Abstract
Complex systems of any kind are characterised by autonomous components interacting with each other in a non-trivial way. In this paper we discuss how the views on complexity are evolving in fields like physics, social sciences, and computer science, and – most significantly – how they are converging.
In particular, we focus on the role of interaction as the foremost dimension for modelling complexity, and discuss first how coordination via mediated interaction could determine the general dynamics of complex software system, then how this applies to complex socio-technical systems like social networks.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Simon, H.A.: The architecture of complexity. Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 106(6), 467–482 (1962)
Kauffman, S.A.: Investigations. Oxford University Press (January 2003)
Wegner, P.: Why interaction is more powerful than algorithms. Communications of the ACM 40(5), 80–91 (1997)
Omicini, A., Ricci, A., Viroli, M.: The multidisciplinary patterns of interaction from sciences to Computer Science. In: Goldin, D.Q., Smolka, S.A., Wegner, P. (eds.) Interactive Computation: The New Paradigm, pp. 395–414. Springer (September 2006)
Gelernter, D., Carriero, N.: Coordination languages and their significance. Communications of the ACM 35(2), 97–107 (1992)
Weyns, D., Omicini, A., Odell, J.J.: Environment as a first-class abstraction in multi-agent systems. Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems 14(1), 5–30 (2007); Special Issue on Environments for Multi-agent Systems
Ricci, A., Viroli, M.: Coordination artifacts: A unifying abstraction for engineering environment-mediated coordination in MAS. Informatica 29(4), 433–443 (2005)
Omicini, A.: Agents writing on walls: Cognitive stigmergy and beyond. In: Paglieri, F., Tummolini, L., Falcone, R., Miceli, M. (eds.) The Goals of Cognition. Essays in Honor of Cristiano Castelfranchi. Tributes, vol. 20, pp. 543–556. College Publications, London (2012)
Viroli, M., Holvoet, T., Ricci, A., Schelfthout, K., Zambonelli, F.: Infrastructures for the environment of multiagent systems. Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems 14(1), 49–60 (2007) (Special Issue: Environment for Multi-Agent Systems)
Boltzmann, L.: Lectures on Gas Theory. University of California Press (1964)
Kauffman, S.A.: The Origins of Order: Self-organization and Selection in Evolution. Oxford University Press (January 1993)
Bouchaud, J.P., Potters, M.: Theory of Financial Risk and Derivative Pricing: From Statistical Physics to Risk Management, 2nd edn. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (2003)
Mantegna, R.N., Stanley, H.E.: Introduction to Econophysics: Correlations and Complexity in Finance. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (1999)
Mézard, M., Montanari, A.: Information, Physics, and Computation. Oxford University Press, Oxford (2009)
Nishimori, H.: Statistical Physics of Spin Glasses and Information Processing: An Introduction. International Series of Monographs on Physics, vol. 111. Clarendon Press, Oxford (2001)
Mézard, M., Parisi, G., Virasoro, M.A.: Spin Glass Theory and Beyond. An Introduction to the Replica Method and Its Applications. World Scientific Lecture Notes in Physics, vol. 9. World Scientific, Singapore (1986)
Contucci, P., Giardinà, C.: Perspectives on Spin Glasses. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (2012)
Stanley, H.E.: Econophysics and the current economic turmoil. American Physical Society News 17(11), 8 (2008); The Back Page
Watts, D.J., Strogatz, S.H.: Collective dynamics of ‘small-world’ networks. Nature 393(6684), 440–442 (1998)
Granovetter, M.S.: The strength of weak ties. American Journal of Sociology 78(6), 1360–1380 (1973)
FaceBook: Home page, http://www.facebook.com
LiquidFeedback: Home page, http://liquidfeedback.org
Ciancarini, P.: Coordination models and languages as software integrators. ACM Computing Surveys 28(2), 300–302 (1996)
Ciancarini, P., Omicini, A., Zambonelli, F.: Coordination technologies for Internet agents. Nordic Journal of Computing 6(3), 215–240 (1999)
Gelernter, D.: Generative communication in Linda. ACM Transactions on Programming Languages and Systems 7(1), 80–112 (1985)
Arbab, F.: Reo: A channel-based coordination model for component composition. Mathematical Structures in Computer Science 14, 329–366 (2004)
Wegner, P.: Coordination as constrained interaction (extended abstract). In: Hankin, C., Ciancarini, P. (eds.) COORDINATION 1996. LNCS, vol. 1061, pp. 15–17. Springer, Heidelberg (1996)
Zavattaro, G.: On the incomparability of Gamma and Linda. Technical Report SEN-R9827, CWI, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (October 1998)
Denti, E., Natali, A., Omicini, A.: On the expressive power of a language for programming coordination media. In: 1998 ACM Symposium on Applied Computing, SAC 1998, Atlanta, GA, USA, February 27-March 1, pp. 169–177. ACM (1998); Special Track on Coordination Models, Languages and Applications
Omicini, A.: Nature-inspired coordination for complex distributed systems. In: Fortino, G., Badica, C., Malgeri, M., Unland, R. (eds.) Intelligent Distributed Computing VI. SCI, vol. 446, pp. 1–6. Springer, Heidelberg (2012)
Theraulaz, G., Bonabeau, E.: A brief history of stigmergy. Artificial Life 5(2), 97–116 (1999)
Ricci, A., Omicini, A., Viroli, M., Gardelli, L., Oliva, E.: Cognitive stigmergy: Towards a framework based on agents and artifacts. In: Weyns, D., Van Dyke Parunak, H., Michel, F. (eds.) E4MAS 2006. LNCS (LNAI), vol. 4389, pp. 124–140. Springer, Heidelberg (2007)
O’Reilly, T.: What is Web 2.0: Design patterns and business models for the next generation of software. Communications & Strategies 65(1st Quarter), 17–37 (2007)
Verhagen, H., Noriega, P., Balke, T., de Vos, M. (eds.): Social Coordination: Principles, Artefacts and Theories (SOCIAL.PATH), AISB Convention 2013, University of Exeter, UK, April 3-5. The Society for the Study of Artificial Intelligence and the Simulation of Behaviour (2013)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this paper
Cite this paper
Omicini, A., Contucci, P. (2013). Complexity and Interaction: Blurring Borders between Physical, Computational, and Social Systems. In: Bǎdicǎ, C., Nguyen, N.T., Brezovan, M. (eds) Computational Collective Intelligence. Technologies and Applications. ICCCI 2013. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 8083. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-40495-5_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-40495-5_1
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-642-40494-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-642-40495-5
eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)