[tt] Complexity Digest 2008.39 (text version -2)
Eugen Leitl
<eugen at leitl.org> on
Sat Sep 27 16:13:44 CEST 2008
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Subject: Complexity Digest 2008.39 (text version -2)
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Complexity Digest 2008.39 26-Sept-2008
Archive: [1]http://www.comdig.org, European Mirror: [2]http://www.comdig.de
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"I think the next century will be the century of complexity." Stephen
Hawking, 2000
_________________________________________________________________
PDF files of our annual editions are available at
www.comdig.de/AnnualEditions.html
A letter from Gottfried Mayer to our readers and friends is at
www.comdig.de/GMLetter.html
_________________________________________________________________
01. The Blunders That Led To The Banking Crisis, New Scientist
01.01. Network Approach May Be The Answer To Understanding Financial
¡¥Contagion¡¦, Innovations-report
02. Distributed Robustness In Cellular Networks: Insights From Synthetic
Evolved Circuits, Interface
03. Technology Doesn't Dumb Us Down. It Frees Our Minds., NY Times
03.01. Review: Lifestreaming Sites Can Organize Web Lives, PhysOrg.com
03.02. Weaving a Web of Trust, Science
04. Teaching Babies To Err, Science News
04.01. Political Attitudes Vary with Physiological Traits, Science
04.02. This Is The Brain On Age, Science News
05. The Holes In Our Genomes - Scanning DNA For Structural Changes Brings New
Insight Into Disease., Technology Review
05.01. Team Finds Genetic Link Between Immune And Nerve Systems, PhysOrg.com
06. Microbiology: Desperately Seeking New Antibiotics, Science
07. Cancer Data: Burying Bad News, Science News
07.01. Cancer: Hedgehog's Other Great Trick, Nature
08. Nanoparticles: Size And Charge Matter, Science News
09. Programmed Cell Death Contributes Force To Movement Of Cells, ScienceDaily
10. Building a Self-Assembling Stomach-Bot, Technology Review
11. Ecology: Privatization Prevents Collapse Of Fish Stocks, Global Analysis
Shows, Science
11.01. Handle With Care, Nature
11.02. Biologists Identify Genes Controlling Rhythmic Plant Growth,
ScienceDaily
12. Climate Change: Illuminating the Modern Dance of Climate and CO2, Science
12.01. Climate Chaos, PhysicsWorld.com Blog
12.02. Blocking the Sky to Save the Earth, NY Times
13. New Magnetic Field Could Help Explain Earth's Magnetic-Field Flipping,
PhysicsWorld.com
14. Primordial Fish Had Rudimentary Fingers, PhysOrg.com
14.01. Biological Theory: Postmodern Evolution?, Nature
15. Reward-Predictive Cues Enhance Excitatory Synaptic Strength Onto Midbrain
Dopamine Neurons, Science
16. Dynamics Of Alliance Formation And The Egalitarian Revolution, arXiv
17. The Revolution In Military Affairs: Its Driving Forces, Elements, And
Complexity, Complexity
18. Agents And Conflict: Adaptation And The Dynamics Of War, Complexity
19. Complex Challenges: Global Terrorist Networks
19.01. Global Biosecurity In A Complex, Dynamic World, Complexity
20. Links & Snippets
20.01. Other Publications
20.02. Webcast Announcements
20.03. Conference Announcements
20.04. Other Announcements
_________________________________________________________________
01. The Blunders That Led To The Banking Crisis , New Scientist
Excerpts: Banks pay enormous sums to lure researchers away from other
areas of science and set them to work building complex statistical models that
supposedly tell the bankers about the risks they are running. So why didn't
they see what was coming? The answer lies partly in the nature of liquidity
crises. "By definition they are rare, extreme events, so all the models you
rely on in normal times don't work any more," (...)
* [4] The Blunders That Led To The Banking Crisis, Rob Jameson, 08/09/25, New
Scientist
[4]
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19926754.200?promcode=nletter&DCMP=NLC-nl
etter&nsref=mg19926754.200
_________________________________________________________________
01.01. Network Approach May Be The Answer To Understanding Financial
¡¥Contagion¡¦ , Innovations-report
Excerpts: University of Arkansas economists find that a network approach to the
study of financial ¡§contagion¡¨ ¡V the transmission and impact of financial cr
ises
¡V may be applied to understand the current turmoil in the U.S. banking sector
and the need for a system-wide response by the Fed. (...) Over the past decade,
economists focusing on globalization and international trade have debated why
financial crises (...) spread financial contagion, while other crises had less
impact. Drawing on recent advances in the study of networks, Kali and Reyes
developed a new method to better explain various countries¡¦ stock market
performance in the wake of financial crises. (...)
