Meetings 2006

2006-12-13

*Location: Chambers Hall, Downstairs
*Topic: Evolution of Cooperation
*First reading: "The Further Evolution of Cooperation", Robert Axelrod and Douglas Dion, Science, New Series, Vol. 242, No. 4884. (Dec. 9, 1988), pp. 1385-1390. http://www.jstor.org/view/00368075/ap003615/00a00240/0
*Second reading: "Emergence of human cooperation and altruism by evolutionary feedback selection", D. Darcet, D. Sornette, http://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0610225

[For further readings, it turns out Science had quite a few articles this week:
Science, Volume 314, Issue 5805, dated December 8 2006, is now available at:
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/vol314/issue5805/index.dtl?etoc

]

2006-11-29

*Location: Chambers Hall, Downstairs
*Topic: Local inhibition and long-rate activation create spatial patterns
*First reading: Andersson, C., K. Lindgren, S. Rasmussen, and R. White, 2002. Urban growth simulation from ”first principles”. Physical Review E, 66(026204).
http://ees.lanl.gov/staff/steen/papers/prepaper08061.pdf

This paper has a lot of math at the beginning but pretty pictures follow. For an agent-based approach to the same problem, modesty forbids me to recommend, but you may want to look at:
Rand, William, Brown, Daniel G., Page, Scott E., Riolo, Rick, Fernandez, Luis E., and Moira Zellner, Agent-Based Simulation 4 2003, April 28-20, Montpellier, France. "Statistical Validation of Spatial Patterns in Agent-Based Models"
http://www.cscs.umich.edu/sluce/publications/sluce-abs.pdf

*Second reading: W. Hordijk, J. P. Crutcheld, and M. Mitchell. Embedded-particle computation in evolved cellular automata.
In T. Toffoli, M. Biafore, and J. Leao, editors, PhysComp96, pages 153-8. New England Systems Institute, 1996.
link: http://web.cecs.pdx.edu/~mm/physcomp96.pdf

Note: For those unfamiliar with cellular automata, the most famous example is the so-called "Game of Life". Here's an applet version of a NetLogo model of the Game of Life, http://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/models/LifeTurtle-Based . (Read the instructions on that page, then click the "Run Life Turtle-Based in your browser" link at the top.) The Game of Life is an example of two dimensional cellular automata. For an example of the workings of one dimensional cellular automata (discussed in the Hordijk paper), see http://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/models/CA1DRule90 .

2006-11-15

*Location: Basement of Chambers Hall
*Topic: Positive Feedbacks and Path Dependent Processes
*First reading: W. Brian Arthur, "Positive Feedbacks in the Economy", Scientific American, Feb. 1990 http://www.santafe.edu/arthur/Papers/Pdf_files/SciAm_Article.pdf
*Second reading: Sanjay Jain and Sandeep Krishna, A model for the emergence of cooperation, interdependence, and structure in evolving networks, PNAS 98, 543-547, 2001
http://www.pnas.org/cgi/reprint/98/2/543.pdf
*Third reading: FitzHugh-Nagumo Model http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/FitzHugh-Nagumo_Model
This is a classic model that shows how neural excitability can be understood in terms of positive and negative feedback.
[For a broader perspective on single-neuron modeling, I recommend this review published last month in Science: Modeling single-neuron dynamics and computations: A balance of detail and abstraction http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/sci;314/5796/80
For a more detailed mathematical treatment, I recommend this book chapter: Understanding neuronal dynamics by geometrical dissection of minimal models by A. Borisyuk and J. Rinzel http://www.cns.nyu.edu/~rinzel/compNeuro05/NeuroDynamics_AB_JR_Chapt.pdf ]

2006-11-2

*Location: Basement of Chambers Hall
*4 PM - 5 PM Methods and Techniques of Complex Systems Science: An Overview, Cosma R. Shalizi
http://arxiv.org/abs/nlin.AO/0307015
This is a long paper (actually a book chapter) and so it is not expected that everyone will have read the whole thing. However, reading the first five pages as an overview is recommended, after that pick and choose sections of the chapter that appeal to you. The breakdown of the chapter is described on page 4. The meat of the chapter goes through page 67, after that it is pointers to additional readings, and references.

*5 PM - 6 PM Discussion of Papers to Read in upcoming meetings
Bring a paper that you think is a good introduction to a complex systems technique, or one that describes the relationship between complex systems and your field and we will put together an agenda for the upcoming meetings

2006-10-18

*Location: Basement of Chambers Hall
*Administrative Meeting

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