An Introduction to Complex Systems: Society, Ecology, and Nonlinear Dynamics by Paul Fieguth

by Paul Fieguth

This undergraduate text explores a variety of large-scale phenomena - global warming, ice ages, water, poverty - and uses these case studies as a motivation to explore nonlinear dynamics, power-law statistics, and complex systems. Although the detailed mathematical descriptions of these topics can be challenging, the consequences of a system being nonlinear, power-law, or complex are in fact quite accessible. This book blends a tutorial approach to the mathematical aspects of complex systems together with a complementary narrative on the global/ecological/societal implications of such systems. Nearly all engineering undergraduate courses focus on mathematics and systems which are small scale, linear, and Gaussian. Unfortunately there is not a single large-scale ecological or social phenomenon that is scalar, linear, and Gaussian. This book offers students insights to better understand the large-scale problems facing the world and to realize that these cannot be solved by a single, narrow academic field or perspective. Instead, the book seeks to emphasize understanding, concepts, and ideas, in a way that is mathematically rigorous, so that the concepts do not feel vague, but not so technical that the mathematics get in the way. The book is intended for undergraduate students in a technical domain such as engineering, computer science, physics, mathematics, and environmental studies.

Genres: Biology

Hardcover

Reviews

[Lorien · Rating 5 out of 5]

For a student who is reading the text to accompany Professor Fieguth's course, this is a five-star experience. It serves up an elegant introduction into the applied science of complexity, specifically with respect to complex societal and ecological problems.

The mathematical theory requires an undergraduate-level understanding of linear algebra to decipher, but this is appropriate for the audience of the text. For those who may be bogged down by the math, Prof. Fieguth gives ample examples, case studies, and suggestions for further reading that would be enough to allow a reader with no post-secondary education to grasp the big ideas.

It's beautiful, it's elegant, and the ideas are filling a void that I didn't know I had in my SYDE education. We've gotten a bit of systems theory in our design courses, but no course and text has so directly given us the theory and immediately applied it with the technical rigor we would expect of an engineering elective. If you're a systems student whose academic palate is remotely intrigued by flavours such as climate dynamics, urban sprawl, remote sensing, or ecological nutrient flow, accept this as your holy text for one winter term and you won't regret it.

Professor Fieguth, thank you for your work on the course, on the text, and in the SYDE department!