Complex Adaptive Systems
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What Is a Complex Adaptive System?
PROJECT GUTS What is a Complex Adaptive System? Introduction During the last three decades a leap has been made from the application of computing to help scientists ‘do’ science to the integration of computer science concepts, tools and theorems into the very fabric of science. The modeling of complex adaptive systems (CAS) is an example of such an integration of computer science into the very fabric of science; models of complex systems are used to understand, predict and prevent the most daunting problems we face today; issues such as climate change, loss of biodiversity, energy consumption and virulent disease affect us all. The study of complex adaptive systems, has come to be seen as a scientific frontier, and an increasing ability to interact systematically with highly complex systems that transcend separate disciplines will have a profound affect on future science, engineering and industry as well as in the management of our planet’s resources (Emmott et al., 2006). The name itself, “complex adaptive systems” conjures up images of complicated ideas that might be too difficult for a novice to understand. Instead, the study of CAS does exactly the opposite; it creates a unified method of studying disparate systems that elucidates the processes by which they operate. A complex system is simply a system in which many independent elements or agents interact, leading to emergent outcomes that are often difficult (or impossible) to predict simply by looking at the individual interactions. The “complex” part of CAS refers in fact to the vast interconnectedness of these systems. Using the principles of CAS to study these topics as related disciplines that can be better understood through the application of models, rather than a disparate collection of facts can strengthen learners’ understanding of these topics and prepare them to understand other systems by applying similar methods of analysis (Emmott et al., 2006). -
Dimensions of Ecosystem Complexity: Heterogeneity, Connectivity, and History
ecological complexity 3 (2006) 1–12 available at www.sciencedirect.com journal homepage: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ecocom Viewpoint Dimensions of ecosystem complexity: Heterogeneity, connectivity, and history M.L. Cadenasso a,*, S.T.A. Pickett b, J.M. Grove c a Hixon Center for Urban Ecology, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, 205 Prospect Street, New Haven, CT 06511, United States b Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Box AB, Millbrook, NY 12545, United States c USDA Forest Service, Northeastern Research Station, 705 Spear Street, P.O. Box 968, Burlington, VT 05401, United States article info abstract Article history: Biocomplexity was introduced to most ecologists through the National Science Foundation’s Received 2 June 2005 grant program, and the literature intended to introduce that program. The generalities of that Received in revised form literature contrast with the abstract and mathematical sophistication of literature from 30 June 2005 physics, systems theory, and indeed even of pioneering ecologists who have translated the Accepted 2 July 2005 conceptintoecology. Thissituation leaves a middle ground, that isboth accessibletoecologists Published on line 23 January 2006 in general, and cognizant of the fundamentals of complexity, to be more completely explored. To help scope this middle ground, and to promote empirical explorations that may be located Keywords: there, we propose a non-exclusive framework for the conceptual territory. While recognizing Biocomplexity the deep foundations in the studies of complex behavior, we take ecological structure as the Framework entry point for framework development. This framework is based on a definition of biocom- Coupled systems plexity as the degree to which ecological systems comprising biological, social and physical Spatial heterogeneity components incorporate spatially explicit heterogeneity, organizational connectivity, and Legacies historical contingency through time. -
Complexity” Makes a Difference: Lessons from Critical Systems Thinking and the Covid-19 Pandemic in the UK
systems Article How We Understand “Complexity” Makes a Difference: Lessons from Critical Systems Thinking and the Covid-19 Pandemic in the UK Michael C. Jackson Centre for Systems Studies, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7TS, UK; [email protected]; Tel.: +44-7527-196400 Received: 11 November 2020; Accepted: 4 December 2020; Published: 7 December 2020 Abstract: Many authors have sought to summarize what they regard as the key features of “complexity”. Some concentrate on the complexity they see as existing in the world—on “ontological complexity”. Others highlight “cognitive complexity”—the complexity they see arising from the different interpretations of the world held by observers. Others recognize the added difficulties flowing from the interactions between “ontological” and “cognitive” complexity. Using the example of the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK, and the responses to it, the purpose of this paper is to show that the way we understand complexity makes a huge difference to how we respond to crises of this type. Inadequate conceptualizations of complexity lead to poor responses that can make matters worse. Different understandings of complexity are discussed and related to strategies proposed for combatting the pandemic. It is argued that a “critical systems thinking” approach to complexity provides the most appropriate understanding of the phenomenon and, at the same time, suggests which systems methodologies are best employed by decision makers in preparing for, and responding to, such crises. Keywords: complexity; Covid-19; critical systems thinking; systems methodologies 1. Introduction No one doubts that we are, in today’s world, entangled in complexity. At the global level, economic, social, technological, health and ecological factors have become interconnected in unprecedented ways, and the consequences are immense. -
