4 New Complexity-Related Books

"Fundamentals of Computational Swarm Intelligence" by Andries P. Engelbrecht introduces the reader to the mathematical models of social insects collective behaviour, and shows how they can be used in solving optimization problems.

"Perfect Order" by J. Stephen Lansing is an ethnographic & and historical study of the complexity of Bali and the emergent phenomena - in the sense of self-organizing systems - in that society and its environment.

"Rhythms of the Brain" by Gyrogy Buzsaki discusses the way in which the brain is a complex adaptive, self-organizing system and that it has an extraordinary capacity for generating waves that organize its activity. His emphasis on brain waves is reminiscent of the Adaptive Resonance Theory (really a hypothesis) of the Mind.

"The Swarm" by Frank Schatzing has been a best-selling science-fiction novel in Germany; it depicts a struggle between good and evil, with both human and sub-oceanic forces battling for control of the waters. At stake (as usual) is the survival of the Earth's fragile ecology -- and ultimately, the survival of the human race itself. The style is reminiscent of Jules Verne - with just the right amount of hard-science and human interest to keep one going.