Complexity Digest 2009.18

2009/08/31

Editor-in-Chief: Carlos Gershenson
Founding Editor: Gottfried Mayer

For individual e-mail subscriptions go to Subscriptions.
Previous issue 2009.17 | Next issue 2009.19

Content

  1. Collective Behavior, Topics in Cognitive Science
    1. Collective Information Processing and Pattern Formation in Swarms, Flocks, and Crowds, Topics in Cognitive Science
  2. Preface to special issue on cooperation in selfish systems, Computational & Mathematical Organization Theory
    1. Towards the evolution of social structure, Computational & Mathematical Organization Theory
  3. Modeling the Emergence of Language as an Embodied Collective Cognitive Activity, Topics in Cognitive Science
    1. The Ontogeny of Scale-Free Syntax Networks: Phase Transitions in Early Language Acquisition, Advances in Complex Systems
    2. Going to the Dogs, Science
  4. Energy flows in complex ecological systems: a review, Journal of Systems Science and Complexity
  5. Dan Pink on the surprising science of motivation, TED.com
    1. Using prizes to spur innovation, McKinsey Quaterly
  6. Red Queen Dynamics with Non-Standard Fitness Interactions, PLoS Comput Biol
  7. Evolutionary game theory: temporal and spatial effects beyond replicator dynamics, Physics of Life Reviews
    1. Coevolution of game and network structure with adjustable linking, Physica A
  8. What Is It Like to Be a Cell?, Science
  9. Web-Based Experiments for the Study of Collective Social Dynamics in Cultural Markets, Topics in Cognitive Science
    1. Toward collective intelligence of online communities: A primitive conceptual model, Journal of Systems Science and Systems Engineering
    2. Farhad Mohit: DotSpots and the Wisdom of Crowds, Knowledge@Wharton
  10. E-government 2.0, McKinsey Quaterly
  11. Constructing a Philosophy of Science of Cognitive Science, Topics in Cognitive Science
    1. Qualia: The Geometry of Integrated Information, PLoS Comput Biol
    2. A Philosopher's Reflections on the Discovery of Mirror Neurons, Topics in Cognitive Science
  12. Self-organised complex aerial displays of thousands of starlings: a model, arXiv
    1. Adapting to Dynamic Environments: Polyethism in Response Threshold Models for Social Insects, Advances in Complex Systems
  13. Evidence for an early prokaryotic endosymbiosis, Nature
  14. Knowledge synthesis in technology development, Journal of Systems Science and Systems Engineering
  15. Modulated Exploratory Dynamics Can Shape Self-Organized Behavior, Advances in Complex Systems
  16. Risks of Climate Engineering, Science
  17. Incorporating Existing Network Information into Gene Network Inference, PLoS ONE
  18. A Quick Guide to Teaching R Programming to Computational Biology Students, PLoS Comput Biol
  19. Book Announcements
    1. Debugging the Link Between Social Theory and Social Insects, Louisiana State University Press
    2. Lecturing Birds on Flying: Can Mathematical Theories Destroy the Financial Markets?, Wiley
    3. The Flaw of Averages: Why We Underestimate Risk in the Face of Uncertainty, Wiley
    4. Living in a Material World: Economic Sociology Meets Science and Technology Studies, The MIT Press
    5. Secular Cycles, Princeton University Press
  20. Links & Snippets
    1. Other Publications
    2. Conference Announcements
    3. Webcast Announcements
    4. Other Announcements

  1. Collective Behavior, Topics in Cognitive Science Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Abstract: The resurgence of interest in collective behavior is in large part due to tools recently made available for conducting laboratory experiments on groups, statistical methods for analyzing large data sets reflecting social interactions, the rapid growth of a diverse variety of online self-organized collectives, and computational modeling methods for understanding both universal and scenario-specific social patterns. We consider case studies of collective behavior along four attributes: the primary motivation of individuals within the group, kinds of interactions among individuals, typical dynamics that result from these interactions, and characteristic outcomes at the group level. With this framework, we compare the collective patterns of noninteracting decision makers, bee swarms, groups forming paths in physical and abstract spaces, sports teams, cooperation and competition for resource usage, and the spread and extension of innovations in an online community. Some critical issues surrounding collective behavior are then reviewed, including the questions of "Does group behavior always reduce to individual behavior?""Is 'group cognition' possible?" and "What is the value of formal modeling for understanding group behavior?"
    • Source: Collective Behavior, Robert L. Goldstone, Todd M. Gureckis, DOI: 10.1111/j.1756-8765.2009.01038.x, Topics in Cognitive Science Volume 1 Issue 3, Pages 412 - 438, 2009/07/10

    1. Collective Information Processing and Pattern Formation in Swarms, Flocks, and Crowds, Topics in Cognitive Science Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Abstract: The spontaneous organization of collective activities in animal groups and societies has attracted a considerable amount of attention over the last decade. This kind of coordination often permits group-living species to achieve collective tasks that are far beyond single individuals' capabilities. In particular, a key benefit lies in the integration of partial knowledge of the environment at the collective level. In this contribution, we discuss various self-organization phenomena in animal swarms and human crowds from the point of view of information exchange among individuals. In particular, we provide a general description of collective dynamics across species and introduce a classification of these dynamics not only with respect to the way information is transferred among individuals but also with regard to the knowledge processing at the collective level. Finally, we highlight the fact that the individual's ability to learn from past experiences can have a feedback effect on the collective dynamics, as experienced with the development of behavioral conventions in pedestrian crowds.

