[tt] Complexity Digest 2008.16 (text version -2)
Eugen Leitl
<eugen at leitl.org> on
Fri Apr 18 18:53:53 UTC 2008
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Subject: Complexity Digest 2008.16 (text version -2)
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Complexity Digest 2008.16
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"I think the next century will be the century of complexity." Stephen
Hawking, 2000
_________________________________________________________________
01. Rise Of The Digital Machine, Nature
01.01. He Wrote 200,000 Books (but Computers Did Some of the Work), NY Times
02. Traders' Raging Hormones Cause Stock Market Swings, New Scientist
02.01. Anticipating A Laugh Reduces Our Stress Hormones, ScienceDaily
03. The Virtues and Vices of Equilibrium and the Future of Financial Economics,
SFI Working Papers
03.01. The Market Organism: Long Run Survival in Markets with Heterogeneous
Traders, SFI Working Papers
04. Emerging Markets in an Anxious Global Economy, SFI Working Papers
05. Social Preferences and Public Economics: Mechanism design when social
preferences depend on incentives, SFI Working Papers
05.01. Physicists Model How We Form Opinions, PhysOrg.com
06. Neanderthals Speak Out After 30,000 Years, New Scientist
07. Brain Scanner Predicts Your Future Moves, New Scientist
08. Ten Weirdest Computers, New Scientist
08.01. Novel Living System Recreates Predator-Prey Interaction, EurekAlert
09. All In The Family - For Some Animals, The Ideal Mate Is A Brother, Sister
Or Cousin, Science News
10. Medicine: Drug Bestows Radiation Resistance On Mice And Monkeys, Science
10.01. Immunology: Blood Lines Redrawn, Nature
11. Out Of Thin Air - Scientists Pursue Nitrogen Fixers With An Aim To Harness
Their Secrets - And Feed The World, Science News
12. Macrophysiology For A Changing World, Proc. Biol. Sc.
12.01. The Volcano That Changed the World, News at Nature
13. Amplification of Cretaceous Warmth by Biological Cloud Feedbacks, Science
13.01. Curious Cloud Formations Linked To Quakes, New Scientist
13.02. Shooting Clouds With Lasers Triggers Electrical Discharge, New Scientist
14. Beyond Robins: Aerodynamic Analyses Of Animal Flight, Interface
14.01. Golden Hamsters Are Nocturnal In Captivity But Diurnal In Nature, Biol.
Lett.
15. Nanoshuttle On the Right Track, News at Nature
15.01. Researchers Create The First Thermal Nanomotor In The World, EurekAlert
16. Gauging a Collider's Odds of Creating a Black Hole, NY Times
17. Quantum Physics: Observations Turn Up The Heat, Nature
18. The Arms Trade And States' Duty To Ensure Respect For Humanitarian And
Human Rights Law, J. Conflict & Security Law
19. Complex Challenges: Global Terrorist Networks
19.01. Smith Invites Moderate Imams Into UK To Help Muslim Communities Fight
Extremism, The Guardian
20. Links & Snippets
20.01. Other Publications
20.02. Webcast Announcements
20.03. Conference Announcements
20.04. Other Announcements
_________________________________________________________________
01. Rise Of The Digital Machine , Nature
Excerpts: Genomes and language suggest that biological and social complexity
emerge from how information is used, (...) not from how much of it there is.
(...) Similarly, the emergence of digital regulation derived from unused
stretches of junk DNA may have precipitated the transition from single cells to
complex multicellular organisms. Long runs of the four chemical bases that make
up DNA can easily act like binary strings. How these stretches bind to a gene
can regulate exquisitely the degree and timing of that gene's expression.
Tellingly, bacteria and some other single-celled organisms have negligible
amounts of junk DNA.
* [4] Rise Of The Digital Machine, Mark Pagel, 08/04/10, DOI: 10.1038/452699a,
Nature 452, 699
[4] http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v452/n7188/full/452699a.html
_________________________________________________________________
01.01. He Wrote 200,000 Books (but Computers Did Some of the Work) , NY Times
Excerpts: Philip Parker says he has computers do the substantial amount of
repetitive work that is required in the writing of so many books. Mr.
Parker has generated more than 200,000 books, as an advanced search on
Amazon.com under his publishing company shows, making him, in his own words,
"the most published author in the history of the planet." And he makes money
doing it. (...) But these are not conventional books, and it is perhaps more
accurate to call Mr. Parker a compiler than an author. Mr. Parker, (...), has
developed computer algorithms that collect publicly available information on a
subject - broad or obscure - and, aided by his 60 to 70 computers and six or
seven programmers, (...)
