457 research outputs found
On computational irreducibility and the predictability of complex physical systems
Using elementary cellular automata (CA) as an example, we show how to
coarse-grain CA in all classes of Wolfram's classification. We find that
computationally irreducible (CIR) physical processes can be predictable and
even computationally reducible at a coarse-grained level of description. The
resulting coarse-grained CA which we construct emulate the large-scale behavior
of the original systems without accounting for small-scale details. At least
one of the CA that can be coarse-grained is irreducible and known to be a
universal Turing machine.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, to be published in PR
The Cultivation of Titan Arum (Amorphophallus titanum) :
One of the most exciting plant species is the Titan Arum, Amorphophallus titanum, which can truly be regarded as a flagship species for botanic gardens. Wild populations suffer from an increasing pressure on their natural habitat, but botanic gardens can play an important role in the ex-situ conservation of the species. The cultivation of A. titanum is not easy but it offers an irresistible challenge for any keen horticulturist. The University of Bonn Botanic Gardens (Germany) has more than seventy years of experience in the cultivation of this giant and the purpose of this paper is to help the botanic garden community to achieve success in the cultivation of this fascinating plant
Thermodynamically self-consistent liquid state theories for systems with bounded potentials
The mean spherical approximation (MSA) can be solved semi-analytically for
the Gaussian core model (GCM) and yields - rather surprisingly - exactly the
same expressions for the energy and the virial equations. Taking advantage of
this semi-analytical framework, we apply the concept of the self-consistent
Ornstein-Zernike approximation (SCOZA) to the GCM: a state-dependent function K
is introduced in the MSA closure relation which is determined to enforce
thermodynamic consistency between the compressibility route and either the
virial or energy route. Utilizing standard thermodynamic relations this leads
to two different differential equations for the function K that have to be
solved numerically. Generalizing our concept we propose an
integro-differential-equation based formulation of the SCOZA which, although
requiring a fully numerical solution, has the advantage that it is no longer
restricted to the availability of an analytic solution for a particular system.
Rather it can be used for an arbitrary potential and even in combination with
other closure relations, such as a modification of the hypernetted chain
approximation.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures, submitted to J. Chem. Phy
Network Automata: Coupling structure and function in real-world networks
We introduce Network Automata, a framework which couples the topological
evolution of a network to its structure. It is useful for dealing with networks
in which the topology evolves according to some specified microscopic rules
and, simultaneously, there is a dynamic process taking place on the network
that both depends on its structure but is also capable of modifying it. It is a
generic framework for modeling systems in which network structure, dynamics,
and function are interrelated. At the practical level, this framework allows
for easy implementation of the microscopic rules involved in such systems. To
demonstrate the approach, we develop a class of simple biologically inspired
models of fungal growth.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, 1 tables. Revised content - surplus text and
figures remove
Towards generalized measures grasping CA dynamics
In this paper we conceive Lyapunov exponents, measuring the rate of separation between two initially close configurations, and Jacobians, expressing the sensitivity of a CA's transition function to its inputs, for cellular automata (CA) based upon irregular tessellations of the n-dimensional Euclidean space. Further, we establish a relationship between both that enables us to derive a mean-field approximation of the upper bound of an irregular CA's maximum Lyapunov exponent. The soundness and usability of these measures is illustrated for a family of 2-state irregular totalistic CA
Coarse-graining of cellular automata, emergence, and the predictability of complex systems
We study the predictability of emergent phenomena in complex systems. Using
nearest neighbor, one-dimensional Cellular Automata (CA) as an example, we show
how to construct local coarse-grained descriptions of CA in all classes of
Wolfram's classification. The resulting coarse-grained CA that we construct are
capable of emulating the large-scale behavior of the original systems without
accounting for small-scale details. Several CA that can be coarse-grained by
this construction are known to be universal Turing machines; they can emulate
any CA or other computing devices and are therefore undecidable. We thus show
that because in practice one only seeks coarse-grained information, complex
physical systems can be predictable and even decidable at some level of
description. The renormalization group flows that we construct induce a
hierarchy of CA rules. This hierarchy agrees well with apparent rule complexity
and is therefore a good candidate for a complexity measure and a classification
method. Finally we argue that the large scale dynamics of CA can be very
simple, at least when measured by the Kolmogorov complexity of the large scale
update rule, and moreover exhibits a novel scaling law. We show that because of
this large-scale simplicity, the probability of finding a coarse-grained
description of CA approaches unity as one goes to increasingly coarser scales.
