Complexity: Life, Scale, & Civilization

Santa Fe Institute panel discussion, moderated by David Krakauer

Monday, August 6, 7:30 p.m., James A. Little Theater (1060 Cerrillos Road), Santa Fe

From the rise of complex human institutions such as cities and nation states, to the evolution of intelligence in natural systems, complexity is a pervasive feature of our universe, our society, and our biological selves. Why should that be, and how can we study complexity, understand it, even predict its future forms across systems and scales?

On the evening of Monday, August 6, SFI hosted a public panel discussion on the nature of complexity. “Complexity: Life, Scale, and Civilization” convened some of the biggest thinkers in science to grapple with some of the biggest questions in science. The panelists explored:

• The evolution of complexity and intelligence on earth
• The hidden laws that pervade complex phenomena, especially biological and social phenomena
• Universal patterns in the emergence of complex societies

“From the Big Bang to the Mayans, from the gene to the global economy, why is there complexity in the universe?” asked SFI External Professor David Krakauer, who moderated the discussion. “This is about the biggest questions you would ever want answered. Why are we here? What is the fate of our species? What is the fate of our planet?”

The discussion was free and open to the public and featured an open mic Q&A following remarks from the panelists. Seating was on a first-come basis.

Speakers include:

Lord Colin Renfrew

Sir Christopher Llewellyn Smith

Melanie Mitchell

Murray Gell-Mann

Videos:

Complexity: Life, Scale, & Civilization - Public Panel Discussion

The Variational Universe: From Strings to Neurons -  Balasubramanian

Metabolic Ecology of Humans - Brown

Framing the Rise and Variability of Past Complex Societies -  Feinman

Complexity and the Future of Learning and Education - Klopfer, Krakauer, Squire

The Global and Urban Energy Challenges - Llewellyn-Smith