title: The emergence of complexity: science coming of age or science growing old?
abstract: The emergence of a new field of science called complexity theory has made an impact on the community of scientists as well as the general public. This brief tutorial takes a very special view of this. The thesis is that complexity science has grown out of a general lack of satisfaction with traditional scientific practices and their failure to find a way of capturing anything but a shadow of complex reality. In spite of the many impressive advances from science and technology, it is clear that the picture delivered of the world is that of a surrogate world populated by machines and mechanisms. The nature of the real world demands more than traditional science can deliver. Yet traditional science has constraints and bounds on its universe of discourse. Complexity science, as presented here, demands that the barriers and constraints be removed in order to gain a more complete view of nature. This tutorial presents a summary of what is entailed by this new methodology.
authors.affiliation: Medical School, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond 23298-0551, USA. mikuleck@hsc.vcu.edu
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Mikulecky
mesh_terms: D003198:Computer Simulation; D008433:Mathematics; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D019368:Nature; D010684:Philosophy; D012586:Science