Introduction to Complexity

Melanie Mitchell

SFI course: Introduction to Complexity 2017

In this course you'll learn about the tools used by scientists to understand complex systems. The topics you'll learn about include dynamics, chaos, fractals, information theory, self-organization, agent-based modeling, and networks. You’ll also get a sense of how these topics fit together to help explain how complexity arises and evolves in nature, society, and technology. There are no prerequisites. You don't need a science or math background to take this introductory course; it simply requires an interest in the field and the willingness to participate in a hands-on approach to the subject.

Syllabus

1. What is Complexity?
2. Dynamics and Chaos
3. Fractals
4. Information, Order, and Randomness
5. Genetic Algorithms
6. Cellular Automata
7. Models of Biological Self-Organization
8. Models of Cooperation in Social Systems
9. Networks
10. Scaling in Biology and Society