  2. Preface to special issue on cooperation in selfish systems, Computational & Mathematical Organization Theory Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Excerpt: The problem of understanding the conditions under which cooperation or altruism can be sustained between interacting selfish entities is a fundamental issue in both biology and the social sciences.
    In recent years, there has been an explosion of work utilising agent-based com- puter simulation to explore novel mechanisms for cooperation.
    See Also: Special issue on cooperation in selfish systems

    1. Towards the evolution of social structure, Computational & Mathematical Organization Theory Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Abstract: To what extent can social structure result from evolutionary processes as popposed to being deliberately organised? To begin to answer this questions five different but releated social simulations are reviewed, and a map of which mechanisms might results in what structures under what conditions being started. These show that different structures can be brought about by evolutionary processes based on the abilities and propensities of the individuals. The article ends with some challenges"to construct a credible simulations of more sophisticated structures: social group selection and self-organised value chains.
      • Source: Towards the evolution of social structure, Bruce Edmonds, Emma Norling, David Hales, DOI: 10.1007/s10588-008-9052-0, Computational & Mathematical Organization Theory Volume 15, Number 2: 78-94, 2009/06

  3. Modeling the Emergence of Language as an Embodied Collective Cognitive Activity, Topics in Cognitive Science Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Abstract: Two decades of attempts to model the emergence of language as a collective cognitive activity have demonstrated a number of principles that might have been part of the historical process that led to language. Several models have demonstrated the emergence of structure in a symbolic medium, but none has demonstrated the emergence of the capacity for symbolic representation. The current shift in cognitive science toward theoretical frameworks based on embodiment is already furnishing computational models with additional mechanisms relevant to the emergence of symbolic language. An analysis of embodied interaction among captive, but not human-enculturated, bonobo chimpanzees reveals a number of additional features of embodiment that are relevant to the emergence of symbolic language, but that have not yet been explored in computational simulation models; for example, complementarity of action in addition to imitation, iconic in addition to indexical gesture, coordination among multiple sensory and perceptual modalities, and the orchestration of intra- and inter-individual motor coordination. The bonobos provide an evolutionarily plausible intermediate stage in the development of symbolic expression that can inform efforts to model the emergence of symbolic language.

    1. The Ontogeny of Scale-Free Syntax Networks: Phase Transitions in Early Language Acquisition, Advances in Complex Systems Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Abstract: Language development in children provides a window to understand the transition from protolanguage to language. Here we present the first analysis of the emergence of syntax in terms of complex networks. A previously unreported, sharp transition is shown to occur around two years of age from a (pre-syntactic) tree-like structure to a scale-free, small world syntax network. The development of these networks thus reveals a nonlinear dynamical pattern where the global topology of syntax graphs shifts from a hierarchical, tree-like pattern, to a scale-free organization. Such change seems difficult to be explained under a self-organization framework. Instead, it actually supports the presence of some underlying innate component, as early suggested by some authors.

    2. Going to the Dogs, Science Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Excerpt: Our canine pals, researchers now say, are excellent subjects for studying the building blocks underlying mental abilities, particularly those involving social cognition. The special relationship with humans that once disqualified dogs from research is now seen as worthy of study in its own right; some researchers see the dog as a case of convergent evolution with humans because we share some similar behavioral traits.
      • Source: Going to the Dogs, Virginia Morell, DOI: 10.1126/science.325_1062, Science Vol. 325. no. 5944, pp. 1062 - 1065, 2009/08/28

  4. Energy flows in complex ecological systems: a review, Journal of Systems Science and Complexity Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Abstract: Energy flow drives the complex systems to evolve. The allometric scaling as the universal energy flow pattern has been found in different scales of ecological systems. It reflects the general power law relationship between flow and store. The underlying mechanisms of energy flow patterns are explained as the branching transportation networks which can be regarded as the result of systematic optimization of a biological target under constraints. Energy flows in the ecological system may be modelled by the food web model and population dynamics on the network. (...)

  5. Dan Pink on the surprising science of motivation, TED.com Next Article Bookmark and Share

    About this talk: Career analyst Dan Pink examines the puzzle of motivation, starting with a fact that social scientists know but most managers don't: Traditional rewards aren't always as effective as we think. Listen for illuminating stories -- and maybe, a way forward.

    1. Using prizes to spur innovation, McKinsey Quaterly Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Excerpt: Prizes used to spark innovation are on the rise. Philanthropists"as well as players in the public and private sectors"must understand how to use them in the most effective way.