* [5] He Wrote 200,000 Books (but Computers Did Some of the Work), Noam Cohen,
08/04/14, NYTimes
[5] http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/14/business/media/14link.html?ref=technology
_________________________________________________________________
02. Traders' Raging Hormones Cause Stock Market Swings , New Scientist
Excerpts: Research from the University of Cambridge suggests that the movements
of money in the financial markets are correlated to stock traders' levels of tw
o
hormones: the steroids testosterone and cortisol. John Coates and Joe Herbert
took saliva samples from 17 male traders on a London stock trading floor twice
daily over the course of eight days. (...) They tracked those levels against
the amount of money that a trader made or lost, and against the variation in
the market.
* [6] Traders' Raging Hormones Cause Stock Market Swings, Jason Palmer,
08/04/14, NewScientist
[6]
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn13664-traders-raging-hormones-cause-stock
-market-swings.html
_________________________________________________________________
02.01. Anticipating A Laugh Reduces Our Stress Hormones , ScienceDaily
Excerpts: In 2006 researchers investigating the interaction between the brain,
behavior, and the immune system found that simply anticipating a mirthful
laughter experience boosted health-protecting hormones. Now, two years later,
the same researchers have found that the anticipation of a positive humorous
laughter experience also reduces potentially detrimental stress hormones. (...)
Our findings lead us to believe that by seeking out positive experiences that
make us laugh we can do a lot with our physiology to stay well.?(...) the
current research found that the same anticipation of laughter also reduced the
levels of three stress hormones. (...)
* [7] Anticipating A Laugh Reduces Our Stress Hormones, Study Shows,
2008/04/10, ScienceDaily & American Physiological Society
* Contributed by [8] Atin Das
[7] http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080407114617.htm
[8] mailto:dasatin at yahoo.co.in
_________________________________________________________________
03. The Virtues and Vices of Equilibrium and the Future of Financial Economics
, SFI Working Papers
Excerpt: The use of equilibrium models in economics springs from the desire for
parsimonious models of economic phenomena that take human reasoning into
account. This approach has been the cornerstone of modern economic theory. We
explain why this is so, extolling the virtues of equilibrium theory; then we
present a critique and describe why this approach is inherently limited, and
why economics needs to move in new directions if it is to continue to make
progress. We stress that this shouldn't be a question of dogma, but should be
resolved empirically. (...)
* [9] The Virtues and Vices of Equilibrium and the Future of Financial
Economics, J. Doyne Farmer and John Geneakoplos, DOI: SFI-WP 08-03-014, SFI
Working Papers
* Contributed by [10] Carlos Gershenson
[9] http://www.santafe.edu/research/publications/wpabstract/200803014
[10] http://homepages.vub.ac.be/~cgershen/
_________________________________________________________________
03.01. The Market Organism: Long Run Survival in Markets with Heterogeneous
Traders , SFI Working Papers
Abstract: The information content of prices is a central problem in the general
equilibrium analysis of competitive markets. Rational expectations equilibrium
identifies conditioning simultaneously on contemporaneous prices and private
information as the mechanism by which information enters prices. Here we look
to the ecology of markets for an explanation of the information content of
prices. Markets could select across traders with different beliefs, or,
reminiscent of "the wisdom of crowds", markets could balance the diverse
information of many participants. We provide theoretical support in favor of
the first mechanism, and against the second. Along the way we demonstrate that
the necessary condition for long-run survival in complete markets found in
Sandroni (2000) and Blume and Easley (2006) is not sufficient for long run
survival. We also demonstrate some surprising behavior of market prices when
several trader types with different beliefs survive.
* [11] The Market Organism: Long Run Survival in Markets with Heterogeneous
Traders, Lawrence E. Blume and David Easley, DOI: SFI-WP 08-04-018, SFI Working
Papers
* Contributed by [12] Carlos Gershenson
[11] http://www.santafe.edu/research/publications/wpabstract/200804018
[12] http://homepages.vub.ac.be/~cgershen/
_________________________________________________________________
04. Emerging Markets in an Anxious Global Economy , SFI Working Papers
Abstract: We provide a theory of pricing for emerging asset classes, like
emerging markets, that are not yet mature enough to be attractive to the
general public. Our model provides an explanation for the volatile access of
emerging economies to international financial markets and for several stylized
facts we identify in the data during the 1990's. We present a general
equilibrium model with incomplete markets and endogenous collateral and an
extension encompassing adverse selection. We show that contagion, flight to
liquidity and issuance rationing can occur in equilibrium during what we call
global anxious times.