Database-Centric Programming for Wide-Area Sensor Systems
Database-Centric Programming for Wide-Area Sensor Systems 1 2 1 2 Shimin Chen , Phillip B. Gibbons , and Suman Nath ; 1 Carnegie Mellon University fchensm,[email protected] 2 Intel Research Pittsburgh [email protected] Abstract. A wide-area sensor system is a complex, dynamic, resource-rich col- lection of Internet-connected sensing devices. In this paper, we propose X-Tree Programming, a novel database-centric programming model for wide-area sen- sor systems designed to achieve the seemingly conflicting goals of expressive- ness, ease of programming, and efficient distributed execution. To demonstrate the effectiveness of X-Tree Programming in achieving these goals, we have in- corporated the model into IrisNet, a shared infrastructure for wide-area sensing, and developed several widely different applications, including a distributed in- frastructure monitor running on 473 machines worldwide. 1 Introduction A wide-area sensor system [2, 12, 15, 16] is a complex, dynamic, resource-rich collec- tion of Internet-connected sensing devices. These devices are capable of collecting high bit-rate data from powerful sensors such as cameras, microphones, infrared detectors, RFID readers, and vibration sensors, and performing collaborative computation on the data. A sensor system can be programmed to provide useful sensing services that com- bine traditional data sources with tens to millions of live sensor feeds. An example of such a service is a Person Finder, which uses cameras or smart badges to track people and supports queries for a person's current location. A desirable approach for develop- ing such a service is to program the collection of sensors as a whole, rather than writing software to drive individual devices. -
Organization, Self-Organization, Autonomy and Emergence: Status and Challenges
Organization, Self-Organization, Autonomy and Emergence: Status and Challenges Sven Brueckner 1 Hans Czap 2 1 New Vectors LLC 3520 Green Court, Suite 250, Ann Arbor, MI 48105-1579, USA Email: [email protected] http://www.altarum.net/~sbrueckner 2 University of Trier, FB IV Business Information Systems I D-54286 Trier, Germany Email: [email protected] http://www.wi.uni-trier.de/ Abstract: Development of IT-systems in application react and adapt autonomously to changing requirements. domains is facing an ever-growing complexity resulting from Therefore, approaches that rely on the fundamental principles a continuous increase in dynamics of processes, applications- of self-organization and autonomy are growing in acceptance. and run-time environments and scaling. The impact of this Following such approaches, software system functionality trend is amplified by the lack of central control structures. As is no longer explicitly designed into its component processes a consequence, controlling this complexity and dynamics is but emerges from lower-level interactions that are one of the most challenging requirements of today’s system purposefully unaware of the system-wide behavior. engineers. Furthermore, organization, the meaningful progression of The lack of a central control instance immediately raises local sensing, processing and action, is achieved by the the need for software systems which can react autonomously system components themselves at runtime and in response to to changing environmental requirements and conditions. the current state of the environment and the problem that is to Therefore, a new paradigm is necessary how to build be solved, rather than being enforced from the “outside” software systems changing radically the way one is used to through design or external control. -
Environmental Influences: Family Systems Theory
Environmental Influences: Family Systems Theory Family Systems Theory provides a broad and comprehensive mechanism for understanding the core aspects of the Performance Competence Lifespan Framework — quality of life, member- ship, and a personal sense of competence. It also focuses on the most important component of environmental influences—home and family. From birth, a child’s Quality of Life is directly influ- enced by the kind of care, support, stimulation and education he or she receives from family mem- bers in the home. As infants begin to develop secure attachments with significant others, particu- larly family members, they begin to establish themselves as members of the first and most basic unit of society—the family, which forms the foundation for secure Membership in other groups throughout life. The infant begins to develop a Personal Sense of Competence when his mother responds consistently to his distress, when he takes his first step or says his first word, or when his father praises him for using the toilet. These early beginnings, then, are at the core of what each individual child will come to know and be able to do. As the PC Framework indicates, there are multiple environmental influences on performance and competence, but the family is the first and most important. The influence of family members on one another is not simple, but complex; it is not one-way, but reciprocal. The family, like a mechanical system, is made up of multiple parts that are interdependent. When one part does not function well, all other parts are impacted. Further, the family interacts with other systems, includ- ing those that provide direct services to the child—child care/preschools, schools and community agencies—and each system affects the other. -
