Signals and Boundaries

Author: John H. Holland
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262525933
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 317

Book Description
An overarching framework for comparing and steering complex adaptive systems is developed through understanding the mechanisms that generate their intricate signal/boundary hierarchies. Complex adaptive systems (cas), including ecosystems, governments, biological cells, and markets, are characterized by intricate hierarchical arrangements of boundaries and signals. In ecosystems, for example, niches act as semi-permeable boundaries, and smells and visual patterns serve as signals; governments have departmental hierarchies with memoranda acting as signals; and so it is with other cas. Despite a wealth of data and descriptions concerning different cas, there remain many unanswered questions about "steering" these systems. In Signals and Boundaries, John Holland argues that understanding the origin of the intricate signal/border hierarchies of these systems is the key to answering such questions. He develops an overarching framework for comparing and steering cas through the mechanisms that generate their signal/boundary hierarchies. Holland lays out a path for developing the framework that emphasizes agents, niches, theory, and mathematical models. He discusses, among other topics, theory construction; signal-processing agents; networks as representations of signal/boundary interaction; adaptation; recombination and reproduction; the use of tagged urn models (adapted from elementary probability theory) to represent boundary hierarchies; finitely generated systems as a way to tie the models examined into a single framework; the framework itself, illustrated by a simple finitely generated version of the development of a multi-celled organism; and Markov processes.

Signals and Boundaries

Author: John H. Holland
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262017830
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 317

Hidden Order

Author: John Henry Holland
Publisher: Addison Wesley Publishing Company
ISBN:
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 216

Book Description
Basic elements - Adaptive agents - Echoing emergence - Simulating echo - Toward theory.

Adaptation in Natural and Artificial Systems

Author: John H. Holland
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 9780262581110
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 236

Book Description
Genetic algorithms are playing an increasingly important role in studies of complex adaptive systems, ranging from adaptive agents in economic theory to the use of machine learning techniques in the design of complex devices such as aircraft turbines and integrated circuits. Adaptation in Natural and Artificial Systems is the book that initiated this field of study, presenting the theoretical foundations and exploring applications. In its most familiar form, adaptation is a biological process, whereby organisms evolve by rearranging genetic material to survive in environments confronting them. In this now classic work, Holland presents a mathematical model that allows for the nonlinearity of such complex interactions. He demonstrates the model's universality by applying it to economics, physiological psychology, game theory, and artificial intelligence and then outlines the way in which this approach modifies the traditional views of mathematical genetics. Initially applying his concepts to simply defined artificial systems with limited numbers of parameters, Holland goes on to explore their use in the study of a wide range of complex, naturally occuring processes, concentrating on systems having multiple factors that interact in nonlinear ways. Along the way he accounts for major effects of coadaptation and coevolution: the emergence of building blocks, or schemata, that are recombined and passed on to succeeding generations to provide, innovations and improvements.

Emergence

Author: John H. Holland
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 9780192862112
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 276

Book Description
We are confronted with emergent systems everywhere and Holland shows how a theory of emergence can predict many complex behaviours in art and science. This book will appeal to scientists and anyone interested in scientific theory.

Complexity

Author: John Henry Holland
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0199662541
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 121

Book Description
In this very short introduction, John Holland presents an introduction to the science of complexity. Using examples from biology and economics, he shows how complexity science models the behaviour of complex systems.

Boundaries

Author: Henry Cloud
Publisher: Zondervan
ISBN: 0310247454
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 324

Book Description
When to say yes, when to say no to take control of your life.

Handbook of Interpersonal Communication

Author: Mark L. Knapp
Publisher: SAGE
ISBN: 9780761921608
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 856

Book Description
The Third Edition of the Handbook of Interpersonal Communication includes eight new chapters and eleven revised from the second edition. Following an introductory chapter, the volume is organized into four parts covering perspectives on inquiry in interpersonal communication, fundamental units of interpersonal communication, processes and functions, and interpersonal contexts. Features include: · Each chapter reviews and updates research in its respective area · Part II examines methodological issues in the field · Includes articles by top scholars in the field of Interpersonal Communication

Beyond Boundaries

Author: Miguel Nicolelis
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 142995079X
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 369

Book Description
A pioneering neuroscientist shows how the long-sought merger of brains with machines is about to become a paradigm-shifting reality Imagine living in a world where people use their computers, drive their cars, and communicate with one another simply by thinking. In this stunning and inspiring work, Duke University neuroscientist Miguel Nicolelis shares his revolutionary insights into how the brain creates thought and the human sense of self—and how this might be augmented by machines, so that the entire universe will be within our reach. Beyond Boundaries draws on Nicolelis's ground-breaking research with monkeys that he taught to control the movements of a robot located halfway around the globe by using brain signals alone. Nicolelis's work with primates has uncovered a new method for capturing brain function—by recording rich neuronal symphonies rather than the activity of single neurons. His lab is now paving the way for a new treatment for Parkinson's, silk-thin exoskeletons to grant mobility to the paralyzed, and breathtaking leaps in space exploration, global communication, manufacturing, and more. Beyond Boundaries promises to reshape our concept of the technological future, to a world filled with promise and hope.

Status Signals

Author: Joel M. Podolny
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400837871
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 304

Book Description
Why are elite jewelers reluctant to sell turquoise, despite strong demand? Why did leading investment bankers shun junk bonds for years, despite potential profits? Status Signals is the first major sociological examination of how concerns about status affect market competition. Starting from the basic premise that status pervades the ties producers form in the marketplace, Joel Podolny shows how anxieties about status influence whom a producer does (or does not) accept as a partner, the price a producer can charge, the ease with which a producer enters a market, how the producer's inventions are received, and, ultimately, the market segments the producer can (and should) enter. To achieve desired status, firms must offer more than strong past performance and product quality--they must also send out and manage social and cultural signals. Through detailed analyses of market competition across a broad array of industries--including investment banking, wine, semiconductors, shipping, and venture capital--Podolny demonstrates the pervasive impact of status. Along the way, he shows how corporate strategists, tempted by the profits of a market that would negatively affect their status, consider not only whether to enter the market but also whether they can alter the public's perception of the market. Podolny also examines the different ways in which a firm can have status. Wal-Mart, for example, has low status among the rich as a place to shop, but high status among the rich as a place to invest. Status Signals provides a systematic understanding of market dynamics that have--until now--not been fully appreciated.