Twitter Log
- 12:09 Beginning a 3-day meeting titled Complex Adaptive Systems Thinking in the Study of History, sponsored by Santa Fe Institute.
- 12:43 David Krakauer is talking about meta-history. I don't understand it yet, but I'm naturally attracted to meta-anything.
- 12:50 Now he's using math equations to talk about the evolution of biological immune systems. Really clears things up for me.
- 13:55 Ok, now Alfred Crosby is talking about the use of psychoactive substances and their impact throughout history.
- 14:27 "The use of drugs is not maladaptive in a species where social solidarity yields great dividends" -- from audience
- 14:39 Interesting, apparently there is a novelty-seeking gene. Stable societies like the Chinese have lower incidence.
- 20:08 David Christian: vodka consumption represented 40% of state revenue in 19th century Russia.
- 20:19 David Christian was the first to teach Big History, which covers large scale histories of the past.
- 20:40 Murray Gell-Mann just gave a general definition of complexity, which was so simple that I'm having trouble recalling it.
- 21:04 Amazing conversation, historians arguing with physicists about complexity.
- 21:14 Murray Gell-Mann just said narrative is the best way to describe quantum mechanics, so I think historians are winning the argument.
- 21:28 Please don't ask me to explain anything Murray says. He is simply much smarter than me.
- 00:35 Watching video created by Seesmic community in support of FARC hostage Ingrid Betancourt: tinyurl.com/3689vm
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