
Think Complexity
Description
Alles über E-Books | Antworten auf Fragen rund um E-Books, Kopierschutz und Dateiformate finden Sie in unserem Info- & Hilfebereich.
Complexity science uses computation to explore the physical and social sciences. In Think Complexity, you'll use graphs, cellular automata, and agent-based models to study topics in physics, biology, and economics.
Whether you're an intermediate-level Python programmer or a student of computational modeling, you'll delve into examples of complex systems through a series of worked examples, exercises, case studies, and easy-to-understand explanations.
In this updated second edition, you will:
- Work with NumPy arrays and SciPy methods, including basic signal processing and Fast Fourier Transform
- Study abstract models of complex physical systems, including power laws, fractals and pink noise, and Turing machines
- Get Jupyter notebooks filled with starter code and solutions to help you re-implement and extend original experiments in complexity; and models of computation like Turmites, Turing machines, and cellular automata
- Explore the philosophy of science, including the nature of scientific laws, theory choice, and realism and instrumentalism
Ideal as a text for a course on computational modeling in Python, Think Complexity also helps self-learners gain valuable experience with topics and ideas they might not encounter otherwise.
More details
Other editions
Additional editions

Content
- Intro
- Copyright
- Table of Contents
- Preface
- Who Is This Book For?
- Changes from the First Edition
- Using the Code
- Conventions Used in This Book
- O'Reilly Safari
- How to Contact Us
- Contributor List
- Chapter 1. Complexity Science
- The Changing Criteria of Science
- The Axes of Scientific Models
- Different Models for Different Purposes
- Complexity Engineering
- Complexity Thinking
- Chapter 2. Graphs
- What Is a Graph?
- NetworkX
- Random Graphs
- Generating Graphs
- Connected Graphs
- Generating ER Graphs
- Probability of Connectivity
- Analysis of Graph Algorithms
- Exercises
- Chapter 3. Small World Graphs
- Stanley Milgram
- Watts and Strogatz
- Ring Lattice
- WS Graphs
- Clustering
- Shortest Path Lengths
- The WS Experiment
- What Kind of Explanation Is That?
- Breadth-First Search
- Dijkstra's Algorithm
- Exercises
- Chapter 4. Scale-Free Networks
- Social Network Data
- WS Model
- Degree
- Heavy-Tailed Distributions
- Barabási-Albert Model
- Generating BA Graphs
- Cumulative Distributions
- Explanatory Models
- Exercises
- Chapter 5. Cellular Automatons
- A Simple CA
- Wolfram's Experiment
- Classifying CAs
- Randomness
- Determinism
- Spaceships
- Universality
- Falsifiability
- What Is This a Model Of?
- Implementing CAs
- Cross-Correlation
- CA Tables
- Exercises
- Chapter 6. Game of Life
- Conway's GoL
- Life Patterns
- Conway's Conjecture
- Realism
- Instrumentalism
- Implementing Life
- Exercises
- Chapter 7. Physical Modeling
- Diffusion
- Reaction-Diffusion
- Percolation
- Phase Change
- Fractals
- Fractals and Percolation Models
- Exercises
- Chapter 8. Self-Organized Criticality
- Critical Systems
- Sand Piles
- Implementing the Sand Pile
- Heavy-Tailed Distributions
- Fractals
- Pink Noise
- The Sound of Sand
- Reductionism and Holism
- SOC, Causation, and Prediction
- Exercises
- Chapter 9. Agent-Based Models
- Schelling's Model
- Implementation of Schelling's Model
- Segregation
- Sugarscape
- Wealth Inequality
- Implementing Sugarscape
- Migration and Wave Behavior
- Emergence
- Exercises
- Chapter 10. Herds, Flocks, and Traffic Jams
- Traffic Jams
- Random Perturbation
- Boids
- The Boid Algorithm
- Arbitration
- Emergence and Free Will
- Exercises
- Chapter 11. Evolution
- Simulating Evolution
- Fitness Landscape
- Agents
- Simulation
- No Differentiation
- Evidence of Evolution
- Differential Survival
- Mutation
- Speciation
- Summary
- Exercises
- Chapter 12. Evolution of Cooperation
- Prisoner's Dilemma
- The Problem of Nice
- Prisoner's Dilemma Tournaments
- Simulating Evolution of Cooperation
- The Tournament
- The Simulation
- Results
- Conclusions
- Exercises
- Appendix A. Reading List
- Index
- About the Author
- Colophon
System requirements
File format: PDF
Copy-Protection: Adobe-DRM (Digital Rights Management)
System requirements:
- Computer (Windows; MacOS X; Linux): Install the free reader Adobe Digital Editions prior to download (see eBook Help).
- Tablet/smartphone (Android; iOS): Install the free app Adobe Digital Editions or the app PocketBook before downloading (see eBook Help).
- E-reader: Bookeen, Kobo, Pocketbook, Sony, Tolino and many more (only limited: Kindle).
The file format PDF always displays a book page identically on any hardware. This makes PDF suitable for complex layouts such as those used in textbooks and reference books (images, tables, columns, footnotes). Unfortunately, on the small screens of e-readers or smartphones, PDFs are rather annoying, requiring too much scrolling.
This eBook uses Adobe-DRM, a „hard” copy protection. If the necessary requirements are not met, unfortunately you will not be able to open the eBook. You will therefore need to prepare your reading hardware before downloading.
Please note: We strongly recommend that you authorise using your personal Adobe ID after installation of any reading software.
For more information, see our eBook Help page.