Gary William Flake

The Computational Beauty of Nature

Computer Explorations of Fractals, Chaos,
Complex Systems, and Adaptation
A Bradford Book
The MIT Press
Cambridge, Massachusetts
London, England
Contents
Preface xiii
How to Read This Book xiv
Dealing with Difficult Subjects xv
Personal Motivation xvi
Acknowledgments xvi
1 Introduction 1
1.1 Simplicity and Complexity 2
1.2 The Convergence of the Sciences
1.3 The Silicon Laboratory 6
I Computation 9
2 Number Systems and Infinity 11
2.1 Introduction to Number Properties 12
2.2 Counting Numbers 14
2.3 Rational Numbers 15
2.4 Irrational Numbers 16
2.5 Further Reading 22
3 Computability and Incomputability 23
3.1 Godelization 25
3.2 Models of Computation 26
3.3 Lisp and Stutter 30
3.4 Equivalence and Time Complexity 36
3.5 Universal Computation and Decision Problems 40
3.6 Incomputability 42
3.7 Number Sets Revisited 45
3.8 Further Reading 48
viii Contents
4 Postscript: Computation 51
4.1 Godel's Incompleteness Result 52
4.2 Incompleteness versus Incomputability 53
4.3 Discrete versus Continuous 55
4.4 Incomputability versus Computability 56
4.5 Further Reading 57
II Fractals 59
5 Self-Similarity and Fractal Geometry 61
5.1 The Cantor Set 62
5.2 The Koch Curve 65
5.3 The Peano Curve 66
5.4 Fractional Dimensions 67
5.5 Random Fractals in Nature and Brownian Motion 71
5.6 Further Exploration 75
5.7 Further Reading 76
6 L-Systems and Fractal Growth 77
6.1 Production Systems 78
6.2 Turtle Graphics 80
6.3 Further Exploration 81
6.4 Further Reading 92
7 Afflne Transformation Fractals 93
7.1 A Review of Linear Algebra 94
7.2 Composing Affine Linear Operations 96
7.3 The Multiple Reduction Copy Machine Algorithm 98
7.4 Iterated Functional Systems 103
7.5 Further Exploration 105
7.6 Further Reading 106
8 The Mandelbrot Set and Julia Sets 111
8.1 Iterative Dynamical Systems 112
8.2 Complex Numbers 112
8.3 The Mandelbrot Set 114
8.4 The M-Set and Computability 118
8.5 The M-Set as the Master Julia Set 120
8.6 Other Mysteries of the M-Set 125
8.7 Further Exploration 125
Contents
8.8 Further Reading 127
Postscript: Fractals 129
9.1 Algorithmic Regularity as Simplicity 130
9.2 Stochastic Irregularity as Simplicity 132
9.3 Effective Complexity 134
9.4 Further Reading 136
III Chaos 137
10 Nonlinear Dynamics in Simple Maps 139
10.1 The Logistic Map 141
10.2 Stability and Instability 144
10.3 Bifurcations and Universality 148
10.4 Prediction, Layered Pastry, and Information Loss 150
10.5 The Shadowing Lemma 153
10.6 Characteristics of Chaos 154
10.7 Further Exploration 156
10.8 Further Reading 158
11 Strange Attractors 159
11.1 The Henon Attractor 160
11.2 A Brief Introduction to Calculus 165
11.3 The Lorenz Attractor 168
11.4 The Mackey-Glass System 173
11.5 Further Exploration 176
11.6 Further Reading 180
12 Producer-Consumer Dynamics 181
12.1 Producer-Consumer Interactions 182
12.2 Predator-Prey Systems 183
12.3 Generalized Lotka-Volterra Systems 186
12.4 Individual-Based Ecology 187
12.5 Unifying Themes 197
12.6 Further Exploration 198
12.7 Further Reading 201
13 Controlling Chaos 203
13.1 Taylor Expansions 204
13.2 Vector Calculus 205
13.3 Inner and Outer Vector Product 207
Contents
13.4 Eigenvectors, Eigenvalues, and Basis 209
13.5 OGY Control 211
- 13.6 Controlling the Henon Map 215
13.7 Further Exploration 218
13.8 Further Reading 219
14 Postscript: Chaos 221
14.1 Chaos and Randomness 222
14.2 Randomness and Incomputability 224
14.3 Incomputability and Chaos 226
14.4 Further Reading 227
IV Complex Systems 229
15 Cellular Automata 231
15.1 One-Dimensional CA 232
15.2 Wolfram's CA Classification 236
15.3 Langton's Lambda Parameter 242
15.4 Conway's Game of Life 245
15.5 Natural CA-like Phenomena 251
15.6 Further Exploration 255
15.7 Further Reading 258
16 Autonomous Agents and Self-Organization 261
16.1 Termites 262
16.2 Virtual Ants 264
16.3 Flocks, Herds, and Schools 270
16.4 Unifying Themes 275
16.5 Further Exploration 276
16.6 Further Reading 278
17 Competition and Cooperation 281
17.1 Game Theory and Zero-Sum Games 282
17.2 Nonzero-Sum Games and Dilemmas 288
17.3 Iterated Prisoner's Dilemma 293
17.4 Stable Strategies and Other Considerations 295
17.5 Ecological and Spatial Worlds 297
17.6 Final Thoughts 303
17.7 Further Exploration 303
17.8 Further Reading 304
Contents
18 Natural and Analog Computation 307
18.1 Artificial Neural Networks, 309
18.2 Associative Memory and Hebbian Learning 312
18.3 Recalling Letters 316
18.4 Hopfield" Networks and Cost Optimization 318
18.5 Unifying Themes 324
18.6 Further Exploration 325
18.7 Further Reading 326
19 Postscript: Complex Systems 327
19.1 Phase Transitions in Networks 328
19.2 Phase Transitions in Computation 332
19.3 Phase Transitions and Criticality 334
19.4 Further Reading 336
V Adaptation 337
20 Genetics and Evolution 339
20.1 Biological Adaptation 340
20.2 Heredity as Motivation for Simulated Evolution 342
20.3 Details of a Genetic Algorithm 343
20.4 A Sampling of GA Encodings 348
20.5 Schemata and Implicit Parallelism 353
20.6 Other Evolutionary Inspirations 355
20.7 Unifying Themes 356
20.8 Further Exploration 358
20.9 Further Reading 360
21 Classifier Systems 361
21.1 Feedback and Control 363
21.2 Production, Expert, and Classifier Systems 364
21.3 The Zeroth Level Classifier System 370
21.4 Experiments with ZCS 373
21.5 Further Exploration 379
21.6 Further Reading 380
22 Neural Networks and Learning 383
22.1 Pattern Classification and the Perceptron 385
22.2 Linear Inseparability 390
22.3 Multilayer Perceptrons 392
Contents
22.4 Backpropagation 393
22.5 Function Approximation, 398
22.6 Internal Representations 404
22.7 Other Applications 409
22.8 Unifying Themes 410
22.9 Further Exploration 411
22.10 Further Reading 413
23 Postscript: Adaptation 415
23.1 Models and Search Methods 416
23.2 Search Methods and Environments 419
23.3 Environments and Models 422
23.4 Adaptation and Computation 423
23.5 Further Reading 424
Epilogue 425
24 Duality and Dichotomy 427
24.1 Web of Connections 428
24.2 Interfaces to Hierarchies 429
24.3 Limitations on Knowledge 431
Source Code Notes 435
Glossary 443
Bibliography 469
Index 483