We interpret this large scale simplicity as a pattern formation mechanism in
which large scale patterns are forced upon the system by the simplicity of the
rules that govern the large scale dynamics.Comment: 18 pages, 9 figure
A new Arum species (Areae, Araceae) from NE Turkey and Georgia
Arum megobrebi is described as a new species of A. subg. Arum from NE Turkey and central S Georgia and illustrated. It takes to 29 the number of species currently recognised for the genus. It is closely related to but easily distinguished from A. maculatum by, in particular, its elongate-cylindrical appendix of the spadix
Shift-Symmetric Configurations in Two-Dimensional Cellular Automata: Irreversibility, Insolvability, and Enumeration
The search for symmetry as an unusual yet profoundly appealing phenomenon,
and the origin of regular, repeating configuration patterns have long been a
central focus of complexity science and physics. To better grasp and understand
symmetry of configurations in decentralized toroidal architectures, we employ
group-theoretic methods, which allow us to identify and enumerate these inputs,
and argue about irreversible system behaviors with undesired effects on many
computational problems. The concept of so-called configuration shift-symmetry
is applied to two-dimensional cellular automata as an ideal model of
computation. Regardless of the transition function, the results show the
universal insolvability of crucial distributed tasks, such as leader election,
pattern recognition, hashing, and encryption. By using compact enumeration
formulas and bounding the number of shift-symmetric configurations for a given
lattice size, we efficiently calculate the probability of a configuration being
shift-symmetric for a uniform or density-uniform distribution. Further, we
devise an algorithm detecting the presence of shift-symmetry in a
configuration.
Given the resource constraints, the enumeration and probability formulas can
directly help to lower the minimal expected error and provide recommendations
for system's size and initialization. Besides cellular automata, the
shift-symmetry analysis can be used to study the non-linear behavior in various
synchronous rule-based systems that include inference engines, Boolean
networks, neural networks, and systolic arrays.Comment: 22 pages, 9 figures, 2 appendice
Computational Modalities of Belousov-Zhabotinsky Encapsulated Vesicles
We present both simulated and partial empirical evidence for the
computational utility of many connected vesicle analogs of an encapsulated
non-linear chemical processing medium. By connecting small vesicles containing
a solution of sub-excitable Belousov-Zhabotinsky (BZ) reaction, sustained and
propagating wave fragments are modulated by both spatial geometry, network
connectivity and their interaction with other waves. The processing ability is
demonstrated through the creation of simple Boolean logic gates and then by the
combination of those gates to create more complex circuits
Boolean Delay Equations: A simple way of looking at complex systems
Boolean Delay Equations (BDEs) are semi-discrete dynamical models with
Boolean-valued variables that evolve in continuous time. Systems of BDEs can be
classified into conservative or dissipative, in a manner that parallels the
classification of ordinary or partial differential equations. Solutions to
certain conservative BDEs exhibit growth of complexity in time. They represent
therewith metaphors for biological evolution or human history. Dissipative BDEs
are structurally stable and exhibit multiple equilibria and limit cycles, as
well as more complex, fractal solution sets, such as Devil's staircases and
``fractal sunbursts``. All known solutions of dissipative BDEs have stationary
variance. BDE systems of this type, both free and forced, have been used as
highly idealized models of climate change on interannual, interdecadal and
paleoclimatic time scales. BDEs are also being used as flexible, highly
efficient models of colliding cascades in earthquake modeling and prediction,
as well as in genetics. In this paper we review the theory of systems of BDEs
and illustrate their applications to climatic and solid earth problems. The
former have used small systems of BDEs, while the latter have used large
networks of BDEs. We moreover introduce BDEs with an infinite number of
variables distributed in space (``partial BDEs``) and discuss connections with
other types of dynamical systems, including cellular automata and Boolean
networks. This research-and-review paper concludes with a set of open
questions.Comment: Latex, 67 pages with 15 eps figures. Revised version, in particular
the discussion on partial BDEs is updated and enlarge
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