Adaptive Capacity and Traps
Copyright © 2008 by the author(s). Published here under license by the Resilience Alliance. Carpenter, S. R., and W. A. Brock. 2008. Adaptive capacity and traps. Ecology and Society 13(2): 40. [online] URL: http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol13/iss2/art40/ Insight Adaptive Capacity and Traps Stephen R. Carpenter 1 and William A. Brock 1 ABSTRACT. Adaptive capacity is the ability of a living system, such as a social–ecological system, to adjust responses to changing internal demands and external drivers. Although adaptive capacity is a frequent topic of study in the resilience literature, there are few formal models. This paper introduces such a model and uses it to explore adaptive capacity by contrast with the opposite condition, or traps. In a social– ecological rigidity trap, strong self-reinforcing controls prevent the flexibility needed for adaptation. In the model, too much control erodes adaptive capacity and thereby increases the risk of catastrophic breakdown. In a social–ecological poverty trap, loose connections prevent the mobilization of ideas and resources to solve problems. In the model, too little control impedes the focus needed for adaptation. Fluctuations of internal demand or external shocks generate pulses of adaptive capacity, which may gain traction and pull the system out of the poverty trap. The model suggests some general properties of traps in social–ecological systems. It is general and flexible, so it can be used as a building block in more specific and detailed models of adaptive capacity for a particular region. Key Words: adaptation; allostasis; model; poverty trap; resilience; rigidity trap; transformation INTRODUCTION it seems empty of ideas, it will be abandoned or transformed into something else. -
1 Emergence of Universal Grammar in Foreign Word Adaptations* Shigeko
1 Emergence of Universal Grammar in foreign word adaptations* Shigeko Shinohara, UPRESA 7018 University of Paris III/CNRS 1. Introduction There has been a renewal of interest in the study of loanword phonology since the recent development of constraint-based theories. Such theories readily express target structures and modifications that foreign inputs are subject to (e.g. Paradis and Lebel 1994, Itô and Mester 1995a,b). Depending on how the foreign sounds are modified, we may be able to make inferences about aspects of the speaker's grammar for which the study of the native vocabulary is either inconclusive or uninformative. At the very least we expect foreign words to be modified in accordance with productive phonological processes and constraints (Silverman 1992, Paradis and Lebel 1994). It therefore comes as some surprise when patterns of systematic modification arise for which the rules and constraints of the native system have nothing to say or even worse contradict. I report a number of such “emergent” patterns that appear in our study of the adaptations of French words by speakers of Japanese (Shinohara 1997a,b, 2000). I claim that they pose a learnability problem. My working hypothesis is that these emergent patterns are reflections of Universal Grammar (UG). This is suggested by the fact that the emergent patterns typically correspond to well-established crosslinguistic markedness preferences that are overtly and robustly attested in the synchronic phonologies of numerous other languages. It is therefore natural to suppose that these emergent patterns follow from the default parameter settings or constraint rankings inherited from the initial stages of language acquisition that remain latent in the mature grammar. -
Control Theory
Control theory S. Simrock DESY, Hamburg, Germany Abstract In engineering and mathematics, control theory deals with the behaviour of dynamical systems. The desired output of a system is called the reference. When one or more output variables of a system need to follow a certain ref- erence over time, a controller manipulates the inputs to a system to obtain the desired effect on the output of the system. Rapid advances in digital system technology have radically altered the control design options. It has become routinely practicable to design very complicated digital controllers and to carry out the extensive calculations required for their design. These advances in im- plementation and design capability can be obtained at low cost because of the widespread availability of inexpensive and powerful digital processing plat- forms and high-speed analog IO devices. 1 Introduction The emphasis of this tutorial on control theory is on the design of digital controls to achieve good dy- namic response and small errors while using signals that are sampled in time and quantized in amplitude. Both transform (classical control) and state-space (modern control) methods are described and applied to illustrative examples. The transform methods emphasized are the root-locus method of Evans and fre- quency response. The state-space methods developed are the technique of pole assignment augmented by an estimator (observer) and optimal quadratic-loss control. The optimal control problems use the steady-state constant gain solution. Other topics covered are system identification and non-linear control. System identification is a general term to describe mathematical tools and algorithms that build dynamical models from measured data. -