* [13] Emerging Markets in an Anxious Global Economy, Ana Fostel and John
Geneakoplos, DOI: SFI-WP 08-03-013, SFI Working Papers
* Contributed by [14] Carlos Gershenson
[13] http://www.santafe.edu/research/publications/wpabstract/200803013
[14] http://homepages.vub.ac.be/~cgershen/
_________________________________________________________________
05. Social Preferences and Public Economics: Mechanism design when social
preferences depend on incentives , SFI Working Papers
Abstract: Social preferences such as altruism, reciprocity, intrinsic
motivation and a desire to uphold ethical norms are essential to good
government, often facilitating socially desirable allocations that would be
unattainable by incentives that appeal solely to self-interest. But
experimental and other evidence indicates that conventional economic incentives
and social preferences may be either complements or substitutes, explicit
incentives crowding in or crowding out social preferences. We investigate the
design of optimal incentives to contribute to a public good under these
conditions. We identify cases in which a sophisticated planner cognizant of
these non-additive effects would make either more or less use of explicit
incentives, by comparison to a naive planner who assumes they are absent. (...)
* [15] Social Preferences and Public Economics: Mechanism design when social
preferences depend on incentives, Samuel Bowles and Sung-Ha Hwang, DOI: SFI-WP
08-03-012, SFI Working Papers
* Contributed by [16] Carlos Gershenson
[15] http://www.santafe.edu/research/publications/wpabstract/200803012
[16] http://homepages.vub.ac.be/~cgershen/
_________________________________________________________________
05.01. Physicists Model How We Form Opinions , PhysOrg.com
Excerpts: The model updates the state of a node (individual) depending on
the fraction of the states of its neighbors. In this case, that fraction
("laggard parameter") is 80%. In (a), the central node keeps its original
state. In (b), the central node is updated since 80% of its neighbors are in
the opposite state. Credit: P. Klimek, et al. In large part, a society's
image stems from its overall opinions - its political, religious, and ethical
beliefs - and how much diversity it tolerates. For example, how do some areas
develop images of being either liberal or conservative, and, in others,
liberals and conservatives live side by side? As a team of researchers
explains, our individual opinions both influence and are influenced by our
surroundings. By following a set of rules, the researchers have modeled the
opinion formation process in societies where individuals' opinions are strongly
influenced by others they interact with.
* [17] Physicists Model How We Form Opinions, Lisa Zyga, 08/04/14, PhysOrg.com
[17] http://www.physorg.com/news127385810.html
_________________________________________________________________
06. Neanderthals Speak Out After 30,000 Years , New Scientist
Excerpts: Reconstruction of a Neanderthal child's face (Image:
Anthropological Institute, University of Z?rich) Talk about a long silence
- no one has heard their voices for 30,000 years. Now the long-extinct
Neanderthals are speaking up - or at least a computer synthesiser is doing so
on their behalf. Robert McCarthy, an anthropologist at Florida Atlantic
University in Boca Raton has used new reconstructions of Neanderthal vocal
tracts to simulate the voice. He says the ancient human's speech lacked the
"quantal vowel" sounds that underlie modern speech. Quantal vowels provide cues
that help speakers with different size vocal tracts understand one another,
(...).
* [18] Neanderthals Speak Out After 30,000 Years, Ewen Callaway, 08/04/15,
NewScientist
[18] http://www.newscientist.com/channel/being-human/dn13672
_________________________________________________________________
07. Brain Scanner Predicts Your Future Moves , New Scientist
Excerpts: While the subject waited to make a choice, a screen flashed a random
letter every half second. After a subject finally pushed a button, they were
asked to indicate which letter had on the screen at the moment the decision was
made. There is usually half second a lag between thought and action, Haynes
says. When Hayne's team later analysed the fMRI scans, they found that the
prefrontal cortex -(...) - lit up seven seconds before the subjects pressed the
button.
* [19] Brain Scanner Predicts Your Future Moves, Ewen Callaway, 08/04/13,
NewScientist
[19]
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn13658-brain-scanner-predicts-your-future-
moves.html
_________________________________________________________________
08. Ten Weirdest Computers , New Scientist
Excerpts: 8. Glooper Computer
One of the weirdest computers ever built forsakes traditional hardware in
favour of "gloopware". Andrew Adamatzky at the University of the West of
England, UK, can make interfering waves of propagating ions in a chemical goo
behave like logic gates, the building blocks of computers. The waves are
produced by a pulsing cyclic chemical reaction called the Belousov-Zhabotinsky
reaction.(...) 9. Mouldy computers
Even a primitive organism like slime mould can be used to solve problems that
are tricky for classical computers. Toshiyuki Nakagaki at the Institute of
Physical and Chemical Research in Nagoya, Japan, has shown that slime mould can
work out the shortest route through a maze.
