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This is a topic of interest of mine, and something I've spent a lot of time experimentally investigating. I can add more detail later, but for now, see https://slackermanz.com/understanding-multiple-neighborhood-...
Is "emergence" even a useful concept? I personally don't see how it's distinct from simple consequence. Sure, you may not be able to predict certain more distant outcomes of a system from the set of initial conditions, but the immediate next state is always predictable from the present state. It seems "emergence" is not a property of phenomena but merely a statement of our (in)ability to predict them at a distance.
Examples: principles of DNA information processing emerges from lower principles in chemistry.
This has been a topic of interest for me for almost a decade so far. See also: non-linear dynamics, dynamical systems The study of Complexity in the US Sciences is fairly recent, with the notable kickoff of the Santa Fe Institute [1]. They have all the resources there, from classes to scientific conferences. A few book recommendations I've picked up over the years: - Lewin, Complexity: Life at the Edge of Chaos [2] (…
I've been meaning to look more deeply into the field. I read a popular science book on it in the past and always desired to ascertain a more formal understanding.
If you want to read more about how this works, I'd recommend Stuart Kauffman's "The origins of order". Be warned, it's not light reading, it's basically his PhD student's and his research, written up as a book, it is engaging though, and he leads you gently through the concepts - you do have to master one chapter before getting to the next though. Having said that, it does show how chaos and order interact with each…
I haven't read a book in at least 3 years
Many great recommendations in the comments here about on emergent order in complex systems -- does anyone have recommendations for reading about how such systems de-organize?