Module 14409 (2003)
Syllabus page 2003/2004
06-14409
Behaviour of Complex Systems
Level 4/M
Links | Outline | Aims | Outcomes | Prerequisites | Teaching | Assessment | Books | Detailed Syllabus
The Module Description is a strict subset of this Syllabus Page. (The University module description has not yet been checked against the School's.)
Relevant Links
Outline
The module gives a hands-on introduction into the Science of Complexity, and investigates how simple rules applied to system components create the richness and diversity of natural and man-made systems.
Aims
The aims of this module are to:
- give a hands-on introduction into the Science of Complexity
- investigate how simple rules applied to system components create the richness and diversity of natural and man-made systems
- analyse self-organisation and other principles of complexity at work in a variety of systems, from molecular and biological systems to computer networks, and business and economic systems
- stimulate students to familiarise themselves with the principles of complexity by building simple models of complex systems using examples from lectures as building blocks
Learning Outcomes
| On successful completion of this module, the student should be able to: | Assessed by: | |
| 1 | demonstrate a good understanding of principles of complexity and behaviour of complex systems | Examination |
| 2 | apply this understanding to modelling, analysis and problem solving in a variety of natural and man-made complex systems | Practical work |
Restrictions, Prerequisites and Corequisites
Restrictions:
Maximum of 30 students
Prerequisites:
None
Co-requisites:
None
Teaching
Teaching Methods:
2 hrs per week lectures/tutorials per week
Contact Hours:
Assessment
- Supplementary (where allowed): As the sessional assessment
- The continuous assessment consists of a mini-project.
Recommended Books
| Title | Author(s) | Publisher, Date |
| A New Kind of Science | Stephen Wolfram | Wolfram Media, Inc. , 2002 |
| At Home in the Universe: The Search for Laws of Self-Organization and Complexity | Stuart Kauffman | Oxford University Press, 1996 |
| Hidden Order: How Adaptation Builds Complexity | John H. Holland | Addison-Wesley, 1996 |
| Dynamics of Complex Systems | Yaneer Bar-Yam | New England Complex Systems Institute, 1997 |
Detailed Syllabus
- Introduction and objectives. Definition and fundamentals of complexity. Emergent behaviour of equilibrium and non-equilibrium systems. Examples.
- Phase transition between order and chaos. Spontaneous self-organisation and support for generalised computation. Examples.
- Autocatalytic networks. Sub and supercritical connectivity, and behaviour in the phase transition region. Catalytic closure. Emergent and self-sustainable behaviour of Boolean, chemical, and other networks, and how life may have started. Examples.
- Genetic circuits and attractors of spontaneous order. Infinite genome spaces versus finite cell types. Examples.
- Genotype spaces and fitness landscapes. Diminishing returns. The limits of selection driven evolution. The coupling of selection and self-organisation. Examples.
- Design of organisms and artefacts through search of fitness landscapes. Learning curves. Examples.
- Self-organisation and tuning of ecological and technological systems. Origins and avalanches of extinction. Examples.
- Self-organisation and dynamics of companies, economies, and political systems. Homogeneous and heterogeneous systems, and systems in the phase transition. Examples.
- Self-sustained expansion and unfolding of technological frontiers. The driving forces of technological and economic growth. Examples.
- Integration and formulation of principles of Complexity. Conclusions.
Last updated: 2 July 2003
Source file: /internal/modules/COMSCI/2003/xml/14409.xml
Links | Outline | Aims | Outcomes | Prerequisites | Teaching | Assessment | Books | Detailed Syllabus