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News Items

Research

Community Outreach: Our goal is to bring dynamics to a broader audience.

We are in the final stages of creating a dynamical toolbox to post on the internet that will allow researchers who are interested in dynamics to explore their data without programming the algorithms themselves.

Right now, we are working on the following components:

  • attractor reconstruction

  • largest Lyapunov exponent

  • Hurst exponents

  • correlation dimension (PD2i)

  • recurrence quantification analysis (RQA)

  • detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA)

In addition, we are creating a generic surrogate analysis program to allow for a test of the null hypothesis that observed patterns are a function of the brevity of the data set, etc.

Grants: IGERT for Complex Adaptive Systems

We are a part of a large effort at ASU to create a training program in the field of Complex Adaptive Systems. In addition to encouraging multidisciplinary training at ASU —in all of the fields in which complexity plays a role — there is an international component that will allow students to pursue internships in other countries.

Dynamics of Perception, Action, & Cognition (DPAC) Seminar

We are enjoying our debates on nature of mind this semester as we read Tony Chemero’s Radical Embodied Cognitive Science alongside Fodor’s Language of Thought. We expect Tony, but not Jerry, to visit us in the Fall.

Speakers

We welcomed Stephen Guerin — Founder and Director, Santa Fe Complex (www.sfcomplex.org) — to ASU this month. Stephen demonstrated the use of his simtable to solve problems in a collaborative environment using the principles of ecological psychology and complexity theory. The simtable was fascinating: it looks like a landscape made out of sand but allowed us to test the effect of different control parameters in real time. The entire thing can be broadcast electronically to allow groups in remote locations to collaborate. Among its many uses: fire fighting large wildfires.



We have invited Tony Chemero to visit us in September. We are reading his book, Radical Embodied Cognitive Science (published 2009) in our dynamics seminar (see DPAC, above) and are looking forward to meeting the author in person. An added advantage for Eric and Nia Amazeen is that Tony is a faculty member at their beloved alma mater, Franklin & Marshall College. Bring us a taste of Lancaster, Tony!