlap in some variable and give rise to a structure representing interdependencies, e.g., between an economy, the educational system and government as three subsystems of society. (Krippendorff )