Coherence, connectivity and the fitting together of smaller parts into larger structures and a coherent whole is the hallmark of complex biologically-based systems. As a structure-internal constraint, coherence makes it possible for the parts to work together as a whole. As an external constraint, it lets complex system evolve and adapt to novel contexts. As a constraint on information processing, it makes new knowledge accessible to the maturing, learning or evolving mind-brain. As a constraint on cultures, it enables members of social groups to be empathic and cooperative. As a constraint on language and communication, lastly, it allows the mind of speakers to be accessible to the mind of hearers. Part I explores first the role of coherence in the evolution of complex biological design, from precellular to mono-cellular to multi-cellular to multi-organ sentient beings. The complex hierarchic design of the mind-brain is explored next, probing the coherent organization of major brain systems—perception, attention, motor control, memory and language. In surveying the coherence of cultures next, the first-evolved Society of Intimates is viewed as the model for social cohesion, empathy, trust and cooperation. Part II deals with language and communication, touching upon the coherent organization of semantic memory, event clauses and clause chains, and the central role of grammar in coherent communication. Part III deals with three general issues. First, the role of coherence in organized science. Second, the eternal seesaw of selfish vs. social motivation in coherently functioning cultures. And last, the frail balance between homogeneity diversity in large-scale Societies of Strangers.

Describes methods revealing the structures and dynamics of turbulence for engineering, physical science and mathematics researchers working in fluid dynamics.

In June of 2002, over 500 professors, students and researchers met in Boston, Massachusetts for the Fourth International Conference on Complex Systems. The attendees represented a remarkably diverse collection of fields: biology, ecology, physics, engineering, computer science, economics, psychology and sociology, The goal of the conference was to encourage cross-fertilization between the many disciplines represented and to deepen understanding of the properties common to all complex systems. This volume contains 43 papers selected from the more than 200 presented at the conference. Topics include: cellular automata, neurology, evolution, computer science, network dynamics, and urban planning. About NECSI: For over 10 years, The New England Complex Systems Institute (NECSI) has been instrumental in the development of complex systems science and its applications. NECSI conducts research, education, knowledge dissemination, and community development around the world for the promotion of the study of complex systems and its application for the betterment of society. NECSI hosts the International Conference on Complex Systems and publishes the NECSI Book Series in conjunction with Springer Publishers. ALI MINAI is an Affiliate of the New England Complex Systems Institute and an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Cincinnati. YANEER BAR-YAM is President and founder of the New England Complex Systems Institute. He is the author of Dynamics of Complex Systems and Making Things Work: Solving Complex Problems in a Complex World.

The study of complex systems has attracted a broad range of researchers from many disciplines spanning both the hard and soft sciences. In the Autumn of 1997, 300 of these researchers came together for the First International Conference on Complex Systems. The proceedings of this conference is the first book in the New England Complex Systems Institute Series on Complexity and includes more than 100 presentations and papers on topics like evolution, emergence, complexity, self-organization, scaling, informatics, time series, emergence of mind, and engineering of complex systems.

This book is based on the proceedings of the COSNet/CSIRO Workshop on Turbulence and Coherent Structures held at the Australian National University in Canberra in January 2006. It codifies recent developments in our understanding of the dynamics and statistical dynamics of turbulence and coherent structures in fluid mechanics, atmospheric and oceanic dynamics, plasma physics, and dynamical systems theory. It brings together articles by internationally acclaimed researchers from around the world including Dijkstra (Utrecht), Holmes (Princeton), Jimenez (UPM and Stanford), Krommes (Princeton), McComb (Edinburgh), Chong (Melbourne), Dewar (ANU), Watmuff (RMIT) and Frederiksen (CSIRO). The book will prove a useful resource for researchers as well as providing an excellent reference for graduate students working in this frontier area.

The purpose of this book is to illustrate the fundamental concepts of complexity and complex behavior and the best methods to characterize this behavior by means of their applications to some current research topics from within the fields of fusion, earth and solar plasmas. In this sense, it is a departure from the many books already available that discuss general features of complexity. The book is divided in two parts. In the first part the most important properties and features of complex systems are introduced, discussed and illustrated. The second part discusses several instances of possible complex phenomena in magnetized plasmas and some of the analysis tools that were introduced in the first part are used to characterize the dynamics in these systems. A list of problems is proposed at the end of each chapter. This book is intended for graduate and post-graduate students with a solid college background in mathematics and classical physics, who intend to work in the field of plasma physics and, in particular, plasma turbulence. It will also be of interest to senior scientists who have so far approached these systems and problems from a different perspective and want a new fresh angle.

This book analyses the physics of complex systems to elaborate the problems encountered in teaching and research. Inspired by the of Kurt Gödel (including his incompleteness theorems) it considers the concept of time, the idea of models and the concept of complexity before trying to assess the state of physics in general. Using both general and practical examples, the idea of information is discussed, emphasizing its physical interpretation, debates ideas in depth using examples and evidence to provide detailed considerations on the topics. Based on the authors’ own research on these topics, this book puts forward the idea that the application of information measures can provide new results in the study of complex systems. Helpful for those already familiar with the concepts who wish to deepen their critical understanding, Physics of Complex Systems will be extremely valuable both for people that are already involved in complex systems and also readers beginning their journey into the subject. This work will encourage readers to follow and continue these ideas, enabling them to investigate the various topics further.