  6. Red Queen Dynamics with Non-Standard Fitness Interactions, PLoS Comput Biol Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Summary: The Red Queen has become an eponym for rapid and perpetual evolutionary arms races between hosts and parasites. The Red Queen also lends her name to the idea that such arms races are at the core of the question of why sexual reproduction is so widespread among higher-level organisms. According to this view, recombination provides the hosts with an advantage that allows faster adaptation to the parasite population. To date, mathematical models trying to quantify Red Queen dynamics and the Red Queen hypothesis for the evolution of sex have generally made several simplifying assumptions about how host and parasite genotypes interact with each other (i.e., how they influence each other's fitness). In this article we present a model that allows for arbitrary patterns of fitness interactions between both parties. We demonstrate that the degree of ‘antagonicity’ in these interactions is decisive for whether Red Queen dynamics are observed, and assess the robustness of various previous results concerning the Red Queen hypothesis with respect to fitness interactions. Our results also make clear how difficult predictions of coevolutionary dynamics and selection for recombination are likely to be in real host-parasite systems.

  7. Evolutionary game theory: temporal and spatial effects beyond replicator dynamics, Physics of Life Reviews Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Excerpt: Evolutionary game dynamics is one of the most fruitful frameworks for studying evolution in different disciplines, from Biology to Economics. Within this context, the approach of choice for many researchers is the so-called replicator equation, that describes mathematically the idea that those individuals performing better have more offspring and thus their frequency in the population grows [...] it is important to realize the limits of its applicability [...] This review discusses these temporal and spatial effects [...] The discussion is presented in terms of the emergence of cooperation, as one of the current key problems in Biology and in other disciplines.

    1. Coevolution of game and network structure with adjustable linking, Physica A Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Excerpt: We build a coevolution model of prisoner’s dilemma game and network structure [...] Differing from other coevolution models, players rewire their network connections according to the density of cooperation and other players’ payoffs [...] we find that, when players prefer to rewire their links to those who are richer, the temptation can increase the cooperation density.

  8. What Is It Like to Be a Cell?, Science Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Excerpt:
    Nobody knows where consciousness comes from. In his provocative Wetware, cell biologist Dennis Bray presents the view that many features of conscious beings, including learning, knowledge, and awareness, are present within single cells. Bray lays his foundation by describing the remarkable behaviors of single-celled organisms.
    See Also: Wetware: A Computer in Every Living Cell

  9. Web-Based Experiments for the Study of Collective Social Dynamics in Cultural Markets, Topics in Cognitive Science Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Excerpts: Social scientists are often interested in understanding how the dynamics of social systems are driven by the behavior of individuals that make up those systems. However, this process is hindered by the difficulty of experimentally studying how individual behavioral tendencies lead to collective social dynamics in large groups of people interacting over time. In this study, we investigate the role of social influence, a process well studied at the individual level, on the puzzling nature of success for cultural products such as books, movies, and music. Using a "multiple-worlds" experimental design, we are able to isolate the causal effect of an individual-level mechanism on collective social outcomes. (...) we are able to gain new insights into the role of individual behavior on collective outcomes. We conclude with a discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of Web-based experiments to address questions of collective social dynamics.

    1. Toward collective intelligence of online communities: A primitive conceptual model, Journal of Systems Science and Systems Engineering Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Abstract: Inspired by the ideas of Swarm Intelligence and the “global brain”, a concept of “community intelligence” is suggested in the present paper, reflecting that some “intelligent” features may emerge in a Web-mediated online community from interactions and knowledge-transmissions between the community members. This possible research field of community intelligence is then examined under the backgrounds of “community” and “intelligence” researches. Furthermore, a conceptual model of community intelligence is developed from two views. (...)

    2. Farhad Mohit: DotSpots and the Wisdom of Crowds, Knowledge@Wharton Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Summary: Entrepreneur Farhad Mohit is hardly resting on his laurels, although he could. In 1996, he launched BizRate, a consumer rating site, and then in 2004, Shopzilla, a shopping search engine. His latest venture is DotSpots, a service that lets people update the news in real-time with dots, or distributed objects of thought. These could include mini-blog posts containing text, videos, images, documents, perspectives from the blogosphere or eye-witness accounts from the scene. Mohit talked with Knowledge@Wharton about DotSpots, the publishing industry, the wisdom of crowds, what he learned from his previous successes and the importance of finding the right team, among other topics.

  10. E-government 2.0, McKinsey Quaterly Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Excerpt: Despite spending enormous amounts on Web-based initiatives, government agencies often fail to meet users’ needs online. By employing new governance models, investing in Web capabilities, and embracing user participation, agencies can raise the effectiveness of their online presence.
    • Source: E-government 2.0, Jason Baumgarten and Michael Chui, McKinsey Quaterly, 2009/07

  11. Constructing a Philosophy of Science of Cognitive Science, Topics in Cognitive Science Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Abstract: Philosophy of science is positioned to make distinctive contributions to cognitive science by providing perspective on its conceptual foundations and by advancing normative recommendations. The philosophy of science I embrace is naturalistic in that it is grounded in the study of actual science. Focusing on explanation, I describe the recent development of a mechanistic philosophy of science from which I draw three normative consequences for cognitive science. First, insofar as cognitive mechanisms are information-processing mechanisms, cognitive science needs an account of how the representations invoked in cognitive mechanisms carry information about contents, and I suggest that control theory offers the needed perspective on the relation of representations to contents. Second, I argue that cognitive science requires, but is still in search of, a catalog of cognitive operations that researchers can draw upon in explaining cognitive mechanisms. Last, I provide a new perspective on the relation of cognitive science to brain sciences, one which embraces both reductive research on neural components that figure in cognitive mechanisms and a concern with recomposing higher-level mechanisms from their components and situating them in their environments.