* [20] Ten Weirdest Computers, Duncan Graham-Rowe, 08/04/11, NewScientist
[20]
http://technology.newscientist.com/article/dn13656?DCMP=ILC-arttplnk&nsref=dn13
656
_________________________________________________________________
08.01. Novel Living System Recreates Predator-Prey Interaction , EurekAlert
Excerpts: (...) developed a living system using genetically altered bacteria
that he believes can provide new insights into how the population levels of
prey influence the levels of predators, and vice-versa. The Duke experiment is
an example of a synthetic gene circuit, where researchers load new "programming
"
into bacteria to make them perform new functions. Such re-programmed bacteria
could see a wide variety of applications in medicine, environmental cleanup and
biocomputing. In this particular Duke study, researchers rewrote the software o
f
the common bacteria Escherichia coli (E. coli.) to form a mutually dependent
living circuit of predator and prey.
* [21] Novel Living System Recreates Predator-Prey Interaction, 08/04/14,
EurekAlert
[21] http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-04/du-nls041008.php
_________________________________________________________________
09. All In The Family - For Some Animals, The Ideal Mate Is A Brother, Sister
Or Cousin , Science News
Excerpts: Spotty Family. Each spring, spotted salamanders (Ambystoma
maculatum) descend on Northeastern ponds to breed for just a few days. Many
mate with cousins. H.H. Greene Zamudio and former student Chris Chandler
wanted to know which males passed on their genes most successfully. Since
spotted salamanders don't copulate, females have no direct way to assess the
potential fathers of their children. So the scientists analyzed DNA collected
in the field from males, females and larvae and came to a surprising
conclusion. "She seems to be fertilizing her eggs with gametes of animals that
are a little bit more closely related to her," Zamudio says. In other words,
the salamanders are inbreeding.
* [22] All In The Family - For Some Animals, The Ideal Mate Is A Brother,
Sister Or Cousin, Ewen Callaway, 08/04/12, ScienceNews
[22] http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20080412/bob8.asp
_________________________________________________________________
10. Medicine: Drug Bestows Radiation Resistance On Mice And Monkeys , Science
Excerpts: Radiation therapy is a mixed blessing for cancer patients: It
destroys tumor cells but also inflicts harm on healthy tissues, particularly
the spleen, bone marrow, and gastrointestinal tract. On page 226, researchers
led by Lyudmila Burdelya of the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New
York, report a promising new way to protect those tissues, one they claim could
help improve outcomes of radiation therapy--and perhaps even save lives in a
nuclear catastrophe. The strategy may be tested in cancer patients as early as
this year.
* [23] Medicine: Drug Bestows Radiation Resistance On Mice And Monkeys,
Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, 08/04/11, Science: 163.
[23] http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/320/5873/163
_________________________________________________________________
10.01. Immunology: Blood Lines Redrawn , Nature
Excerpts: (...) evidence that a central aspect of blood-cell differentiation
requires a rethink. Taken together with preceding work, their results show that
a previously well-recognized distinction between two developmental lineages -
lymphoid and myeloid - does not apply. But to appreciate this news, more
details about each of the players and their function are required. Immune cells
are devoted to innate or to adaptive immunity.
* [24] Immunology: Blood Lines Redrawn, Thomas Graf, 08/04/10, DOI:
10.1038/452702a, Nature 452, 702-703
[24] http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v452/n7188/full/452702a.html
_________________________________________________________________
11. Out Of Thin Air - Scientists Pursue Nitrogen Fixers With An Aim To Harness
Their Secrets - And Feed The World , Science News
Excerpts: PLAYERS. Soybeans (top left), a wild African clover (top right)
and their relatives grow classic root nodules. European beach grass grows no
nodules but carries nitrogen-fixing Burkholderia bacteria (bottom left).
Gunnera (bottom right) recruit some cyanobacteria to fix nitrogen in stem
pockets. USDA, Howieson, E. Cahill, iStockphoto "I think of it as a dance,
(...). The process begins, they say, with a pas de deux between the legume root
hairs, which release flavonoid compounds into the soil, and hang-about bacteria
that, in turn, secrete molecules called Nod factors. Even faint traces of these
substances prompt dramatic calcium movements within the root hairs. ("Allegro,"
says Hirsch.) Often within seconds of the whiff of Nod factor, calcium floods
into root hair cells. In a few more minutes, calcium concentrations begin to
spike repeatedly, continuing for an hour. The calcium frenzy may activate the
genes for building the nodule, Hirsch speculates.
