A Fellows' Project of
The Rackham Summer Interdisciplinary Institute
Sponsored by RSII
at The University of Michigan
Prominent researchers have been invited
to campus to present case studies from within their particular areas of
research---including
social science, natural science and philosophy---in order to illuminate
their understandings of emergence. In each case, U. Michigan researchers,
highly respected for their work in the given field, have agreed to offer
responses.
Refreshments will follow each event.
Organized by the "Emergence Group"
of RSII 2002 Fellows:
- Lajos Balogh, Medical School
- Arron Caza, Business School
- Vladislav Fomin, School of Information
- Tom O'Donnell, RC, STS Prgm.
twod@umich.edu
- Jessica Wilson, Philosophy
jwils@umich.edu
at The University of Michigan
Prominent researchers have been invited to campus to present case studies from within their particular areas of research---including social science, natural science and philosophy---in order to illuminate their understandings of emergence. In each case, U. Michigan researchers, highly respected for their work in the given field, have agreed to offer responses.
of RSII 2002 Fellows:
- Lajos Balogh, Medical School
- Arron Caza, Business School
- Vladislav Fomin, School of Information
- Tom O'Donnell, RC, STS Prgm.
twod@umich.edu
- Jessica Wilson, Philosophy
jwils@umich.edu
Colloquium Series, Winter 2003:
"Case Studies of Emergence"
This series of three campus-wide colloquia presents an opportunity for a critical examination of concepts of emergence.
Notions of 'emergence' are increasingly invoked today within the natural and social sciences, as well as within the humanities. Simple interactions at one level are said to produce new, complex and often surprising phenomena or qualities at superencumbent levels. Newly "emergent" laws or rules are said to operate which are hard or perhaps even impossible to predict. Rather than a "reductionist" direction of inquiry, emergence is generally seen to be connected with a "holistic" direction, and to be an interdisciplinary, unifying concept, with scale being of importance.
Further discussion of emergence
Colloquium #1:"A Positive Theory of Emergence for Multi-Agent Systems with Applications to Economics"
Further information, paper, contacts, location map Rob Axtell
Brookings Institution
Discussant: Scott E. Page, U. Michigan Complex Systems, Political Science & Economics
January 16, 2003, 4:00-6:00 PM
Whitney Auditorium, 1309 School of Ed. BuildingColloquium #2: "Two Models of Emergence"
Paul Humphreys
Philosophy, University of VirginiaDiscussant: Gordan Kane, U. Michigan Physics
Further information, paper, contacts March 7, 2003, 4:00-6:00 PM
340 West Hall
Colloquium #3:"Is Anything Ever New?"
Jim Crutchfield
Professor, Santa Fe InstituteDiscussant: Leonard Sander, U. Michigan Physics
Further information, paper, contacts April 3, 2003, 4:00-6:00 PM
Henderson Room, The Michigan League
For more information or to arrange meetings with
speakers, contact Alexa Forrester at:
aaforres@umich.edu
This is: www.umich.edu/~twod/emergence
Webpage questions: twod@umich.edu