Complexity and Evolution

6 ECTS credits
150 h study time

Offer 1 with catalog number 1023509BNW for working students in the 1st semester at a (B) Bachelor - advanced level.

Semester

1st semester

Enrollment based on exam contract

Impossible

Grading method

Grading (scale from 0 to 20)

Can retake in second session

Yes

Enrollment Requirements

NOTE: registration for this course is only possible for working students. Day students can register for courses whose code ends with an R. At Inschrijven / studentenadministratie@vub.be you must be registered at the VUB as a working student for the current academic year.

Taught in

English

Faculty

Faculty of Languages & Humanities

Department

History, Archaeology, Arts, Philosophy and Ethics

Educational team

Francis Heylighen (course titular)

Activities and contact hours

26 contact hours Lecture
60 contact hours Independent or External Form of Study

Course Content

The course proposes an introduction to the basic concepts and principles of the evolutionary-systemic world view, in an as simple and clear possible manner. A review is presented of recent approaches in a variety of disciplines that offer new insights into the evolution, self-organization and adaptation of complex systems: systems theory, cybernetics, complex adaptive systems, chaos, biology and others. These approaches replace the Newtonian, mechanistic worldview by a paradigm, in which the emphasis is on creative processes, i.e. the spontaneous appearance of novel systems, structures and functions. This generally gives rise to an increase in complexity. The course will present various examples of such processes from different domains, and focus on the underlying concepts and principles that allow us to understand how complexity evolves. These include natural selection, variation, self-organisation, positive and negative feedback, goal-directedness, integration and differentiation, order and disorder, hierarchy, entropy, information and fitness. These concepts will be explained in an as clear and general possible way, using concrete illustrations, while technical and mathematical aspects will only be mentioned insofar that they are strictly necessary for understanding. Finally, the course will show how the evolutionary mechanisms that generate complex systems can offer us a foundation for an integrated worldview that is neither theistic nor mechanistic. By showing how the major transitions in evolution have led to emerging levels of complexity, it becomes clear how humanity fits into the larger scheme of evolution, and which forces are likely to steer future developments.

Course material

Digital course material (Required) : Cursusnota's, Francis Heylighen, http://pespmc1.vub.ac.be/books/Complexity-Evolution.pdf
Handbook (Recommended) : Complexity, The Emerging Science at the Edge of Order and Chaos, Waldrop M. M, Simon & Schuste, 9780671872342, 1992
Handbook (Recommended) : The Blind Watchmaker, Richard Dawkins, Penguin Books Ltd, 9780141026169, 2006
Handbook (Recommended) : Out of Control, The New Biology of Machines, Social Systems, & the Economic World, Kevin Kelly, Basic Books, 9780201483406, 1995
Handbook (Recommended) : The Cosmic Blueprint, New Discoveries in Nature's Creative Ability to Order the Universe, Paul Davies, Templeton Foundation Press,U.S, 9781932031669, 2004
Handbook (Recommended) : Le Macroscope, Vers Une Vision, Joël de Rosnay, Contemporary French Fiction, 9782757841136, 2014
Handbook (Recommended) : Order out of Chaos, Man's New Dialogue with Nature, Prigogine & Stengers, Verso, 9781786631008, 2017

Additional info

See http://pespmc1.vub.ac.be/CLEA/CompEvCursus.html There exist detailed lecture notes (150 p.) with figures, exercises, bibliography, index, etc. The text can be downloaded for free from the course web site on Canvas
Complementary study material:

Some suggested books:
Richard Dawkins: The Blind Watchmaker, The Selfish Gene
Kevin Kelly: Out of Control
Paul Davies: The Cosmic Blueprint
Joël de Rosnay: The Macroscope
Prigogine & Stengers: Order out of Chaos
Waldrop M. M: Complexity: The Emerging Science at the Edge of Order
and Chaos

Learning Outcomes

Algemene competenties

* Achievement of a deep, intuitive understanding of the principal concepts and principles developed in the different disciplines that study the evolution of complex systems
* Integrating these different ideas into a coherent "world view" that can replace the Newtonian paradigm

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 100% of the final mark.

Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

Oral exam with a relative weight of 1 which comprises 100% of the final mark.

Note: Traditional oral exam, approx. 25 min/student. The students will be asked to deepen autonomously a subject related to the course, and to summarize this in 5-10 minutes. In addition, the exam will mainly test the insight into the fundamental concepts, rather than detailed fact knowledge

Additional info regarding evaluation

Traditional oral examination, about 25 min. per student. The students are required to investigate independently a subject related to the course, and to summarise this in 5-10 min. The exam will further focus on their understanding of the fundamental concepts, rather than on detailed factual knowledge.

Allowed unsatisfactory mark

The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context