* [5] Network Approach May Be The Answer To Understanding Financial
¡¥Contagion¡¦, 2008/09/19, Innovations-report
* Contributed by [6] Atin Das
[5]
http://www.innovations-report.com/html/reports/economy_finances/network_approac
h_answer_understanding_financial_118539.html
[6] mailto:dasatin at yahoo.co.in
_________________________________________________________________
02. Distributed Robustness In Cellular Networks: Insights From Synthetic
Evolved Circuits , Interface
Excerpt: Evolved natural systems are known to display some sort of distributed
robustness against the loss of individual components. Such type of robustness
is not just the result of redundancy. Instead, it seems to be based on
degeneracy, i.e. the ability of elements that are structurally different to
perform the same function or yield the same output. Here, we explore the
problem of how relevant is degeneracy in a class of evolved digital systems
formed by NAND gates, and what types of network structures underlie the
resilience of evolved designs to the removal or loss of a given unit. (...)
* [7] Distributed Robustness In Cellular Networks: Insights From Synthetic
Evolved Circuits, J. Macia , R. V. Solé, 2008/09/16, DOI:
10.1098/rsif.2008.0236, Interface
* Contributed by [8] Atin Das
[7]
http://journals.royalsociety.org/content/qg5q57l8720685g7/?p=aab18f608fc347c993
3b9cc502d081a9&pi=0
[8] mailto:dasatin at yahoo.co.in
_________________________________________________________________
03. Technology Doesn't Dumb Us Down. It Frees Our Minds. , NY Times
Excerpts: Christophe Vorlet It is hard to think of a technology that
wasn't feared when it was introduced. In his Atlantic article, Mr. Carr says
that Socrates feared the impact that writing would have on man's ability to
think. The advent of the printing press summoned similar fears. It wouldn't be
the last time. When Hewlett-Packard invented the HP-35, the first hand-held
scientific calculator, in 1972, the device was banned from some engineering
classrooms. Professors feared that engineers would use it as a crutch, that
they would no longer understand the relationships that either penciled
calculations or a slide rule somehow provided for proficient scientific
thought.
* [9] Technology Doesn't Dumb Us Down. It Frees Our Minds., Damon Darlin,
08/09/21
[9] http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/21/technology/21ping.html
_________________________________________________________________
03.01. Review: Lifestreaming Sites Can Organize Web Lives , PhysOrg.com
Excerpts: In this screen shot provided by Swurl, the "Timeline" page of
swurl.com co-creator Ryan Sit is shown. (AP Photo/Swurl.com) Lifestreaming
sites like FriendFeed,Profilactic, and Swurl aggregate information on what you
and your friends are doing on social media sites across the Internet. (...) If
you're having trouble keeping yourself organized on the Web, a lifestreaming
site may help. I definitely felt more connected by using Swurl and FriendFeed
in particular. But I don't think they'll replace visiting sites one at a time.
Posting and perusing the old fashioned way is much more varied and visually
stimulating.
* [10] Review: Lifestreaming Sites Can Organize Web Lives, Rachel Metz,
08/09/24, PhysOrg.com
[10] http://www.physorg.com/news141496351.html
_________________________________________________________________
03.02. Weaving a Web of Trust , Science
Excerpts: Increasingly, people are studying social and collaborative Web
technologies for use in science. However, issues such as privacy,
confidentiality, and trust arise around the use of these technologies. Science
is crucially based on knowing provenance--who produced what, how and where--and
on the Web, trusting scientific information is becoming more difficult for both
scientists and the general public. User-generated content, even from
professionals, can be opinionated (both informed and uninformed), inaccurate,
and deceiving.
* [11] Weaving a Web of Trust, Jennifer Golbeck, 08/09/19, Science : 1640-1641.
[11] http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/321/5896/1640
_________________________________________________________________
04. Teaching Babies To Err , Science News
Excerpts: Topal's group proposes that social signals from an experimenter
repeatedly placing a toy under a cup allow 10-month-olds watching to make a
practical inference, akin to ¡¡±this kind of object is found under that cup.¡¨
Upon seeing the toy get hidden under another cup, a few seconds later the
infant acts on his or her previous knowledge and reaches for the first cup,
(...). This effect is called the "A-not-B error," since babies choose the A cup
after the toy has been moved to the B cup.