    1. Qualia: The Geometry of Integrated Information, PLoS Comput Biol Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Summary: In prior work, we suggested that consciousness has to do with integrated information, which was defined as the amount of information generated by a system in a given state, above and beyond the information generated independently by its parts. In the present paper, we move from computing the quantity of integrated information to describing the structure or quality of the integrated information unfolded by interactions in the system. We take a geometric approach, introducing the notion of a quale as a shape that embodies the entire set of informational relationships generated by interactions in the system. The paper investigates how features of the quale relate to properties of the underlying system and also to basic features of experience, providing the beginnings of a mathematical dictionary relating neurophysiology to the geometry of the quale and the geometry to phenomenology.

    2. A Philosopher's Reflections on the Discovery of Mirror Neurons, Topics in Cognitive Science Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Abstract: Mirror neurons fire both when a primate executes a transitive action directed toward a target (e.g., grasping) and when he observes the same action performed by another. According to the prevalent interpretation, action-mirroring is a process of interpersonal neural similarity whereby an observer maps the agent's perceived movements onto her own motor repertoire. Furthermore, ever since Gallese and Goldman's (1998) influential paper, action-mirroring has been linked to third-person mindreading on the grounds that it enables an observer to represent the agent's intention. In this paper, I criticize the prevalent interpretation on two grounds. First, action-mirroring could not result in interpersonal neural similarity unless there was a single mechanism active at different times in a single brain during the execution and the perception of acts of grasping. Second, such a neural mechanism is better conceived as underlying the possession of the concept of grasping than as a basis for mindreading.

  12. Self-organised complex aerial displays of thousands of starlings: a model, arXiv Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Excerpt: Aerial displays of starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) at their communal roosts are complex: thousands of individuals form multiple flocks which are continually changing shape and density, while splitting and merging. To understand these complex displays both empirical data and models are needed. Whereas detailed empirical data were recently collected through video recordings and position measurements by stereo photography of flocks of thousands of starlings, there are as yet no models that generate these complex patterns. (...)

    1. Adapting to Dynamic Environments: Polyethism in Response Threshold Models for Social Insects, Advances in Complex Systems Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Abstract: Response threshold models are an important tool to model division of labor in social insects and to investigate the underlying principles of self-organization. In this article response threshold models which incorporate dynamic environments with varying demand for work and their influence on division of labor are studied. In their natural habitats, social insects are always exposed to dynamic environments, however, the effect that such environments have on response threshold models has rarely been investigated. In the course of this article it is shown that overworking and underworking, i.e. working more or less than the ideal amount, over a certain time is a colony-size dependent effect in dynamic situations. By adjusting the number of possible learning steps, which correspond to changes in the maximal threshold values relative to a colony's size, the performance of colonies in dynamic environments can be increased. A setup inspired by repeated migration behavior is also investigated. It is shown that these different learning rates affect a colony's ability to maintain an activity onset for a reappearing task.

  13. Evidence for an early prokaryotic endosymbiosis, Nature Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Abstract: Endosymbioses have dramatically altered eukaryotic life, but are thought to have negligibly affected prokaryotic evolution. Here, by analysing the flows of protein families, I present evidence that the double-membrane, Gram-negative prokaryotes were formed as the result of a symbiosis between an ancient actinobacterium and an ancient clostridium. The resulting taxon has been extraordinarily successful, and has profoundly altered the evolution of life by providing endosymbionts necessary for the emergence of eukaryotes and by generating Earth's oxygen atmosphere. Their double-membrane architecture and the observed genome flows into them suggest a common evolutionary mechanism for their origin: an endosymbiosis between a clostridium and actinobacterium.

  14. Knowledge synthesis in technology development, Journal of Systems Science and Systems Engineering Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Abstract: This paper introduces a knowledge construction model called the i-System for knowledge integration and creation and its relation to the new concept of the Creative Space. The five ontological elements of the i-System are Intelligence, Involvement, Imagination, Intervention, and Integration corresponding to five diverse dimensions of the Creative Space. The paper discusses the meanings and functions of these dimensions in knowledge integration and creation, and presents applications of the i-System to technology roadmapping and archiving.
    • Source: Knowledge synthesis in technology development, Yukihiro Yamashita, Yoshiteru Nakamori,Andrzej P. Wierzbicki, DOI: 10.1007/s11518-009-5103-4, Journal of Systems Science and Systems Engineering, Volume 18, Number 2, 2009/08/15
    • Contributed by Anton Joha - antonjohaagmail.com

  15. Modulated Exploratory Dynamics Can Shape Self-Organized Behavior, Advances in Complex Systems Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Abstract: We study an adaptive controller that adjusts its internal parameters by self-organization of its interaction with the environment. We show that the parameter changes that occur in this low-level learning process can themselves provide a source of information to a higher-level context-sensitive learning mechanism. In this way, the context is interpreted in terms of the concurrent low-level learning mechanism. The dual learning architecture is studied in realistic simulations of a foraging robot and of a humanoid hand that manipulated an object. Both systems are driven by the same low-level scheme, but use the second-order information in different ways. While the low-level adaptation continues to follow a set of rigid learning rules, the second-order learning modulates the elementary behaviors and affects the distribution of the sensory inputs via the environment.

