Complexity Research; Why and How Sorin Solomon Racah Institute of Physics HUJ Israel Director, Complex Multi-Agent Systems Division, ISI Turin Director, Lagrange Interdisciplinary Laboratory for Excellence In Complexity

Contents Complexity as an unifying Scientific Paradigm Complexity as Theoretical Applied Science How to promote and evaluate Complexity and High Risk / High Stakes Research

Complexity as an unifying Scientific Paradigm

COMPLEXITY= MORE IS DIFFERENT He meant that When there are MORE then one simple agent (e.g. molecule) those agents may self-organize in collective objects (e.g. cells) which have emergent behavior (e.g. life) that IS DIFFERENT from the behavior of the simple agent (e.g. chemical reactions) (Physics Nobel Laureate) Phil Anderson defined in 1972

“MORE IS DIFFERENT” Complex Systems Paradigm MICRO - the relevant elementary agents INTER - their basic, simple interactions MACRO - the emerging collective objects Intrinsically (3x) interdisciplinary: -MICRO belongs to one science -MACRO to another science -Mechanisms: a third science traders orders, transactions herds,crashes,booms Decision making, psychology Financial economics statistical mechanics, physics math, game theory, info

95 0 C 1Kg 1cm 97 1cm 1Kg 99 1Kg 101 The breaking of macroscopic linear extrapolation ? Extrapolation? BOILING PHASE TRANSITION More is different: a single molecule does not boil at 100C 0 Simplest Example of a “More is Different” Transition Water level vs. temperature

Example of “MORE IS DIFFERENT” transition in Finance: Instead of Water Level: -economic index (Dow-Jones etc…) Crash = result of collective behavior of individual traders

Statistical Mechanics Phase Transition Atoms,Molecules Drops,Bubbles Anderson abstractization Complexity MICRO MACRO More is different Biology Social Science Brain Science Economics and Finance Business Administration ICT Semiotics and Ontology Chemicals E-pages Neurons Words people Customers Traders Cells,life Meaning Social groups WWW Cognition, perception Markets Herds, Crashes

Chemicals Ion channels neurons brain Thoughts Economy, Culture Social groups, The “MORE IS DIFFERENT” transition often marks the conceptual boundaries between disciplines. -It helps to bridge them by addressing Within a common conceptual framework the fundamental problems of one of them in terms of the collective phenomena of another.

-MORE IS DIFFERENT is a new universal grammar with new interrogative forms allowing to express novel questions of a kind un-uttered until now -We need to foster a new generation of bi- or multi-lingual scientists with this grammar as their mother-language. -We need to recognize MORE IS DIFFERENT interdisciplinary expertise as a crucial tool for future research on equal footing with disciplinary professional expertise. -develop, reward and support Complexity approach as such.

“MORE IS DIFFERENT” Agent-Based Complexity Research is a fusion of knowledge rather then merely a juxtaposition of expertises - implies a coordinated shift in the - objectives, - scope and - ethos of the involved disciplines (including healing academic vs. technology / industry dichotomy) Sometimes this caused opposition from some leaders of the affected disciplines which felt that the identity of their science is threatened by this fusion and shift in scope. => To avoid conflict in the future, complexity should be given space and support on its own right rather then sending it to beg or steal from the established disciplines.

Complexity as Theoretical Applied science

Complexity Induces a New relation Theoretical Science  Real Life Applications: Traditional Applied Science applied hardware devices (results of experimental science ) to material / physical reality. Modern Complexity rather applies theoretical methods - new (self-)organization concepts and - (self-)adaptation emergence theories to real life, but not necessarily material / physical items: - social and economic change, - individual and collective creativity, - the information flow in life Applications of Complexity are thus of a new brand: "Theoretical Applied Science" and should be recognized as such when evaluating their expected practical impact

EXAMPLE of Theoretical Applied Science APPLICATION: Liberalization Experiment Poland Economy after MICRO growth ___________________ => MACRO growth 1990 MACRO decay (90) 1992 MACRO growth (92) 1991 MICRO growth (91) GNP THEOREM (RG, RW) one of the fundamental laws of complexity Global analysis prediction Complexity prediction Education 88 MACRO decay Maps Andrzej Nowak’s group (Warsaw U.), CO 3 collaboration

How to promote complexity and High Risk Research

- The tenure-track can end in tenured (ECIR) European Interdisciplinary Professorships - Main Task: to host “instant” “disposable” institutes on emerging interdisciplinary / high risk/ high stakes issues - Researchers will be selected / promoted at ECIR on the basis of their proven expertise to carry out interdisciplinary research as such. -The members of the “ disposable institutes ” will hold Tenure-Track European Interdisciplinary Chairs independent on the fate of the disposable institutes Thus ECIR will “ insure ” / “ cover ” their risk taking How to Promote Interdisciplinary / High Risk Research ? -establish an European Center for Interdisciplinary Research it could be distributed and / or itinerant (like CNRS)

Instruments of the European Center for Interdisciplinary Research b)6-12 month interdisciplinary institute programs ( 500 K €) (buy sabbaticals for professors + bring students) a)triangle: 2 advisors+ bridge PhD student (100K €) (support summer schools for meeting, visits, fellowship) c) 3-5 year “disposable” institutes ( 3-5 M € ) university hosting it, should be well compensated and could keep the institute after the 3 years. participants: local people + students + visitors + holders of the - European Interdisciplinary tenure(-track) chairs to provide expertise with interdisciplinary projects - gradual, according to how ripe is the recipient subject

- map the interdisciplinary cooperation network (- people are nodes - cooperations and common papers, are links). - give priority to people with high interdisciplinarity rather then high rank / disciplinary authority Discipline 2 Discipline 1 Subjects that need synthesis Objective Algorithm to Evaluate Interdisciplinary researchers relevance Discipline3

Thus the judges should consider the overall - interdisciplinary - expertise - scientific connections and - past achievements - ease in navigating within dynamic research networks rather then - individual disciplinary authority and position - ease in managing static large disciplinary research groups In emergent research situations beyond the known frontiers it is not clear what knowledge will be relevant next. Thus strong professional expertise in a strictly limited area is less important than the generic capability / know-how to conduct research in situations of uncertainty and in unchartered trans-/ extra- disciplinary territory Evaluating interdisciplinary proposals

If you wish to recall just 3 words of the talk: “instant” “disposable” institutes