* [12] Teaching Babies To Err, Bruce Bower, 08/09/25, Science News
[12]
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/36877/title/Teaching_babies_to_err
_________________________________________________________________
04.01. Political Attitudes Vary with Physiological Traits , Science
Excerpts: Although political views have been thought to arise largely from
individuals' experiences, recent research suggests that they may have a
biological basis. We present evidence that variations in political attitudes
correlate with physiological traits. In a group of 46 adult participants with
strong political beliefs, individuals with measurably lower physical
sensitivities to sudden noises and threatening visual images were more likely
to support foreign aid, liberal immigration policies, pacifism, and gun
control, whereas individuals displaying measurably higher physiological
reactions to those same stimuli were more likely to favor defense spending,
capital punishment, patriotism, and the Iraq War.
* [13] Political Attitudes Vary with Physiological Traits, Douglas R. Oxley,
Kevin B. Smith, John R. Alford, Matthew V. Hibbing, Jennifer L. Miller,
Mario Scalora, Peter K. Hatemi, John R. Hibbing, 08/09/19, Science :
1667-1670.
[13] http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/321/5896/1667
_________________________________________________________________
04.02. This Is The Brain On Age , Science News
Excerpts: The activity of genes in men's brains begins to change sooner than it
does in women's brains, a new study shows. Men and women's brains age
differently, a new study demonstrates. Researchers (...), find that the
activity of genes in men's brains begins to change earlier than it does in
women's brains. The types of genes that change with age also differ between the
sexes. (...) Brain scientists expect changes in gene activity as the brain ages
,
and previous studies have demonstrated some changes in other parts of the brain
.
* [14] This Is The Brain On Age, Tina Hesman Saey, 08/09/22, Science News
[14]
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/36708/title/This_is_the_brain_on_age
_________________________________________________________________
05. The Holes In Our Genomes - Scanning DNA For Structural Changes Brings New
Insight Into Disease. , Technology Review
Excerpts: Hole-y DNA: Gene microarrays (shown above) designed to measure
two different kinds of genetic variation--single-base changes and larger
structural variations--are shedding new light on the genetic basis of complex
disease.
Credit: Broad Institute Over the past two years, scientists have made a
surprising discovery about our DNA. Like a book with torn pages, duplicate
chapters, or upside-down paragraphs, everyone's genome is riddled with large
mistakes. These "copy number variations" can include deletions, duplications,
and rearrangements of stretches of DNA ranging in size from one thousand to one
million base pairs. New tools to screen for such mistakes, described this month
in Nature Genetics, should generate a more complete picture of the genetic root
of common diseases.
* [15] The Holes In Our Genomes - Scanning DNA For Structural Changes Brings
New Insight Into Disease., Emily Singer, 08/09/19, Technology Review
[15] http://www.technologyreview.com/Biotech/21393/?a=f
_________________________________________________________________
05.01. Team Finds Genetic Link Between Immune And Nerve Systems , PhysOrg.com
Excerpts: Duke University Medical Center researchers have discovered genetic
links between the nervous system and the immune system in a well-studied worm,
and the findings could illuminate new approaches to human therapies. For some
time, researchers have theorized a direct link between the nervous and immune
systems, such as stress messages that override the protective effects of
antibodies, but the exact connection was unknown. "This is the first time that
a genetic approach has been used to demonstrate that specific neurons in the
nervous system are capable of regulating immune response in distant cells,"
(...).
* [16] Team Finds Genetic Link Between Immune And Nerve Systems, 08/09/19,
PhysOrg.com
[16] http://www.physorg.com/news141043732.html
_________________________________________________________________
06. Microbiology: Desperately Seeking New Antibiotics , Science
Excerpts: The need for new antibiotics is undisputed (1). Recent studies
estimate that more people die from the methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus (MRSA) bacterium than from HIV in the United States (2), and the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that more than 90,000 people die
from hospital-acquired bacterial infections in the United States each year.
Numerous reports have illustrated the "perfect storm" of rising bacterial
resistance to antibiotics and an industry pipeline ill-equipped to address the
need for new antibacterial drugs.
* [17] Microbiology: Desperately Seeking New Antibiotics, David J. Payne,
08/09/19, Science : 1644-1645.
[17] http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/321/5896/1644
_________________________________________________________________
07. Cancer Data: Burying Bad News , Science News
Excerpts: James H. Doroshow, director of the National Cancer Institute¡¦s
division of treatment and diagnosis, notes that last year alone some 50,000
patients took part in trials that his institute funded. The ¡§apparent lack of
access to the final efficacy and toxicity data for cancer clinical trials from
all sponsors, but especially for industry-sponsored studies, poses multiple
scientific and ethical questions,¡¨ he charges in an editorial accompanying the
new paper.