  16. Risks of Climate Engineering, Science Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Summary: As the risks of climate change and the difficulty of effectively reducing greenhouse gas emissions become increasingly obvious, potential geoengineering solutions are widely discussed. For example, in a recent report, Blackstock et al. explore the feasibility, potential impact, and dangers of shortwave climate engineering, which aims to reduce the incoming solar radiation and thereby reduce climate warming (1). Proposed geoengineering solutions tend to be controversial among climate scientists and attract considerable media attention (2, 3). However, by focusing on limiting warming, the debate creates a false sense of certainty and downplays the impacts of geoengineering solutions.
    • Source: Risks of Climate Engineering, Gabriele C. Hegerl1 and Susan Solomon, DOI: 10.1126/science.1178530, Science Vol. 325. no. 5943, pp. 955 - 956, 2009/08/21

  17. Incorporating Existing Network Information into Gene Network Inference, PLoS ONE Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Excerpt: One methodology that has met success to infer gene networks from gene expression data is based upon ordinary differential equations (ODE). In this article, we extend the ODE methodology into a general optimization framework that incorporates existing network information in combination with regularization parameters that encourage network sparsity.

  18. A Quick Guide to Teaching R Programming to Computational Biology Students, PLoS Comput Biol Next Article Bookmark and Share

    Excerpt: The name “R” refers to the computational environment initially created by Robert Gentleman and Robert Ihaka, similar in nature to the “S” statistical environment developed at Bell Laboratories (http://www.r-project.org/about.html). It has since been developed and maintained by a strong team of core developers (R-core), who are renowned researchers in computational disciplines. R has gained wide acceptance as a reliable and powerful modern computational environment for statistical computing and visualisation, and is now used in many areas of scientific computation. R is free software, released under the GNU General Public License (...)
    Editor's Note: R is a multi-platform, free and robust alternative for generating and manipulating statistical results, graphs, etc. Download, screenshots, and more info at http://www.r-project.org/.

  19. Book Announcements Next Article Bookmark and Share

    1. Debugging the Link Between Social Theory and Social Insects, Louisiana State University Press Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Summary:
      During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, natural and social scientists began comparing certain insects to human social organization. Entomologists theorized that social insects such as ants organize themselves into highly specialized, hierarchical divisions of labor. Using a distinctly human vocabulary that reflected the dominant social structure of the time, they described insects as queens, workers, and soldiers and categorized their behaviors with words like marriage, slavery, farming, and factories. At the same time, sociologists were working to develop a model for human organization. In this book, Rodgers explains how these co-constructed theories reinforced one another. (...)

    2. Lecturing Birds on Flying: Can Mathematical Theories Destroy the Financial Markets?, Wiley Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Summary:
      This title offers an intriguing look at how financial models have repeatedly failed our markets, including now. Leading and contrarian thinkers have been talking for years about the conflicts between theoretical and real finance. Nassim Taleb first addressed the issue in his technical treatise on options, "Dynamic Hedging". In this book, Triana moves the conversation to a narrative that anyone can follow, and explains how it is that theoretical finance can fail dramatically in the real world. This book is not only about technicalities, but instead explores how widely accepted theories that are applied daily cause our world real harm.

    3. The Flaw of Averages: Why We Underestimate Risk in the Face of Uncertainty, Wiley Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Summary:
      As the recent collapse on Wall Street shows, we are often ill-equipped to deal with uncertainty and risk. Yet every day we base our personal and business plans on uncertainties, whether they be next month’s sales, next year’s costs, or tomorrow’s stock price. In this book, Sam Savage¬, describes common avoidable mistakes in assessing risk in the face of uncertainty. Along the way, he shows why plans based on average assumptions are wrong, on average, in areas as diverse as healthcare, accounting, the War on Terror, and climate change. (...)

    4. Living in a Material World: Economic Sociology Meets Science and Technology Studies, The MIT Press Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Summary:
      Although social scientists generally agree that technology plays a major role in the economy, economics and technology have yet to be brought together into a coherent framework that is both analytically interesting and empirically oriented. This book draws on the tools of science and technology studies and economic sociology to reconceptualize the intersection of economy and technology, suggesting materiality"the idea that social existence involves not only actors and social relations but also objects"as the theoretical point of convergence. (...)

    5. Secular Cycles, Princeton University Press Next Article Bookmark and Share

      Description:
      Many historical processes exhibit recurrent patterns of change. Century-long periods of population expansion come before long periods of stagnation and decline; the dynamics of prices mirror population oscillations; and states go through strong expansionist phases followed by periods of state failure, endemic sociopolitical instability, and territorial loss. Peter Turchin and Sergey Nefedov explore the dynamics and causal connections between such demographic, economic, and political variables in agrarian societies and offer detailed explanations for these long-term oscillations--what the authors call secular cycles.
      Secular Cycles elaborates and expands upon the demographic-structural theory first advanced by Jack Goldstone, which provides an explanation of long-term oscillations. This book tests that theory's specific and quantitative predictions by tracing the dynamics of population numbers, prices and real wages, elite numbers and incomes, state finances, and sociopolitical instability. Turchin and Nefedov study societies in England, France, and Russia during the medieval and early modern periods, and look back at the Roman Republic and Empire. Incorporating theoretical and quantitative history, the authors examine a specific model of historical change and, more generally, investigate the utility of the dynamical systems approach in historical applications.
      An indispensable and groundbreaking resource for a wide variety of social scientists, Secular Cycles will interest practitioners of economic history, historical sociology, complexity studies, and demography.
      • Source: Secular Cycles, Peter Turchin and Sergey A. Nefedov, Princeton University Press, 2009/08/09

