Emergence

Notes

Emergence is when the whole is larger than the sum of its parts. It is when the whole has different features that don't exists in the individual units Reductionism, meaning that you can't find it if you look too close, you have to Zoom out. Those features are created from the synergy and interaction between the different components. A level of Complexity is added from combining them together, in terms of not only complex structure, but also complex outputs or capabilities.

You cant "see" the emergence , similar to a state that supposably is nothing more than people and buildings, but somehow it exists, it has a "soul", a history, a purpose and intention. Even though it's citizens come and go, the state as an emerging identity will remain Theseus ship.

However, you can understand emergent properties better once you look at the function each part is performing as part of a greater system.

Another example is our consciousness. When we look at each individual neuron, we see only a biological robot operating based on chemistry and electrical signals, without free will. However as a whole we often do tend to claim that we have free will, so where does it come from?

Similarly, the advantages of a good knowledge system stem not from the quality of each individual note (although that helps), but on the connections between them. It's hard to design such systems in advance, because at first the emerging property will not exist, it can't be created beforehand, it is the result of a good, interconnected system.

Although it is based on connections, emergent properties are based not only on the number of connections, but also their strength. a system that is too complex and has too many parts might reduce the strength of these connections, so sometimes less is more.

Visual

Overview

🔼Topic:: PKM (MOC) 🔼Topic:: Free Will (MOC) ◀Origin:: Kurzgesagt 🔗Link:: https://www.youtube.com/embed/16W7c0mb-rE