* [18] Cancer Data: Burying Bad News, Janet Raloff, 08/09/24, Science News
[18]
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/36805/title/Cancer_data_Burying_bad_
news
_________________________________________________________________
07.01. Cancer: Hedgehog's Other Great Trick , Nature
Excerpts: The poet Archilochus wrote "The fox has many tricks, and the hedgehog
one great one". Yet a signalling-pathway namesake of hedgehog may have two grea
t
tricks that could be exploited for cancer therapy. Molecular signalling pathway
s
that control the growth of cancer cells have been heralded as prime targets for
the treatment of a broad spectrum of tumours. Of particular interest is the
hedgehog pathway, which normally is involved in development but whose abnormal
activity is thought to drive the proliferation of cancer cells.
* [19] Cancer: Hedgehog's Other Great Trick, Tom Curran, Jessica M. Y. Ng,
08/09/18, DOI: 10.1038/455293a, Nature 455, 293-294
[19] http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v455/n7211/full/455293a.html
_________________________________________________________________
08. Nanoparticles: Size And Charge Matter , Science News
Excerpts: It's not so much what the tiny particles are made of, but how they
interact with proteins in the blood, that can determine the particles' fates as
couriers of specific treatments for diseaseBefore you trust a medical
nanoparticle, you should know what kind of riffraff it hangs out with. Larger
than a protein but much smaller than a bacterium, medical nanoparticles are
tiny, synthetic vessels that scientists design to carry drugs, genes or other
therapeutic compounds into the body. As these particles travel in the
bloodstream, proteins that glom on can dramatically affect whether the
particles will be healing or toxic.
* [20] Nanoparticles: Size And Charge Matter, Patrick Barry, 08/09/22, Science
News
[20]
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/36709/title/Nanoparticles_size_and_c
harge_matter
_________________________________________________________________
09. Programmed Cell Death Contributes Force To Movement Of Cells , ScienceDaily
Excerpts: In addition to pruning cells out of the way during embryonic
development, the much-studied process of programmed cell death, or apoptosis,
has been newly found to exert significant mechanical force on surrounding
cells. This mechanical force may be harnessed throughout biology by tissues to
aid wound formation, organ development (...) according to a Duke University
team that melds biology with physics to investigate force at the cellular
level. Cells are known to move in coordinated fashion during the closure of an
eye-shaped opening on the back of a developing fruit fly embryo, a model system
Duke biophysicists have been working on for nearly a decade. (...)
* [21] Programmed Cell Death Contributes Force To Movement Of Cells,
2008/09/20, ScienceDaily & Duke University
* Contributed by [22] Atin Das
[21] http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080918170618.htm
[22] mailto:dasatin at yahoo.co.in
_________________________________________________________________
10. Building a Self-Assembling Stomach-Bot , Technology Review
Excerpts: Linked up: By using magnetic links between capsules, researchers
hope to build a snake-like robot that can self-assemble inside a patient's
stomach.
Credit: ETH Zurich Modules that self-assemble inside the stomach could
perform more-sophisticated diagnosis and treatment. The ultimate goal is for
each capsule to perform a different task: one for imaging, one for power, one
to take samples, and so on. Once inside the stomach, the capsules would link
together, creating a snake-like device that could slide through the intestines,
performing more-complex tasks than those performed by a single capsule or
several free-floating ones.
* [23] Building a Self-Assembling Stomach-Bot, Kristina Grifantini, 08/09/22,
Technology Review
[23] http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/21401/?a=f
_________________________________________________________________
11. Ecology: Privatization Prevents Collapse Of Fish Stocks, Global Analysis
Shows , Science
Excerpts: Two years ago, a team of researchers took a broad look at the world's
commercial fisheries and predicted that excessive harvesting would cause them
all to collapse by 2048. Now, three other scientists have taken an equally
broad look at how fisheries are managed and come up with a more hopeful view.
(...) stocks are much less likely to collapse if fishers own rights to fish
them, called catch shares. If implemented worldwide, they say, this kind of
market-based management could reverse a destructive global trend. (...)
* [24] Ecology: Privatization Prevents Collapse Of Fish Stocks, Global Analysis
Shows, Erik Stokstad, 08/09/19, Science: 1619.
[24] http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/321/5896/1619a
_________________________________________________________________
11.01. Handle With Care , Nature
Excerpts: Ecologists must research how best to intervene in and preserve
ecosystems. (...) In the future, as climate change takes hold, management may
become even more radical. Some ecologists are beginning to talk about moving
slowly dispersing plants and animals pole-wards or upslope to keep them in
climates they can thrive in, or introducing non-native 'functional equivalents'
in some ecosystems to play certain key roles. Such talk will undoubtedly raise
hackles among those ecologists for whom intervention in natural ecosystems is
anathema. Yet our species' all-pervasive impact on this planet has already
doomed that hands-off approach to failure.