* [25] Out Of Thin Air - Scientists Pursue Nitrogen Fixers With An Aim To
Harness Their Secrets - And Feed The World, Susan Milius, 08/04/12, ScienceNews
[25] http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20080412/bob9.asp
_________________________________________________________________
12. Macrophysiology For A Changing World , Proc. Biol. Sc.
Excerpts: The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) has identified climate
change, habitat destruction, invasive species, overexploitation and pollution
as the major drivers of biodiversity loss and sources of concern for human
well-being. Understanding how these drivers operate and interact and how they
might be mitigated are among the most pressing questions facing humanity. Here,
we show how macrophysiologythe investigation of variation in physiological
traits over large geographical, temporal and phylogenetic scalescan contribute
significantly to answering these questions. (...) In so doing we demonstrate
that environmental physiologists have much to offer the scientific quest to
resolve major environmental problems.
* [26] Macrophysiology For A Changing World, S. L. Chown , K. J. Gaston,
2008/04/08, DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2008.0137, Proceedings B: Biological Sciences
* Contributed by [27] Atin Das
[26]
http://journals.royalsociety.org/content/h167342224535n6n/?p=f0ddb1ad099a43569a
ee2d111c9d6fc2&pi=4
[27] mailto:dasatin at yahoo.co.in
_________________________________________________________________
12.01. The Volcano That Changed the World , News at Nature
Excerpt: Did the Huaynaputina volcano, seen here from a satellite, inflict
misery on the world?
ASTER Volcano Archive The eruption in 1600 of Huaynaputina, a
stratovolcano in the Andes mountains, blanketed nearby villages with glowing
rock and ash, and killed some 1,500 people. But it may also have had a far
wider effect, by injecting sulphur particles high into the atmosphere and
disrupting the climate worldwide.
* [28] The Volcano That Changed the World, Alexandra Witze, 2008/04/11, DOI:
10.1038/news.2008.747, News at Nature
* Contributed by [29] Carlos Gershenson
[28] http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080411/full/news.2008.747.html
[29] http://homepages.vub.ac.be/~cgershen/
_________________________________________________________________
13. Amplification of Cretaceous Warmth by Biological Cloud Feedbacks , Science
Excerpts: The extreme warmth of particular intervals of geologic history cannot
be simulated with climate models, which are constrained by the geologic proxy
record to relatively modest increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide levels.
Recent recognition that biological productivity controls the abundance of cloud
condensation nuclei (CCN) in the unpolluted atmosphere provides a solution to
this problem. Our climate simulations show that reduced biological productivity
(low CCN abundance) provides a substantial amplification of CO2-induced warming
by reducing cloud lifetimes and reflectivity.
* [30] Amplification of Cretaceous Warmth by Biological Cloud Feedbacks, Lee R.
Kump , David Pollard, 08/04/11, Science: 195.
[30] http://www.sciencemag.org/current.dtl
_________________________________________________________________
13.01. Curious Cloud Formations Linked To Quakes , New Scientist
Excerpts: Geophysicists (...), noticed a gap in the clouds in satellite images
from December 2004 that precisely matched the location of the main fault in
southern Iran. It stretched for hundreds of kilometres, was visible for several
hours and remained in the same place, although the clouds around it were moving
.
At the same time, thermal images of the ground showed that the temperature was
higher along the fault. Sixty-nine days later, on 22 February 2005, an
earthquake of magnitude 6.4 hit the area, killing more than 600 people.
* [31] Curious Cloud Formations Linked To Quakes, Lynn Dicks, 08/04/11, New
Scientist
[31]
http://environment.newscientist.com/article/mg19826514.600-curious-cloud-format
ions-linked-to-quakes.html
_________________________________________________________________
13.02. Shooting Clouds With Lasers Triggers Electrical Discharge , New
Scientist
Excerpts: In a step towards gaining the God-like ability to call down lightning
bolts on a whim, researchers used an ultra-high-power laser to trigger
electrical activity in storm clouds over New Mexico, US. They fired ultra-fast
pulses of a powerful five terawatt laser into the clouds. These beams created
channels of ionised molecules known as "filaments" that conduct electricity
through clouds like lightning rods before it strikes earth. The filaments
created were too short-lived to provoke an actual lightning strike.
