Exploring Complexity: An Introduction

by Gregoire Nicolis, Ilya Prigogine

Unexpected discoveries in nonequilibrium physics and nonlinear dynamics are changing our understanding of complex phenomena. Recent research has revealed fundamental new properties of matter in far-from-equilibrium conditions, and the prevalence of instability-where small changes in initial conditions may lead to amplified effects.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Physics, Philosophy, Mathematics

328 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1989

About the author

Grégoire Nicolis was a Belgian physicist originally from Greece. His promotor was Ilya Prigogine at the Université Libre de Bruxelles. He is known for his work on irreversible thermodynamics and chaos theory.

Reviews

[Mangoo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, rather technical text to introduce the dynamics of complex systems and where to look for it. Prigogine and Nicolis gradually introduce the vocabulary and the physical and mathematical concepts describing systems far from thermodynamic equilibrium, that is where their dynamic is interesting, rich and sometimes unpredictable. When he limits himself to thermodynamics and physics (especially in the branch where he made fundamental contributions) as in this case, Prigogine is a master - little doubt. Luckily, this text, quite comprehensive and accessible to whom masters some statistics and calculus, is devoid of those Bergsonian muds and elucubrations which spoiled to a substantial extent Prigogine's later offerings (just about the time of "The new alliance"). Here we find only few isolated hazardous jumps of that kind - which many years after the publication appear simplistic and overcome by a more reasoned and comprehensive view of the problematics.

[Guozhang Chen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book covers lots of fields and knowledge, but they are not clearly and logically linked.

It contains some math deduction, but is not self-contained.

[Vladimiro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bellissimo libro rivolto senza dubbio a chi ha già una preparazione universitaria in fisica o matematica. Perché per secoli i fisici si sono limitati a studiare i sistemi "conservativi", che sono una semplice nicchia di quelli realmente esistenti al mondo?
Prigogine, che fu scienziato di chiarissima fama, e Nicolis non sono interessati al perché storico, ma espongono in modo convincente e completo l'emergere della complessità, sia a livello matematico sia a livello sperimentale: biforcazioni, soluzioni instabili, attrattori strani e non, frattali.

Il libro è degli anni '80 e soltanto oggi si è recepito, nelle facoltà scientifiche, la necessità di impostare gli studi in modo diverso dalla vecchia tradizione...

[Paolo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book and open your mind to what has been a new approach from modern physics, thermodynamics and chemistry to the complexity of social sciences