* [25] Handle With Care, 08/09/18, DOI: 10.1038/455263b, Nature 455, 263-264
[25] http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v455/n7211/full/455263b.html
_________________________________________________________________
11.02. Biologists Identify Genes Controlling Rhythmic Plant Growth ,
ScienceDaily
Excerpts: A team of biologists (...) has identified the genes that enable
plants to undergo bursts of rhythmic growth at night and allow them to compete
when their leaves are shaded by other plants. The researchers report (...) that
these genes control the complex interplay of plant growth hormones, plant light
sensors and circadian rhythms that permit plants to undergo rhythmic growth
spurts at specific times of the day or year in response to varying levels of
light and other environmental conditions. Their discovery (...) could
eventually allow scientists to design crops that can grow substantially faster
and produce more food than the most productive varieties today. (...)
* [26] Biologists Identify Genes Controlling Rhythmic Plant Growth, 2008/09/19,
ScienceDaily & University of California - San Diego
* Contributed by [27] Atin Das
[26] http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080916101146.htm
[27] mailto:dasatin at yahoo.co.in
_________________________________________________________________
12. Climate Change: Illuminating the Modern Dance of Climate and CO2 , Science
Excerpts: Climate and atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations have been
coupled through much of Earth's history: CO2 influences climate through the
greenhouse effect, but climate also influences CO2 through its impact on the
stores of carbon on the land and in the oceans. This two-way coupling between
climate and CO2 will have a large influence on how the climate changes over the
course of the 21st century. Currently, the amount of CO2 emitted as a result of
human activities is about double the amount required to explain the rate of
increase of atmospheric CO2.
* [28] Climate Change: Illuminating the Modern Dance of Climate and CO2, Peter
Cox, Chris Jones, 08/09/19, Science: 1642-1644.
[28] http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/321/5896/1642
_________________________________________________________________
12.01. Climate Chaos , PhysicsWorld.com Blog
Excerpts: As an example, Smith quoted an article written in 1921: more CO2, it
read, gives "warmer, wetter winters with increased (larger) storminess". Given
that this is still the main point that underlies scientists' current thinking,
he said, "why do we need models?" This, the audience at his talk realized, was
only half a joke. Of course models are in principal integral to forecasting, bu
t
Smith wanted to point out that we cannot know whether proposed improvements to
climate models - higher resolutions, accountability of cloud cover, etc - will
actually guide us towards a better understanding of how climate works.
* [29] Climate Chaos, Jon Cartwright, 08/09/24, PhysicsWorld.com Blog
[29] http://physicsworld.com/blog/2008/09/climate_chaos.html
_________________________________________________________________
12.02. Blocking the Sky to Save the Earth , NY Times
Excerpts: Systems with lots of uncertainty and inertia are notoriously hard to
control: we can't effectively predict their future behavior, and we can't
quickly correct behavior we don't like. By the time we find out that the
climate dice have rolled against us, inertia could make conventional responses
like carbon taxes and wind power inadequate. (...) We must hope for the best
while laying plans to navigate the worst. Navigating the worst could involve
what scientists call geo-engineering - the intentional modification of the
earth's climate.
* [30] Blocking the Sky to Save the Earth, Thomas Homer-Dixon, David Keith,
08/09/20, NYTimes
[30] http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/20/opinion/20homerdixon.html
_________________________________________________________________
13. New Magnetic Field Could Help Explain Earth's Magnetic-Field Flipping ,
PhysicsWorld.com
Excerpts: Geophysicists in the US are proposing a new magnetic field generated
in the Earth's core, the existence of which could help us understand why our
planet's magnetic moment has flipped several times in the past. By measuring
ancient field patterns frozen into the volcanic rocks of West Eifel in Germany
and Tahiti in French Polynesia, Kenneth Hoffman of California Polytechnic
University and Brad Singer of the University of Wisconsin-Madison have recorded
the first data to suggest that the Earth's dipolar magnetic field is accompanie
d
by a second magnetic field with a distinct origin in the Earth's core (Science
321 1800).
* [31] New Magnetic Field Could Help Explain Earth's Magnetic-Field Flipping,
08/09/25, PhysicsWorld.com
[31] http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/36027
_________________________________________________________________
14. Primordial Fish Had Rudimentary Fingers , PhysOrg.com
Excerpts: Tetrapods, the first four-legged land animals, are regarded as the
first organisms that had fingers and toes. Now researchers at Uppsala
University can show that this is wrong. Using medical x-rays, they found
rudiments of fingers in the fins in fossil Panderichthys, the "transitional
animal," which indicates that rudimentary fingers developed considerably
earlier than was previously thought. Our fish ancestors evolved into the first
four-legged animals, tetrapods, 380 million years ago. They are the forerunners
of all birds, mammals, crustaceans, and batrachians. Since limbs and their
fingers are so important to evolution, researchers have long wondered whether
they appeared for the first time in tetrapods, or whether they had evolved from
elements that already existed in their fish ancestors.
