Written between August 5 and October 2, 2006

Read the entire document in PDF format: Complex Adaptive Systems Essay v2

Table of Contents

Complexity Theory for Dummies (Like Me) 2
Introduction 2
Complexity Theory in Context 2
What is an SOS or CAS? 4
The Universal Diagram 5
How Patterns Form in Complex Systems 7
Phase Transitions 9
Agents and Systems; Giving up the Adjacent Possible 15
Examples of Self Organizing Systems (SOSs) 17
SOSs and Intimate Relationships 20
SOSs and Social Phase Transitions 22
SOSs and Mimetic Behavior 30
SOSs and Social Capital 30
SOSs, Values, Utility and Social Capital 32
SOSs and “Restorying” 36
SOSs and Education About Religion 43
SOSs and the Emergence of Social Compassion 45
Metaphor, Reality and Ontology Shifting 49
The Rider on the Elephant 52
The Denial of Consciousness 54
Complexity Theory and A Covenant with Mystery 57