  20. Links & Snippets Next Article Bookmark and Share

    1. Other Publications Next Article Bookmark and Share

      1. Emergent Network Structure, Evolvable Robustness, and Nonlinear Effects of Point Mutations in an Artificial Genome Model, Thimo Rohlf and Christopher R. Winkler, 2009/06, Advances in Complex Systems Volume: 12, Issue: 3 (2009) pp. 293-310, DOI: 10.1142/S0219525909002210
      2. Information-Driven Organization of Visual Receptive Fields, Christoph Salge, Daniel Polani, 2009/06, Advances in Complex Systems Volume: 12, Issue: 3 (2009) pp. 311-326, DOI: 10.1142/S0219525909002234
      3. Complexity of the Search Space in a Model of Artificial Evolution of Gene Regulatory Networks Controlling 3D Multicellular Morphogenesis, Michał Joachimczak, Borys Wróbel, 2009/06, Advances in Complex Systems Volume: 12, Issue: 3 (2009) pp. 347-369, DOI: 10.1142/S0219525909002246
      4. Evolutionary Subnetworks in Complex Systems, Menghui Li, Xingang Wang, and Choy-Heng Lai, 2009/08/19, arXiv:0908.2659

    2. Conference Announcements Next Article Bookmark and Share

      1. NICO Complexity Conference, Evanston, IL, USA, 09/09/1-3
      2. Mathematical Models in Ecology and Evolution 2009, Bristol, UK, 09/09/10-11
      3. Darwin Meets von Neumann: European Conference on Artificial Life 2009, Budapest, Hungary, 09/09/13-16
      4. IEEE International Conference on Self-Adaptive and Self-Organizing Systems , San Francisco, California, 09/09/14-18
      5. 6th Conference of the European Social Simulation Association, Guilford, UK, 09/09/14-18
      6. European Conference on Complex Systems 2009 (ECCS'09), University of Warwick, UK, 09/09/21-25
        1. Statistical Mechanics of Molecular and Cell Biology, 09/09/23
        2. EmergeNET3: Emergence and Networks, 09/09/24
      7. International Workshop on Natural Computing, Himeji, Japan, 09/09/23-25
      8. The 2009 International Conference on Adaptive & Intelligent Systems (ICAIS'09), Klagenfurt, Austria, 09/09/24-26
      9. Complexity Theories of Cities have come of Age, Delft Netherlands, 09/09/24-27
      10. 4th Annual Singularity Summit, New York City, NY, USA, 09/10/3-4
      11. IC3K 2009 - Int'l Joint Conf. on Knowledge Discovery, Knowledge Engineering and Knowledge Management, Madeira, Portugal, 09/10/6-8
      12. Future Internet Architectures Summit, Arlington, VA, USA, 09/10/12-15
      13. Systems Chemistry II: Evolution and Systems, Balatonfüred/Lake Balaton, Hungary, 09/10/18-23
      14. Workshop: Computing action policies that ensure resilience of social and ecological systems, Madeira, Portugal, 09/10/21-22
      15. Natural and Biomimetic Mechanosensing, Dresden, Germany, 09/10/26-28
      16. The 11th International Symposium on Stabilization, Safety, and Security of Distributed Systems (SSS 2009) , Lyon, France, 09/11/03-06
      17. International Conference on Intelligent Networking and Collaborative Systems (INCoS 2009) , Barcelona, Spain, 09/11/4-6
      18. the 9th Asia-Pacific Complex Systems Conference Complex'09 How to Manage Complexity? , Tokyo, Japan, 09/11/4-7
      19. CAS in the Natural and Social Sciences, AAAI Fall Symposium Arlington, VA, USA, 09/11/5-7
      20. Ninth International Conference on Epigenetic Robotics: Modeling Cognitive Development in Robotic Systems, Venice, Italy, 09/11/12-14
      21. 1st Global Peter F. Drucker Forum, ‘Managing the Future’, Vienna, Austria, 09/11/19-20
      22. Darwin09, International Workshop on 150 Years after Darwin: From Molecular Evolution to Language, Palma de Mallorca, Spain, 09/11/23-27
      23. 9th International Conference on Intelligent Systems Design and Applications, Pisa, Italy, 09/11/30-12/02
      24. World Congress on Nature & Biologically Inspired Computing (NaBIC 2009), Coimbatore, India, 09/12/9-11
      25. Dynamics Days 2010, Evanston, IL, USA, 10/01/04-07
      26. 5th Biennial Convention about the philosophical, epistemological, and methodological implications of the Theory of Complexity, Havana, Cuba, 10/01/6-8
      27. 2nd International Conference on Agents and Artificial Intelligence (ICAART 2010), Valencia, Spain, 10/01/22-24
      28. 20th European Meeting on Cybernetics and Systems Research, EMCSR 2010, University of Vienna, Austria, 10/04/6-9
      29. The IV International Workshop on Nature Inspired Cooperative Strategies for Optimization - NICSO 2010, Granada, Spain, 09/05/12-14
      30. European Summer School in Logic, Language and Information (ESSLLI), Copenhagen, Denmark, 10/08/09-20
      31. Artificial Life XII (ALife XII), Odense, Denmark, 10/08/19--23