* [32] Primordial Fish Had Rudimentary Fingers, 08/09/22, PhysOrg.com
[32] http://www.physorg.com/news141278840.html
_________________________________________________________________
14.01. Biological Theory: Postmodern Evolution? , Nature
Excerpts: Over dinner at the meeting's end, Pigliucci expresses his hope of
"moving from a gene-centric view of causality in evolution to a pluralist,
multilevel causality". Postmodernists in the humanities call this
'decentering', and they are all for it. Over the course of the meeting, it's
fairly clear that the means to this pluralist end are being sought through
mixing and matching neglected ideas and old problems from biology's past with
the latest experimental and analytical techniques.
* [33] Biological Theory: Postmodern Evolution?, John Whitfield, 08/09/17, DOI:
10.1038/455281a, Nature 455, 281-284
[33] http://www.nature.com/news/2008/080917/full/455281a.html
_________________________________________________________________
15. Reward-Predictive Cues Enhance Excitatory Synaptic Strength Onto Midbrain
Dopamine Neurons , Science
Excerpts: When a rat learns to associate a cue with a reward,
dopamine-containing neurons in the midbrain acquire an enhanced response to
that cue through the action of glutamate. Using sensory information for the
prediction of future events is essential for survival. Midbrain dopamine
neurons are activated by environmental cues that predict rewards, but the
cellular mechanisms that underlie this phenomenon remain elusive. We used in
vivo voltammetry and in vitro patch-clamp electrophysiology to show that both
dopamine release to reward predictive cues and enhanced synaptic strength onto
dopamine neurons develop over the course of cue-reward learning.
* [34] Reward-Predictive Cues Enhance Excitatory Synaptic Strength Onto
Midbrain Dopamine Neurons, Garret D. Stuber, Marianne Klanker, Bram de
Ridder, M. Scott Bowers, Ruud N. Joosten, Matthijs G. Feenstra, Antonello
Bonci, 08/09/19, Science : 1690-1692.
[34] http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/321/5896/1690
_________________________________________________________________
16. Dynamics Of Alliance Formation And The Egalitarian Revolution , arXiv
Excerpts: Arguably the most influential force in human history is the formation
of social coalitions and alliances (i.e., long-lasting coalitions) and their
impact on individual power. In most great ape species, coalitions occur at
individual and group levels and among both kin and non-kin. Nonetheless, ape
societies remain essentially hierarchical, and coalitions rarely weaken social
inequality. In contrast, human hunter-gatherers show a remarkable tendency to
egalitarianism, and human coalitions and alliances occur not only among
individuals and groups, but also among groups of groups.
* [35] Dynamics Of Alliance Formation And The Egalitarian Revolution, Sergey
Gavrilets, Edgar A. Duenez-Guzman, Michael D. Vose, 08/09/01,
arXiv:0809.0332v1 [q-bio.PE]
[35] http://arxiv.org/abs/0809.0332
_________________________________________________________________
17. The Revolution In Military Affairs: Its Driving Forces, Elements, And
Complexity , Complexity
Excerpts: The current concept of a revolution in military affairs (RMA) mainly
characterizes the transformation of the US military to smaller, more lethal
forces. It is driven by structural changes in the international system(...).
This current revolution in American affairs has been a capital-intensive
evolution, and while these innovations have lead to tactical victories over
opposing forces on the battlefield, it is not yet clear that they have
contributed to stability in the larger strategic context. (...) The Iraqi war
demonstrates that the fog of war is not overcome, nor are wars fought with
precision-guided munitions necessarily clean. (...)
* [36] The Revolution In Military Affairs: Its Driving Forces, Elements, And
Complexity, [37] G. Neuneck, Sep.-Oct. 2008, Online 2008/07/17,
Contributed by Pritha Das, DOI: 10.1002/cplx.20236, Complexity
[36] http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/120756845/abstract
[37] mailto:neuneck at publlic.uni-hamburg.de
_________________________________________________________________
18. Agents And Conflict: Adaptation And The Dynamics Of War , Complexity
Excerpt: Civil wars pose one of the most challenging threats to peace in the
post-WWII era. The successful resolution of ongoing civil wars is particularly
difficult. Parties opposing peace successfully subverted negotiated agreements
in contexts as diverse as Rwanda, Northern Ireland, and Bosnia. (...) little
formal-theoretic work addresses the dynamics of civil wars. Empirical work
demonstrates that the resolution of civil wars is both complex and uncertain:
civil war combatants are heterogeneous in their traits, incompletely informed,
and thus, boundedly rational, capable of learning from history and adapting
their behavior - all hallmarks of a complex adaptive system. (...)
