simulation

Emergence: Fireflies

Saturday, July 17th, 2010

One of the most intriguing phenomena within complexity science is that of emergence.  It is a salient feature of complex systems, so much so that definitions of complex systems include the quality of exhibiting emergence.  Many exciting solutions to the world’s bigger problems can be understood through collective dynamics and emergence.

Google’s search algorithm, to a heavy extent, depends on the nature of linking between websites.  On the scale of the website and what links to it, Google is able to provide an answer the global problem of findability on the internet.

Muhammad Yunus developed a micro loan system that re-frames loans to take into account collective dynamics of a group.  Through challenging the assumption of who one can give a successful loan to, and by tapping into group trust, he has created an effective method of alleviating poverty.

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A Generative Method for Infrastructure Emergence

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

Social systems are becoming more complex from technological advancements and increased connectivity. Individuals are further empowered with the capability to augment their memory and communication through computers, the internet, and cell phones. Every society has structures which influence collective behavior, and with all of the possible configurations of people in a population, the question emerges for designers of how to implement a method to use the collective information and create a successful design solution [1].

Cities have been shown to have fractal geometry. In this paper we show how the fractal shape can emerge from a generative process that takes information on the scale of individuals or groups, and uses it to design a permanent infrastructure on the scale of a city. In this sense, we grow cities consisting of individuals and roads, starting from just individuals. [from introduction of paper, see PDF for rest]

A Generative Method for Infrastructure Emergence from Kawandeep Virdee on Vimeo.