Purpose -To develop a biological approach to the analysis of learning organisations based on complexity theory, autopoiesis, and evolutionary epistemology. Design/methodology/approach -This paper synthesises ideas from disciplines ranging from physics, epistemology and philosophy of science to military affairs, to sketch a scientific framework in which the autopoietic status of any kind of complex system can be evaluated. The autopoietic framework also presents generic concepts of memory, learning and knowledge. The autopoietic status of human organisations is tested in relation to this framework, and some of the direct implications regarding organisational learning and adaptation are highlighted. Findings -A new definition of autopoiesis adding sustainability to key requirements is developed. Theoretical ideas of Maturana and Varela, Popper, Pattee, Boyd, and Gould are synthesised and applied to large-scale organisations to reveal their emergent, autopoietic, evolutionary (i.e. biological), and learning nature. Originality/value -Many current studies and practices in knowledge management are based on only limited views of what constitutes knowledge in the organisation and have not been conducted within any visible framework for understanding the organisation's survival imperatives, or how the knowledge and processes being studied relate to the organisation's overall strategic aims. The framework presented here will lead towards the development of a sounder theoretical basis for studying knowledge and learning in organisations.

The clade of the North American lizard genus Sceloporus and its relatives comprising the subfamily Phrynosomatinae (Iguanidae) includes perhaps 150 evolutionary lineages. The work reviewed here begins with the discovery of the concentration of Robertsonian chromosomal variability in Sceloporus more than 40 years ago and cytogenetic and genomic evidence of remarkable chromosomal variation within the S. grammicus complex associated with narrow zones of hybridization between different chromosomal races. These discoveries led to hypotheses about hybrid zones involving negative heterosis, possible modes of chromosomal speciation, and the potential roles of such speciation in phylogenesis. The radiation of Sceloporus has now been studied by many different workers extending and mapping the geographic distribution of cytogenetic and genomic variation to understand the biology of the chromosomal variation and to establish the phyletic relationships of the various lineages. The result is a robust phylogeny and a large and still growing database of genic, cytogenetic and other biological parameters. These materials provide a rich series of natural experiments to support both synthetic-comparative and analytical studies of the roles of chromosomal variation, hybrid zones and modes of speciation in phylogenesis and evolutionary success.

Abstract-Knowledge-based communities are important but poorly understood systems for helping enterprises maintain their organizational integrity and address organizational imperatives. Based on an autopoietic theory of organization, we examine the emergence and development of knowledge-based communities at different scales up to large distributed enterprises and industry clusters. Knowledge-based communities are highly complex systems that evolve and mature through the phased emergence of new features and capabilities. Development and support of successfully sustainable communities needs to be based on a better understanding of how these features and capabilities emerge. To comprehend the impact of emergent behavior within and beyond organizational communities requires an understanding of the social or sociological aspects of a system in relation to the explicit formal/physical structures in the organization.

It is difficult for large and geographically dispersed organisations to manage personal knowledge for easy discovery and sharing, especially in the areas of identification, indexing and codification of the knowledge held in people's heads and the cultural issues of discovery, mutual trust and sharing. We have prototyped a methodology based on mind mapping and a relational database to codify, index and map staff knowledge. This includes an interview process to build trust while eliciting career histories, plus a relationally based 280 S. Nousala et al.graphical knowledge retrieval structure making it easy for other staff to determine who is likely to posses the kind of knowledge needed.

The lizard Anolis monticola has a diploid chromosome number of 48 (24 macrochromosomes and 24 micrcchromosomes). More primitive members of the genus, as determined by bone morphology, have 12 macrochromosomes and 24 microchromosomes. Since the higher chromosome number is the derived condition, this is a case of karyotypic change by centric fission.