augustus 2022

In physics that which is called a complex system is the one that exhibits a large range of spatial scales, and modelled as exhibiting non-linear chaotic response dynamics, turbulence, and power-scaling laws. Complex systems have characteristic emergent properties that cannot be predicted and therefore are impossible to control. They are novel characteristics of the system that emerge out of interactions and relationships which are governed by non-linear, iterative processes that drive the behavior of complex systems; the arising of novel and coherent structures, patterns and properties during the process of self-organization in complex systems. In general, complex systems, man-made or…

The history of the Earth system is a story of change. Some changes are gradual and benign, but others, especially those associated with catastrophic mass extinction, are relatively abrupt and destructive. It is generally agreed that the Earth system is complex and that this complex character must be appreciated when modelling it and taking decisions that may influence its evolution. The Earth’s complexity resides in its causal organization, which is self-referential. The road to demonstrating that the Earth qualifies as a complex system thus passes through a consideration of the Gaia hypothesis: that the Earth is an instance of life…