Systems That Adapt to Their Users
Systems That Adapt to Their Users Anthony Jameson and Krzysztof Z. Gajos DFKI, German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Introduction This chapter covers a broad range of interactive systems which have one idea in common: that it can be worthwhile for a system to learn something about individual users and adapt its behavior to them in some nontrivial way. A representative example is shown in Figure 20.1: the COMMUNITYCOMMANDS recommender plug-in for AUTO- CAD (introduced by Matejka, Li, Grossman, & Fitzmau- rice, 2009, and discussed more extensively by Li, Mate- jka, Grossman, Konstan, & Fitzmaurice, 2011). To help users deal with the hundreds of commands that AUTO- CAD offers—of which most users know only a few dozen— COMMUNITYCOMMANDS (a) gives the user easy access to several recently used commands, which the user may want to invoke again soon; and (b) more proactively suggests com- mands that this user has not yet used but may find useful, Figure 20.1: Screenshot showing how COMMUNITY- given the type of work they have been doing recently. COMMANDS recommends commands to a user. (Image supplied by Justin Matejka. The length of the darker bar for a com- Concepts mand reflects its estimated relevance to the user’s activities. When the user A key idea embodied in COMMUNITYCOMMANDS and the hovers over a command in this interface, a tooltip appears that explains the command and might show usage hints provided by colleagues. See also other systems discussed in this chapter is that of adapta- http://www.autodesk.com/research.) tion to the individual user. -
Role of Nonlinear Dynamics and Chaos in Applied Sciences
v.;.;.:.:.:.;.;.^ ROLE OF NONLINEAR DYNAMICS AND CHAOS IN APPLIED SCIENCES by Quissan V. Lawande and Nirupam Maiti Theoretical Physics Oivisipn 2000 Please be aware that all of the Missing Pages in this document were originally blank pages BARC/2OOO/E/OO3 GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION ROLE OF NONLINEAR DYNAMICS AND CHAOS IN APPLIED SCIENCES by Quissan V. Lawande and Nirupam Maiti Theoretical Physics Division BHABHA ATOMIC RESEARCH CENTRE MUMBAI, INDIA 2000 BARC/2000/E/003 BIBLIOGRAPHIC DESCRIPTION SHEET FOR TECHNICAL REPORT (as per IS : 9400 - 1980) 01 Security classification: Unclassified • 02 Distribution: External 03 Report status: New 04 Series: BARC External • 05 Report type: Technical Report 06 Report No. : BARC/2000/E/003 07 Part No. or Volume No. : 08 Contract No.: 10 Title and subtitle: Role of nonlinear dynamics and chaos in applied sciences 11 Collation: 111 p., figs., ills. 13 Project No. : 20 Personal authors): Quissan V. Lawande; Nirupam Maiti 21 Affiliation ofauthor(s): Theoretical Physics Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 22 Corporate authoifs): Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai - 400 085 23 Originating unit : Theoretical Physics Division, BARC, Mumbai 24 Sponsors) Name: Department of Atomic Energy Type: Government Contd...(ii) -l- 30 Date of submission: January 2000 31 Publication/Issue date: February 2000 40 Publisher/Distributor: Head, Library and Information Services Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 42 Form of distribution: Hard copy 50 Language of text: English 51 Language of summary: English 52 No. of references: 40 refs. 53 Gives data on: Abstract: Nonlinear dynamics manifests itself in a number of phenomena in both laboratory and day to day dealings. -
Annotated List of References Tobias Keip, I7801986 Presentation Method: Poster
Personal Inquiry – Annotated list of references Tobias Keip, i7801986 Presentation Method: Poster Poster Section 1: What is Chaos? In this section I am introducing the topic. I am describing different types of chaos and how individual perception affects our sense for chaos or chaotic systems. I am also going to define the terminology. I support my ideas with a lot of examples, like chaos in our daily life, then I am going to do a transition to simple mathematical chaotic systems. Larry Bradley. (2010). Chaos and Fractals. Available: www.stsci.edu/~lbradley/seminar/. Last accessed 13 May 2010. This website delivered me with a very good introduction into the topic as there are a lot of books and interesting web-pages in the “References”-Sektion. Gleick, James. Chaos: Making a New Science. Penguin Books, 1987. The book gave me a very general introduction into the topic. Harald Lesch. (2003-2007). alpha-Centauri . Available: www.br-online.de/br- alpha/alpha-centauri/alpha-centauri-harald-lesch-videothek-ID1207836664586.xml. Last accessed 13. May 2010. A web-page with German video-documentations delivered a lot of vivid examples about chaos for my poster. Poster Section 2: Laplace's Demon and the Butterfly Effect In this part I describe the idea of the so called Laplace's Demon and the theory of cause-and-effect chains. I work with a lot of examples, especially the famous weather forecast example. Also too I introduce the mathematical concept of a dynamic system. Jeremy S. Heyl (August 11, 2008). The Double Pendulum Fractal. British Columbia, Canada.