* [38] Agents And Conflict: Adaptation And The Dynamics Of War, [39] M. G.
Findley, Sep.-Oct. 2008, Online 2008/07/17,
Contributed by Pritha Das, DOI: 10.1002/cplx.20232, Complexity
[38] http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/120840782/abstract
[39] mailto:mike_findley at byu.edu
_________________________________________________________________
19. Complex Challenges: Global Terrorist Networks
_________________________________________________________________
19.01. Global Biosecurity In A Complex, Dynamic World , Complexity
Abstract: Biosecurity is emerging as a major global health priority for which
innovative and unprecedented solutions are needed. Biosecurity is a challenging
biocomplexity problem involving multifaceted processes such as interactions
between humans and nonhuman biota, anthropogenic environmental and ecological
factors, and socioeconomic and political pressures. Key to an effective
biosecurity strategy will be fundamental understanding of evolutionary,
anthropogenic and environmental driving forces at play in transmission and
perpetuation of infectious diseases. Biosecurity solutions will depend on
increased support of basic biomedical research and public education, enhanced
healthcare preparedness, alternative strategies for ensuringsafety, and
improved interagency cooperation regarding global health policy.
* [40] Global Biosecurity In A Complex, Dynamic World, [41] B. A. Wilson ,
Sep.-Oct. 2008, Online 2008/07/17,
Contributed by Pritha Das, DOI: 10.1002/cplx.20246, Complexity
* Contributed by [42] Atin Das
[40] http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/121359078/abstract
[41] mailto:bawilson at life.uiuc.edu
[42] mailto:dasatin at yahoo.co.in
_________________________________________________________________
20. Links & Snippets
_________________________________________________________________
20.01. Other Publications
- US Firms Cheating On Recycling Electronic Waste: GAO Report Discovers
Companies Exploiting Loopholes, 2008/09/19, vnunet.com
- Revealing The Regulating Mechanism Behind Signal Transduction In The Brain,
2008/09/19, Innovations-report
- Noble Fungi: Noble Metal Nanoparticles Deposit On The Mycelium Of Growing
Fungi¡XAn Approach To New Catalytic Systems?, 2008/09/19, Innovations-report
- When In Doubt, Chimpanzees Rely On Estimates Of Past Reward Amounts,
2008/09/16, Proceedings B: Biological Sciences, DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2008.1027
- Social Fishes And Single Mothers: Brain Evolution In African Cichlids,
2008/09/16, Proceedings B: Biological Sciences, DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2008.0979
- Do New Caledonian Crows Solve Physical Problems Through Causal Reasoning?,
2008/09/16, Proceedings B: Biological Sciences, DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2008.1107
- Putting Pictures Into Words, 2008/09/20, ScienceDaily & ICT Results
- Face Blindness Research Shows Emotions Are Key In The Study Of Face
Recognition, 2008/09/21, ScienceDaily & Public Library of Science
- Transactional Memory In A Dynamic Language, Apr. 2009, online 2008/06/07,
Computer Languages, Systems & Structures, DOI: 10.1016/j.cl.2008.06.001
_________________________________________________________________
20.02. Webcast Announcements
[43]
Can Ants Solve Traffic Jams?, Danielle Parsons, Slatev.com, 08/07/22
As roads and highways become ever more clogged, Danielle Parsons tells us how
researchers are studying ways to learn from nature's own traffic-flow experts:
ants.