    3. Webcast Announcements Next Article Bookmark and Share

      1. Symmetry Festival 2009, Budapest, Hungary, 09/08/1-4.

      2. International Workshop on Coping with Crises in Complex Socio-Economic Systems, Zurich, Switzerland, 09/06/8-12

      3. Memorial Service for Dr Gottfried Mayer, Founding Editor Complexity Digest, Taipei, Taiwan (1954-2009). Video [RM], 09/02/13

      4. Making Connections: In Memory and Celebration of the Life of Dr. Gottfried Mayer (1954-2009). Video [RM] [MPG], 09/02/13

      5. Eulogy for Gottfried Mayer by Dean LeBaron [WMV, 25 Mb], [RM, 10 Mb], 09/02/10

      6. Can Ants Solve Traffic Jams?, Danielle Parsons, Slatev.com, 08/07/22

      7. Reseau Nationale des Systemes Complexes , (in French), 2007
      8. World Economic Forum , Davos, Switzerland, 08/01/22-27
      9. TED Talks, TED Conferences LLC , since 2006
      10. Talking Robots: The PodCast on Robotics and AI, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland, 06/11/03
      11. Potentials of Complexity Science for Business, Governments, and the Media 2006, Budapest, Hungary, 06/08/03-05
      12. 6th Intl Conf on Complex Systems (ICCS), Boston, MA, 06/06/25-30
      13. Artificial Life X, 10th Intl Conf on the Simulation and Synthesis of Living Systems, Bloomington, IN, USA. 2006/06/03-07
      14. 6th Understanding Complex Systems Symposium, Urbana-Champaign, Il, 06/05/15-18
      15. Ralph Abraham on Complexity Digest, , Calcutta, India, 05/12/27
      16. An Afternoon with Michael Crichton, Washington, 05/11/06
      17. Illuminating the Shadow of the Future, Ann Arbor, Mi 05/09/23-25
      18. Open Network of Centres of Excellence in Complex Systems - Brainstorming Meeting, Paris, France 05/09/19-23
      19. Complexity, Science & Society Conference 2005, U. Liverpool, UK 2005/09/11-14
      20. ECAL 2005 - VIIIth European Conference on Artificial Life, Canterbury, Kent, UK 2005/09/5-9
      21. T. Irene Sanders, Executive Director and Founder, The Washington Center for Complexity & Public Policy, 05/08/27, QuickTime video (10:38 min), Podcast
      22. North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity 2005 Conference, Virtual Conference Network, St. Pete's Beach, Florida, 05/06/09-11
      23. Understanding Complex Systems - Computational Complexity and Bioinformatics, Virtual Conference Network, Urbana-Champaign, Il, UIUC, 05/05/16-19
      24. Nonlinearity, Fluctuations, and Complexity, with a celebration of the 65th birthday of Gregoire Nicolis. , Complexity Session, Universite' Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium, 05/03/16
      25. 1st European Conference on Complex Systems, Torino, Italy, 04/12/5-7
      26. From Autopoiesis to Neurophenomenology: A Tribute to Francisco Varela (1946-2001), Paris, France, 2004/06/18-20
      27. Evolutionary Epistemology, Language, and Culture, Brussels, Belgium, 04/05/26-28
      28. International Conference on Complex Systems 2004, Boston, 04/05/16-21
      29. Nonlinear Dynamics And Chaos: Lab Demonstrations, Strogatz, Steven H., Internet-First University Press, 1994
      30. CERN Webcast Service, Streamed videos of Archived Lectures and Live Events
      31. Dean LeBaron's Archive of Daily Video Commentary, Ongoing Since February 1998
      32. Edge Videos

