Stephen, Could you say more about how gradients *act* on a system?
I tend to think of gradients as new (non-adjoint) structure produced by the application of constraints between elements in a system. That is, the constraints form the context (the DOF) for the gradient. I think I may be able to reconcile this with Hubler's definition (some problems with that "well designed" part), but the the latter is more challenging. Are you saying that gradients embody agency? How do we describe the dissipative capacity of a degree of freedom so that we can characterize what happens when it breaks down? Hmmm, ok, I now think I see how to answer that, but lets see what the comments are... Carl Stephen Guerin wrote: > > >> Yet when I ask for a formal treatment, I get no answer. >> > > I very much like Hubler's deceptively simple definition of complexity: > "A complex systems is a system with large throughput of Energy, > Information, Force, .... through a well designed boundary." > > His notes from the SFI CSSS school with this definition are here: > http://www.how-why.com/ucs2002/tutorial/ > > > As a restatement of the same ideas that formalizes what "large" means, I would > offer: > "complexity emerges when a gradient acting on a system exceeds the > capacity of the internal degrees of freedom of the system to dissipate the > gradient". > > > Is that formal enough? or, does the statement need to be mathematized? > > -Steve > > ________________________________________ > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > www.Redfish.com > 624 Agua Fria Street, Santa Fe, NM 87501 > mobile: (505)577-5828 > office: Santa Fe, NM (505)995-0206 / London, UK +44 (0) 20 7993 4769 > > > ============================================================ > FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv > Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College > lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org > > > > ============================================================ FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org
