We have only recently begun to recognize it, yet it exists at every level of our lived experience. It is fast becoming clear that our lives revolve around the powers of emergence. An ant colony behaves with an intelligence no particular ant possesses; a brain is conscious although no particular brain cell is; a city develops districts and neighbourhoods no planner could impose. In each case, complex problems are solved by a profusion of relatively simple elements. Order arrives from the bottom up, not top down. Such systems ...
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We have only recently begun to recognize it, yet it exists at every level of our lived experience. It is fast becoming clear that our lives revolve around the powers of emergence. An ant colony behaves with an intelligence no particular ant possesses; a brain is conscious although no particular brain cell is; a city develops districts and neighbourhoods no planner could impose. In each case, complex problems are solved by a profusion of relatively simple elements. Order arrives from the bottom up, not top down. Such systems display emergent behaviour: the movement from low-level rules to higher-level sophistication. Media, technology and cultural critic Steven Johnson ranges from computer games that simulate living ecology to the guild system of 12th-century Florence; from the initial cell division that marks the very beginning of life to software that lets you listen to the sound of your own brain. The connections between these systems are not the links of poetic metaphor. Everywhere the same laws are obeyed, the same swarm logic is at work. Johnson unearths a secret history of decentralized thinking, looking at those like Adam Smith, Friedrich Engels and Alan Turing who contributed to the study of self-organization long before this became a recognized science. But most of all Johnson pursues emergence in the present, investigating the software that will soon allow artificial emergence to transform our media, bringing sweeping cultural and political change in its wake. This compelling and revelatory book is rich with insights into that future. "Emergence" allows us to witness the exhilarating arrival and sudden ascendancy of a potent new idea.
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Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, to cart. $1.88, good condition, Sold by ZBK Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Woodland Park, NJ, UNITED STATES, published 2001 by Scribner.
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Pages and cover are intact. Used book in good and clean conditions. Limited notes marks and highlighting may be present. May show signs of normal shelf wear and bends on edges. Item may be missing CDs or access codes. May include library marks.
Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities to cart. $2.19, good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Baltimore rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Halethorpe, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2001 by Allen Lane.
Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, to cart. $2.21, good condition, Sold by Dream Books Co. rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Denver, CO, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Scribner.
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Good. Minimal signs of wear. Corners and cover may show wear. May contain highlighting and or writing. May be missing dust jacket. May not include supplemental materials. May be a former library book.
Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, to cart. $2.21, fair condition, Sold by Dream Books Co. rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Denver, CO, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Scribner.
Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, to cart. $2.26, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Atlanta rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Brownstown, MI, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Scribner Book Company.
Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, to cart. $2.26, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Baltimore rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Halethorpe, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Scribner Book Company.
Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, to cart. $2.26, good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Reno rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Reno, NV, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Scribner Book Company.
Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, to cart. $2.27, good condition, Sold by Goodwill of Colorado rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Scribner Book Company.
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This item is in overall good condition. Covers and dust jackets are intact but may have minor wear including slight curls or bends to corners as well as cosmetic blemishes including stickers. Pages are intact but may have minor highlighting/ writing. Binding is intact; however, spine may have slight wear overall. Digital codes may not be included and have not been tested to be redeemable and/or active. Minor shelf wear overall. Please note that all items are donated goods and are in used condition. Orders shipped Monday through Friday! Your purchase helps put people to work and learn life skills to reach their full potential. Orders shipped Monday through Friday. Your purchase helps put people to work and learn life skills to reach their full potential. Thank you!
Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities to cart. $2.29, good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Dallas rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Penguin Group.
Add this copy of Emergence: the Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities to cart. $2.31, good condition, Sold by Seattle Goodwill rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Seattle, WA, UNITED STATES, published 2002 by Penguin Books Ltd.
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May have some shelf-wear due to normal use. Your purchase funds free job training and education in the greater Seattle area. Thank you for supporting Goodwill's nonprofit mission!