Bernat Corominas-Murta (Medical University of Vienna)
Abstract. Hierarchy seems to pervade complexity in both living and artificial systems. Despite its relevance, no general theory that captures all features of hierarchy and its origins has been proposed yet. In this talk I will present a formal approach -which actually goes beyond network science- resulting from the convergence of theoretical morphology and network theory that allows constructing a 3D morphospace where any network can be located. Embedded within large voids in the morphospace of all possible hierarchies, four major groups are identified. Two of them match the expected from random networks with similar connectivity, thus suggesting that non-adaptive factors are at work. Ecological and gene networks define the other two, indicating that their topological order is the result of functional constraints. We will finally compare these results with the one obtained with an exploration of the morphospace using in silico evolved networks.