New directions in large-scale systems

Results in many areas of Large-Scale Systems Theory depend on strict conditions on the functions characterizing the elements of the system, which we call the "local" properties of the system. We feel that the structural properties of a large system (which we call the "global" properties) may enable us to make statements without requiring stringent conditions on the local properties. This greatly extends the applicability of some techniques. Our ideas are illustrated by some recent results.