* [32] Shooting Clouds With Lasers Triggers Electrical Discharge, Flora Graham,
08/04/14, NewScientist
[32]
http://technology.newscientist.com/article/dn13669-shooting-clouds-with-lasers-
triggers-electrical-discharge.html
_________________________________________________________________
14. Beyond Robins: Aerodynamic Analyses Of Animal Flight , Interface
Excerpt: Recent progress in studies of animal flight mechanics is reviewed. A
range of birds, and now bats, has been studied in wind tunnel facilities,
revealing an array of wake patterns caused by the beating wings and also by the
drag on the body. Nevertheless, the quantitative analysis of these complex wake
structures shows a degree of similarity among all the different wake patterns
and a close agreement with standard quasi-steady aerodynamic models and
predictions. (...)
* [33] Beyond Robins: Aerodynamic Analyses Of Animal Flight, A. Hedenström ,
G. Spedding, 2008/04/08, DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2008.0027, Interface
* Contributed by [34] Atin Das
[33]
http://journals.royalsociety.org/content/q164rh4043492407/?p=045227002c284f62b3
9f50cad532f6ea&pi=0
[34] mailto:dasatin at yahoo.co.in
_________________________________________________________________
14.01. Golden Hamsters Are Nocturnal In Captivity But Diurnal In Nature , Biol.
Lett.
Abstract: Daily activity rhythms are nearly universal among animals and their
specific pattern is an adaptation of each species to its ecological niche.
Owing to the extremely consistent nocturnal patterns of activity shown by
golden hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) in the laboratory, this species is a
prime model for studying the mechanisms controlling circadian rhythms. In
contrast to laboratory data, we discovered that female hamsters in the wild
were almost exclusively diurnal. These results raise many questions about the
ecological variables that shape the activity patterns in golden hamsters and
the differences between laboratory and field results.
* [35] Golden Hamsters Are Nocturnal In Captivity But Diurnal In Nature, R.
Gattermann , R. E. Johnston , N. Yigit , P. Fritzsche , S. Larimer , S.
Özkurt , K. Neumann , Z. Song , E. Colak , J. Johnston , M. E. McPhee,
2008/04/08, DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2008.0066, Biological Letters
* Contributed by [36] Atin Das
[35]
http://journals.royalsociety.org/content/077m766104n27u83/?p=b69f06feabcf468fad
65d52d834c558f&pi=1
[36] mailto:dasatin at yahoo.co.in
_________________________________________________________________
15. Nanoshuttle On the Right Track , News at Nature
Excerpt: The new device is the first reliable nanoscale monorail.
A. Barreiro et al., Science The molecular monorail has just left the
station. It set off in Barcelona, and travelled about 500 millionths of a
millimetre before reaching its destination (in Barcelona).
* [37] Nanoshuttle On the Right Track, Philip Ball, 2008/04/10, DOI:
10.1038/news.2008.744, News at Nature
* Contributed by [38] Carlos Gershenson
[37] http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080410/full/news.2008.744.html
[38] http://homepages.vub.ac.be/~cgershen/
_________________________________________________________________
15.01. Researchers Create The First Thermal Nanomotor In The World , EurekAlert
Excerpts: Researchers from the UAB Research Park have created the first
nanomotor that is propelled by changes in temperature. A carbon nanotube is
capable of transporting cargo and rotating like a conventional motor, but is a
million times smaller than the head of a needle. This research opens the door
to the creation of new nanometric devices designed to carry out mechanical
tasks and which could be applied to the fields of biomedicine or new materials.
* [39] Researchers Create The First Thermal Nanomotor In The World, 08/04/15,
EurekAlert
[39] http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-04/uadb-rct041508.php
_________________________________________________________________
16. Gauging a Collider's Odds of Creating a Black Hole , NY Times
Excerpts: Nevertheless, some experts say too much hype and not enough
candor on the part of scientists about the promises and perils of what they do
could boomerang into a public relations disaster for science, opening the door
for charlatans and demagogues. In a paper published in 2000 with the title
"Might a Laboratory Experiment Destroy Planet Earth?" Francesco Calogero, a
nuclear physicist at the University of Rome and co-winner of the 1995 Nobel
Peace Prize for his work with the Pugwash conferences on arms control, deplored
a tendency among his colleagues to promulgate a "leave it to the experts"
attitude.
* [40] Gauging a Collider's Odds of Creating a Black Hole, Dennis Overbye,
08/04/15, NYTimes
[40] http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/15/science/15risk.html
_________________________________________________________________
17. Quantum Physics: Observations Turn Up The Heat , Nature
Excerpts: The idea that observers can influence what they observe has a history
that stretches back beyond quantum physics. That we can affect how a system
heats up and cools down simply by probing it is a new twist. (...) The authors
consider disturbances to the thermal equilibrium of a system of two energy
levels surrounded by an infinite reservoir of heat. They show that the entropy
and temperature of both the system and its surrounding 'heat bath' can be
increased or decreased by changing how frequently the system is probed.
