Risk architecture and systemic traps by Charles Perrow

The article analyzes Charles Perrow's Normal Accident Theory (NAT) using the example of the Three Mile Island disaster. The author demonstrates that the accident was not the result of a single human error, but an effect of systemic opacity and interactive complexity. A key problem proved to be the discrepancy between the physical state of the plant and the information provided by the indicators, which led to a cognitively forced error. In high-risk systems, false data contaminates the interpretation of the entire process, making the rational actions of operators dangerous. The text emphasizes that in the face of tight coupling and information noise, some failures are almost inevitable due to the very structure of the system.