I'm not sure how the
subject of measuring the depth of interaction in a context led to Nigel's
question about agent roles and understanding what the generic processes in
complexity are. I guess I see all as key to developing a unified
theory though. I think the answers may be somewhat
different for computer ecologies and physical ones, but from a long study
of physical ones the great formative processes of complex
organization are growth and decay.
Both clearly display distributed reorganization processes that are the
physical thing that any observer naturally calls the 'happening' of system
events.
In natural systems
the agent role is problematic, in that there do not seem to be any
'players' available to follow any rules, that is, other than the
complex systems themselves. In computers it may be different, but what I
can find as the elemental form of system 'agents' is the circumstantial loop
which systemically develops and elaborates in the organizational
growth process.
I'm puzzled why you
guys talk about studying and modeling the very same complex systems I see in
nature, and nowhere in these discussions or in the literature of the
field is it mentioned that the organization of complex
systems always develops by some kind of growth. Is it
that you don't mention the process by which things materialize because you feel
it is implied by the starting conditions, or would be if you knew what those
conditions were?
Phil Henshaw ¸¸¸¸.·´ ¯ `·.¸¸¸¸
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
680 Ft. Washington Ave
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e-mail: sy@synapse9.com
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