* [41] Quantum Physics: Observations Turn Up The Heat, Kimberly R. Chapin ,
Marlan O. Scully, 08/04/10, DOI: 10.1038/452705a, Nature 452, 705-706
[41] http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v452/n7188/full/452705a.html
_________________________________________________________________
18. The Arms Trade And States' Duty To Ensure Respect For Humanitarian And
Human Rights Law , J. Conflict & Security Law
Excerpts: The unregulated international trade in conventional arms, especially
in small arms and light weapons, has come to be viewed as an exacerbating
factor in armed conflict, violent crime and internal repression. (...) This
article surveys the existing international legal regulation of state-authorised
conventional arms transfers, examines how humanitarian law, and in particular
states?duty to ensure respect for humanitarian law, affects the legality of
these transfers and shows why human rights law does not make a significant
contribution to the legal regulation of the international arms trade today.
* [42] The Arms Trade And States' Duty To Ensure Respect For Humanitarian And
Human Rights Law, [43] M. Brehm, Winter 2007, online 2008/04/02, DOI:
10.1093/jcsl/krn006, Journal of Conflict and Security Law
* Contributed by [44] Pritha Das
[42] http://jcsl.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/12/3/359
[43] mailto:maya.brehm at jur.ku.dk
[44] mailto:prithadas01 at yahoo.com
_________________________________________________________________
19. Complex Challenges: Global Terrorist Networks
_________________________________________________________________
19.01. Smith Invites Moderate Imams Into UK To Help Muslim Communities Fight
Extremism , The Guardian
Excerpts: (...) Home Office has voiced concerns about imported imams and tried
to encourage the recruitment of homegrown clerics more in touch with British
Muslim youth. A spokesman last night insisted that this was not a contradiction
but complemented work already underway to ensure imams are firmly rooted in the
communities they serve. In a speech to police divisional commanders in London
yesterday, Smith said the idea was part of a move to build a new international
network that tackled the "propagandists for violent extremism who sit offshore"
and the ideology that can inspire "the small minority" in Britain from overseas
.
* [45] Smith Invites Moderate Imams Into UK To Help Muslim Communities Fight
Extremism, Alan Travis, 08/04/17, The Guardian
[45] http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/apr/17/islam.religion
_________________________________________________________________
20. Links & Snippets
_________________________________________________________________
20.01. Other Publications
- Persistent Institutions, SFI Working Papers, DOI: SFI-WP 08-04-015
- ÒGenes? SFI Working Papers, DOI: SFI-WP 08-03-011
- Euro MP Calls For Microsoft Ban: No Purchases Until Redmond Plays Ball,
2008/04/11, vnunet.com
- Human Vascular System In Mice, 2008/04/15, Innovations-report
- Personality Study Shows Risk Of First Depression Episode Late In Life,
2008/04/14, Innovations-report
- Why Is The Internet Sometimes So Slow? Internet 'Black Holes' May Be To
Blame, 2008/04/09, ScienceDaily & University of Washington
- How Things Get Wet: New Mathematical Formula Sets Wetting Theory Straight,
2008/04/09, ScienceDaily & Imperial College London
- Biologists Build A Better Mouse Model For Cancer Research, 2008/04/11,
ScienceDaily & Boston College
- Evolution In The Classroom: 'Evolution Machine' Lets Students See It Happen,
2008/04/09, ScienceDaily & Association for Psychological Science
- Researchers Classify Web Searches, 2008/04/13, ScienceDaily & Penn State
- Economic Growth And Marine Biodiversity: Influence Of Human Social Structure
On Decline Of Marine Trophic Levels, Apr. 2008, online 2008/04/08, Conservation
Biology, DOI: 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2007.00851.x
- A New Architecture For The Non-Proliferation Of Nuclear Weapons, Winter 2007,
online 2008/02/19, Journal of Conflict and Security Law, DOI:
10.1093/jcsl/krn002
- From Dynamical Emerging Patterns To Patterns In Visual Art, Jan. 2008,
International Journal of Bifurcation and Chaos, DOI: 10.1142/S021812740802015X
- Radio Sweat Gland - 90 Ghz - The Perils Of Perspiration., 08/04/09, Nature
452, 676, DOI: 10.1038/452676a
_________________________________________________________________
20.02. Webcast Announcements
7th Intl Conf on Complex Systems (ICCS), Boston, MA, 07/10/28-11/02
[46]
Reseau Nationale des Systemes Complexes , (in French), 2007
[47] World Economic Forum , Davos, Switzerland, 08/01/22-27
TED Talks, TED Conferences LLC , since 2006
Talking Robots: The PodCast on Robotics and AI, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de