7th Intl Conf on Complex Systems (ICCS), Boston, MA, 07/10/28-11/02
[44]
Reseau Nationale des Systemes Complexes , (in French), 2007
[45] 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
[46] An Afternoon with Michael Crichton, Washington, 05/11/06
[47]
Illuminating the Shadow of the Future, Ann Arbor, Mi 05/09/23-25
[48]
Open Network of Centres of Excellence in Complex Systems - Brainstorming
Meeting, Paris, France 05/09/19-23
[49]
Complexity, Science & Society Conference 2005, U. Liverpool, UK 2005/09/11-14
[50]
ECAL 2005 - VIIIth European Conference on Artificial Life,
Canterbury, Kent, UK 2005/09/5-9
[51]
T. Irene Sanders, Executive Director and Founder, [52] The Washington Center
for Complexity & Public Policy, 05/08/27, QuickTime video (10:38 min), [53]
Podcast
[54] 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
[55] Understanding Complex Systems - Computational Complexity and
Bioinformatics, Virtual Conference Network, Urbana-Champaign, Il, UIUC,
05/05/16-19
[56] 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
[57]
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
[43] http://www.slatev.com/player.html?id=1681718043 target=new
[44] http://webcast.in2p3.fr/RNSC/ target=new
[45]
http://gaia.world-television.com/wef/worldeconomicforum_annualmeeting2008/Targe
t=new
[46] http://www.complexsys.org/news.htm target=new
[47] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/05ISF/index.html target=new
[48] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/ONCECS05/ target=new
[49] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/CSS05/ target=new
[50] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/ECAL2005/ target=new
[51] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/Sanders0508/Sanders0508.mov target=new
[52] http://www.complexsys.org/ target=new
[53] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/Sanders0508/Sanders.mp3
[54] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/05NASPSA/ target=new
[55] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/05UCS/ target=new
[56] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/Nicolis05/Target=new
[57] http://complexity.vub.ac.be/~comdig/ECCS04/Target=new
_________________________________________________________________
20.03. Conference Announcements
EPOS 2008, III Edition of Epistemological Perspectives on Simulation, Lisbon,
Portugal, 08/10/02-03
1st Intl Conf on the Evolution and Development of the Universe, Paris, France,
08/10/08-09
Spatial Evolutionary Dynamics Workshop, Paris, France, 08/10/17
OD Network Conference 2008 - Advancing The Theory And Practice Of OD, Austin,
Texas, 08/10/19-22
International Congress on Complex Thought, Hermosillo , Sonora , Mexico,
08/10/21-24
What Is Computation? (How) Does Nature Compute? - 2008 Midwest NKS Conference,
Bloomington, IN, 08/10/30-11/02
2nd Intl Congress of Complex Systems in Sport (2nd ICCSS) and 10th European
Workshop of Ecological Psychology. (10th EWEP), Funchal, in Madeira Island,
Portugal, 08/11/05-08
2008 IEEE/WIC/ACM International Conference on
Web Intelligence (WI-08), Sydney, Australia, 08/12/09-12
COMPLEX'2009, First Intl Conf on Complex Systems: Theory and Applications,
Shanghai, China, 09/02/23-25
Models and Simulations 3 Conference, Charlottesville, USA 09/03/05-07
2nd Conf on Artificial General Intelligence (AGI-09.org), Arlington, Virginia,
09/03/06-09
2009 IEEE Symposium Series on Computational Intelligence, Nashville, Tennessee,
USA,09/03/30-04/02
2009 IEEE Symposium on Artificial Life
IEEE Symposium on Computational Intelligence in Bioinformatics and
Computational Biology (CIBCB 2009)
IEEE Workshop on Evolving and Self-Developing Intelligent Systems (ESDID 2009)
IEEE Symposium on Intelligent Agents (IA 2009)
IEEE Workshop on Organic Computing (OC 2009)
IEEE Swarm Intelligence Symposium (SIS 2009)
IEEE Workshop on Evolvable and Adaptive Hardware (WEAH 2009)
2nd Chaotic Modeling and Simulation International Conference (CHAOS2009),
Chania, Crete, Greece, 09/06/01-05
_________________________________________________________________
20.04. Other Announcements
[58] PhD Studentship in Unconventional Computing or Cellular Automata,
University of the West of England, Bristol, UK, Deadline: 08/10/01
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 Gottfried¡¦s 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:
If your contribution is made by check:
Please mail the check, payable to ¡§Gottfried Mayer¡¨, to:
Manufacturers & Traders Trust
2080 Western Avenue
20 Mall
Guilderland, NY 12084 USA
(on the back of the check, please write: ¡§For Deposit Only: Account # 983 338
3814¡¨)
If your contribution is made by wire:
Manufacturers & Traders Trust
2080 Western Avenue
20 Mall
Guilderland, NY 12084 USA
SWIFT Code# MANTUS33
UID: 209 791
ABA routing # 022 00 00 46 [for US wire transfers]
Account # 983 338 3814
Ref. Gottfried Mayer
[58]
http://www.jobs.ac.uk/jobs/VB307/PhD_Studentship_in_Unconventional_Computing_or
_Cellular_Automata/
target=new
_________________________________________________________________
[59]Complexity Digest is an independent publication available to
organizations that may wish to repost [60]ComDig to their own mailing
lists. [61]ComDig is published by [62]Dean LeBaron and edited by
[63]Gottfried J. Mayer.
To unsubscribe from this list, please send a note to
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[59] http://www.comdig.org/
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[62] http://www.deanlebaron.com/index.html
[63] http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/g/x/gxm21/
[64] mailto:subscriptions at comdig.org
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