    4. Other Announcements Bookmark and Share

      • 13 PhD Studentships and 3 Postdocs in Developmental Robotics
        (RobotDoc ITN)
        To start 1st January 2010
        RobotDoc (Robotics for Development of Cognition) is a multi-national doctoral training network for the interdisciplinary training on developmental cognitive robotics. The RobotDoc network consists of an excellent balance of academic and industrial partners, and of European and international laboratory leaders in developmental cognitive robotics. The network activities will have a significant impact on the career perspectives of the Fellows through training opportunities on industrial and academic research projects and skills. This network is funded by the European Union Marie Curie program ITN Initial Training Network.
        The PhD students (called ESR: Early Stage Researchers) will develop advanced expertise of domain-specific cognitive robotics research skills and of complementary transferrable skills for careers in academia and industry. They will acquire hands-on experience through experiments with the open-source humanoid robot iCub, complemented by other existing robots available in the network's laboratories. Each PhD student will be employed by one of the RobotDoc partner institutions, and will also be expected to spend a study period in at least one of the other partner sites.
        For further information contact Professor Angelo Cangelosi (acangelosi@plymouth.ac.uk), the RobotDoc network coordinator, or email directly the partner leaders for the specific institution/country you intend to apply. See details below
        Partner institutions and positions available:
        UNIVERSITY OF PLYMOUTH, UK: 2 PhD studentships and 1 two-year postdoc (contact Prof Angelo Cangelosi acangelosi@plymouth.ac.uk)
        UNIVERSITY OF ZÜRICH, Switzerland: 2 PhD studentships (contact Prof Rolf Pfeifer pfeifer@ifi.uzh.ch)
        ITALIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, Italy: 1 PhD studentship and 1 two-year postdoc (contact Prof Giorgio Metta Giorgio.metta@iit.it)
        UNIVERSITY OF SK-VDE, Sweden, 2 PhD studentships (contact Prof Tom Ziemke tom.ziemke@his.se)
        BIELEFELD UNIVERSITY, Germany, 2 PhD studentships (contact Prof. Britta Wrede bwrede@techfak.uni-bielefeld.de)
        UNIVERSITY OF SUNDERLAND, UK, 2 PhD studentships (contact Prof. Stefan Wermter stefan.wermter@sunderland.ac.uk)
        UPPSALA UNIVERSITY, Sweden, 2 PhD studentships (contact Prof. Claes von Hofsten claes.von_hofsten@psyk.uu.se)
        TELEROBOT Srl, Italy, 1 two-year postdoc (contact Dr Francesco Becchi francesco.becchi@telerobot.it)
        Associate partner institutions (where PhD students can spend part of their studies)
        RIKEN Brain Science Institute, Japan (Prof Jun Tani)
        Yale University, USA (Prof Brian Scassellati)
        National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan (Prof Jerry Lin)
        Honda European Research Institute, Germany (Dr Christian Goerick)
        BARA British Automation and Robot Association, UK (Dr Paul Robinson)
        Application deadline:
        We aim to have all PhD students starting on 1 January 2010. Application deadlines vary between institutions, and you are advised to contact each partner as soon as possible, possibly before the end of September.
        The following international mobility conditions apply:
        Posts are open to candidate of all nationalities. Applicants must not be nationals of the country of the institution in which they are applying to. They must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country there are applying to, for longer than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to their recruitment.
        Early-Stage Researchers are defined as those who are, at the time of selection, in the first four years (full-time equivalent) of their research careers. This is measured from the date when they obtained the degree which would formally entitle them to embark on a doctorate, either in the country in which the degree was obtained or in the country in which the research training is provided, irrespective of whether or not a doctorate is envisaged.
      • Funded PhD Studentship in Unconventional Computing and Cellular Automata
        http://uncomp.uwe.ac.uk
        A fully funded 3-year EPSRC DTA PhD studentship is availabl at the Unconvetional Computing Centre, University of the West of England, Bristol, UK. The Unconventional Computing Centre (UWE, Bristol) employs complex dynamics in physical, chemical and biological media to design computational techniques, architectures and working prototypes of novel and emerging computers.
        The 3-year studentship includes tuition fees and an annual stipend of £13,200 (tax free) and is for UK (home) students only.
        See more details and apply at
        http://info.uwe.ac.uk/hr/vacancies/job_details.asp?ref=FET/AA
      • 1 Postdoc position and 1 position for Scientific Programmer at VKS Amsterdam
        The VKS is looking for a postdoc researcher and a scientific programmer (each position 38 hours per week.) for its new 18 month project, Knowledge Space Lab: mapping knowledge interactively.
        http://www.virtualknowledgestudio.nl/vacancies.php
      • POSITION AVAILABLE
        One PhD or PostDoctoral position is available starting October 1 (or later) in Collegium Budapest, The Institute for Advanced Study in Hungary (www.colbud.hu), in the newly formed project group researching dynamic networks.
        We are seeking a talented and enthusiastic research assistant or research fellow with a PhD plan or a PhD awarded in physics, mathematics, engineering, biology or computer science. Prior experience in computational science and network science is desirable but not necessary. Our project links network features of natural systems with dynamics and information propagation in systems, including epidemiological and ecological networks. The position will involve the analysis of experimental data, large-scale simulations of real and abstract networks, and related software development. Familiarity with Java is an asset.
        The project is generously funded by an FP7 FET Open grant of the European Commission, featuring 6 research groups across Europe. ColBud faculty and workspace are housed in a 400-years old building at the heart of the historic city center in Budapest, atop Castle Hill. ColBud is an international and interdisciplinary organization hosting leading researchers from all around the world on a temporary basis.
        Applications, including CV, list of publications, recommendations (if any), and statement of interests should be sent via email to George Kampis (gkampis@colbud.hu) or Laszlo Gulyas (lgulyas@colbud.hu). The search begins today and closes when the position is filled.
      • European Conference on Complex Systems, 21-25 September 2009, University of Warwick, UK
        The principal annual international conference in Complexity Science.
        For up to date information and to register, see http://eccs09.info .
        Key dates:
        13 July: Reduced registration ends
        1 September: Poster submission deadline, but apply early to be sure your submission is considered in time to get your abstract published in the programme.
        1 September: Last assured registrations

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