Lausanne, Switzerland, 06/11/03
Potentials of Complexity Science for Business, Governments, and the Media 2006,
Budapest, Hungary, 06/08/03-05
6th Intl Conf on Complex Systems (ICCS), Boston, MA, 06/06/25-30
Artificial Life X,
10th Intl Conf on the Simulation and Synthesis of Living Systems, Bloomington,
IN, USA. 2006/06/03-07
6th Understanding Complex Systems Symposium, Urbana-Champaign, Il, 06/05/15-18
Ralph Abraham on Complexity Digest, , Calcutta, India, 05/12/27
[48] An Afternoon with Michael Crichton, Washington, 05/11/06
[49]
Illuminating the Shadow of the Future, Ann Arbor, Mi 05/09/23-25
[50]
Open Network of Centres of Excellence in Complex Systems - Brainstorming
Meeting, Paris, France 05/09/19-23
[51]
Complexity, Science & Society Conference 2005, U. Liverpool, UK 2005/09/11-14
[52]
ECAL 2005 - VIIIth European Conference on Artificial Life,
Canterbury, Kent, UK 2005/09/5-9
[53]
T. Irene Sanders, Executive Director and Founder, [54] The Washington Center
for Complexity & Public Policy, 05/08/27, QuickTime video (10:38 min), [55]
Podcast
[56] North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity
2005 Conference, Virtual Conference Network, St. Pete's Beach, Florida,
05/06/09-11
[57] Understanding Complex Systems - Computational Complexity and
Bioinformatics, Virtual Conference Network, Urbana-Champaign, Il, UIUC,
05/05/16-19
[58] Nonlinearity, Fluctuations, and Complexity, with a celebration of the
65th birthday of Gregoire Nicolis. , Complexity Session, Universite' Libre de
Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium, 05/03/16
[59]
1st European Conference on Complex Systems, Torino, Italy, 04/12/5-7
>From Autopoiesis to Neurophenomenology: A Tribute to Francisco Varela
(1946-2001), Paris, France, 2004/06/18-20
Evolutionary Epistemology, Language, and Culture, Brussels, Belgium,
04/05/26-28
International Conference on Complex Systems 2004, Boston, 04/05/16-21
Nonlinear Dynamics And Chaos: Lab Demonstrations, Strogatz, Steven H.,
Internet-First University Press, 1994
CERN Webcast Service, Streamed videos of Archived Lectures and Live Events
Dean LeBaron's Archive of Daily Video Commentary, Ongoing Since February 1998
Edge Videos
[46] http://webcast.in2p3.fr/RNSC/ target=new
[47]
http://gaia.world-television.com/wef/worldeconomicforum_annualmeeting2008/Targe
t=new
[48] http://www.complexsys.org/news.htm target=new
[49] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/05ISF/index.html target=new
[50] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/ONCECS05/ target=new
[51] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/CSS05/ target=new
[52] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/ECAL2005/ target=new
[53] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/Sanders0508/Sanders0508.mov target=new
[54] http://www.complexsys.org/ target=new
[55] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/Sanders0508/Sanders.mp3
[56] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/05NASPSA/ target=new
[57] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/05UCS/ target=new
[58] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/Nicolis05/Target=new
[59] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/ECCS04/Target=new
_________________________________________________________________
20.03. Conference Announcements
_________________________________________________________________
20.04. Other Announcements
A short notice from Dean LeBaron
Dear ComDig Readers,
Our editor, Dr. Gottfried Mayer, is affectionately esteemed by many of you --
as readers, you know he devotes himself unselfishly to widening our knowledge
of complexity science. He was recently diagnosed with advanced colon cancer and
given a timetable of a very few years. Knowing Gottfried, you can imagine that,
in addition to the customary processes of chemotherapy, he would explore other
frontier therapies, especially those arising out of interdisciplinary
applications of complexity. These are expensive ... if he can find them.
Many of you have sent your good wishes and indicated your desire to assist.
With Gottfrieds permission, I am posting this note with information, below,
about how to send contributions to him. Please indicate the source since
Gottfried will want to express his warm gratitude.
I know that Gottfried, the good scientist that he is, will explain from time to
time what he is doing and what the results are ... and we will follow his
progress with great interest and hope.
Dean LeBaron
Publisher, Complexity Digest
Bank Information:
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Ref. Gottfried Mayer
_________________________________________________________________
[60]Complexity Digest is an independent publication available to
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