Self-organization of matter is observed in every context and on all scales, from the nanoscale of quantum fields and subatomic particles to the macroscale of galaxy superclusters. This book analyzes the wide range of patterns of organization present in nature, highlighting their similarities rather than their differences. This unconventional approach results in an illuminating read which should be part of any Physics student's background.

"The motions of the cosmic bodies, the laws of chemistry and physics, the orchestration of the parts of a living cell, the existence of animal societies, and the notion of order conceived by our minds impresses on us that our Universe has a tendency to form interacting and cooperative organizations. Yet, of all levels of ordering, we know next to nothing about the chemical processes that became self-maintaining and self-replicating, i.e., became alive. This Colloquium, arranged so that a number of workers in Chemical Evolution may present and discuss their views and their research, will consist of four sessions: 1) on the systems and conditions that will allow self-organization; 2) and 3) concerning the same kind of molecules that are at the center of the life processes today, there will be talks on the self-organization of peptides and nucleotides. In session 4) we will hear of the probability that life needed to become organized within the boundaries of a cell. Together with the recent COSPAR sessions on the "Minimal Requirements for the Emergence of Life" and on "The Limits of Life," the Transactions of this Colloquium should represent a substantial part of the State of the Art."--

This book presents the general concepts of self-organized spatio-temporal ordering processes. These concepts are demonstrated via prototypical examples of recent advances in materials science. Particular emphasis is on nano scale soft matter in physics, chemistry, biology and biomedicine. The questions addressed embrace a broad spectrum of complex nonlinear phenomena, ranging from self-assembling near the thermodynamical equilibrium to dissipative structure formation far from equilibrium. Their mutual interplay gives rise to increasing degrees of hierarchical order. Analogues are pointed out, differences characterized and efforts are made to reveal common features in the mechanistic description of those phenomena.

During the past twenty years, a broad spectrum of theories and methods have been developed in physics, chemistry and molecular biology to explain structure formation in complex systems. These methods have been applied to many different fields such as economics, sociology and town planning, and this book reflects the interdisciplinary nature of complexity and self-organisation. The main focus is on the emergence of collective phenomena from individual or microscopic interactions. Presents a wide-ranging overview from fundamental aspects of the evolution of complexity, to applications in biology, ecology, sociology, economics, and urban structure formation.

Long awaited proceedings of an important conference on the anthropic prininciple.

'Given the excellent historical context in which Corey frames his case and the rational manner in which he closes off the loopholes, the stage is set for paradigm shift in the secular area. I highly recommend this book.'-Hugh Ross, Astronomer

Self-organization constitutes one of the most important theoretical debates in contemporary life sciences. The present book explores the relevance of the concept of self-organization and its impact on such scientific fields as: immunology, neurosciences, ecology and theories of evolution. Historical aspects of the issue are also broached. Intuitions relative to self-organization can be found in the works of such key western philosophical figures as Aristotle, Leibniz and Kant. Interacting with more recent authors and cybernetics, self-organization represents a notion in keeping with the modern world's discovery of radical complexity. The themes of teleology and emergence are analyzed by philosophers of sciences with regards to the issues of modelization and scientific explanation. The implications of self-organization for life sciences are here approached from an interdisciplinary angle, revealing the notion as already rewarding and full of promise for the future.

For centuries, humankind has believed that the world with all its form and structure was created by supernatural forces. In recent decades science has shaken these beliefs with the discovery of the exciting possibility of a self-created and self-creating world — of self-organization. Synergetics endeavours to reveal the intimate mechanisms of self-organization. The transitions from chaos to order, the nature of self-organization, the various approaches to it and certain philosophical inferences are outlined. Synergetics thus represents a remarkable confluence of many strands of thought, and has become a paradigm in modern culture. This book exposes the reader to striking new vistas in physics and mathematics, chemistry and biology, social sciences and philosophy — all interlocked around the concept of self-organization.

This book offers an interdisciplinary theoretical approach based on non-equilibrium statistical thermodynamics and control theory for mathematically modeling shock-induced out-of-equilibrium processes in condensed matter. The book comprises two parts. The first half of the book establishes the theoretical approach, reviewing fundamentals of non-equilibrium statistical thermodynamics and control theory of adaptive systems. The latter half applies the presented approach to a problem on shock-induced plane wave propagation in condensed matter. The result successfully reproduces the observed feature of waveform propagation in experiments, which conventional continuous mechanics cannot access. Further, the consequent stress–strain relationships derived with relaxation and inertia effect in elastic–plastic transition determines material properties in transient regimes.