what is the concept that as you level up in complexity there are attributes not attainable at the lower levels
Copilot said:
The concept you’re describing is often referred to as emergence in systems theory and complexity science.
What is Emergence?
Emergence is the phenomenon where higher levels of complexity exhibit properties or behaviors that do not exist at lower levels and cannot be fully explained by the sum of the parts. These new attributes arise from the interactions and relationships between components as the system becomes more complex.
Examples of Emergence
Biology: Individual cells don’t have consciousness, but when organized into a brain, consciousness emerges.
Physics: Water has properties like fluidity and wetness that hydrogen and oxygen atoms alone do not possess.
Economics: Market trends and collective behaviors emerge from individual transactions.
Non-reducibility: Higher-level properties cannot be fully predicted by analyzing lower-level components.
Novelty: New behaviors or attributes appear at higher levels.
Interconnectedness: These properties arise from interactions, not isolated parts.
Would you like me to:
✅ Explain why emergence happens in terms of complexity theory? ✅ Compare it to related concepts like synergy and holism? ✅ Or give real-world examples in business intelligence and analytics (since that’s your field)?
You said:
Explain emergence in complexity theory
Copilot said:
In complexity theory, emergence refers to the appearance of novel properties or behaviors at higher levels of organization that cannot be fully explained by the properties of individual components at lower levels. These emergent properties arise from the interactions and relationships among parts within a system.
Core Ideas of Emergence in Complexity Theory
Non-Linearity Complex systems are not just the sum of their parts. Interactions create feedback loops, amplifying or dampening effects, leading to unexpected outcomes.
Self-Organization Systems often organize themselves without a central controller. Patterns emerge spontaneously from local interactions (e.g., flocking behavior in birds).
Novelty Higher-level properties (e.g., consciousness, ecosystems, economies) are qualitatively different from lower-level components and cannot be predicted by reductionist analysis.
Irreducibility You cannot fully understand emergent properties by studying components in isolation. The whole exhibits behaviors that parts alone do not.
Examples in Complexity Theory
Physics: Temperature and pressure emerge from molecular motion.
Biology: Life emerges from chemical interactions; consciousness emerges from neural networks.
Social Systems: Culture and norms emerge from individual behaviors.
Technology: Internet traffic patterns emerge from millions of independent user actions.
Why Does Emergence Happen?
Interactions matter more than components.
Complex adaptive systems evolve through feedback, adaptation, and co-evolution.
Scale and connectivity introduce new dynamics that were absent at smaller scales.
Would you like me to:
✅ Create a visual diagram showing how emergent properties arise across levels? ✅ Or write a short summary comparing emergence to reductionism and holism? ✅ Or give business intelligence examples of emergence (like how insights emerge from data aggregation)?
You said:
Create a visual diagram showing how emergent properties arise across levels?
Copilot said:
Here’s a visual representation of emergence across levels of complexity:
Level 1: Basic components (dots)
Level 2: Components form a structure
Level 3: Structures create patterns
Level 4: Patterns give rise to emergent properties (e.g., intelligence, consciousness, market behavior)
The 64-acre project is designed to transform the former mall site into a walkable urban village that integrates light rail access with housing, entertainment, dining and retail. (File graphics/DigitalFreePress)
Concord Wilshire Capital has completed demolition of the former Metrocenter Mall and named Oakwood Homes as the exclusive residential builder for The Metropolitan, an $850 million mixed-use development in Phoenix.
The 64-acre project is designed to transform the former mall site into a walkable urban village that integrates light rail access with housing, entertainment, dining and retail, according to a press release.
“We are pleased to announce that we have selected Oakwood Homes, a division of Clayton Homes and a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, as our exclusive residential builder and partner for The Metropolitan project,” said Nate Sirang, president of Concord Wilshire, in a prepared statement. “Their values, resources and design flexibility align with our goals and the needs of today’s housing market.”
Construction is scheduled to begin in April 2026 for three of the five planned residential communities, with the remaining two and the retail district starting in April 2027. Planned residential communities include:
Terra Court: 144 townhomes near the light rail, priced from the low $400,000s. All units have been pre-sold.
Luna Villas: 314 townhomes starting in the low $500,000s. Half of the units have been pre-sold.
Levante Apartments: A 350-unit multifamily project developed by Concord Wilshire and Hines, also fully pre-sold. A shared parking structure will serve both the apartments and retail center.
Brava: 290 premium townhomes, with construction beginning in April 2027 and prices starting in the low $600,000s.
“Oakwood Homes is thrilled to partner with Concord Wilshire in constructing the residential townhome communities at The Metropolitan,” said Ryan Smith, chief operating officer of Oakwood Homes. “The communities will feature a blend of Spanish Colonial and Contemporary Mediterranean design elements. We look forward to delivering the finished townhomes efficiently.”
Diversified Partners, a Scottsdale-based commercial and retail real estate firm, is leading development of The Loop at The Metropolitan, a retail and entertainment district. The Loop will include 116,000 square feet of boutique retail, rooftop restaurants, an event center, park plaza, live music venues, a splash pad and a weekly farmers market. It will also feature The Track at the Loop, a landscaped pedestrian and bike pathway connecting the development to nearby transit lines.
“The Loop will be where The Metropolitan comes to life,” said Walt Brown, CEO of Diversified Partners. “It’s not just about shopping or dining—it’s about creating a sense of place where people want to be.”
The project is led by Concord Wilshire in partnership with TLG Investment Partners, a Fort Lauderdale-based firm led by Leland Pillsbury and Christopher Nieberding, and CDS International Holdings, a family office led by Bill Milmoe.
From Latin deservire (to serve zealously). Earliest documented use: 1297.
NOTES:
This word survives almost entirely inside the phrase just deserts, meaning punishment or reward that fits the deed. Despite appearances, this has nothing to do with cakes, or arid landscapes. In movies, after a lifetime of crime, villains often get their just deserts. In real life, they get elected.
The world may be in disarray, but at least we can keep the language straight:
desert (di-ZUHRT), as in “to receive just deserts” from Latin deservire (to serve zealously)
desert (di-ZUHRT), as in “to desert the army” from Latin deserere (to abandon)
desert (DEZ-uhrt), as in “the Sahara” from Latin deserere (to abandon)
dessert (di-ZUHRT), as in “fat-free dessert” from French desservir (to clear the table)
dissert (di-SUHRT), as in “to speak or write at length” from Latin disserere (to arrange, examine)
USAGE:
“[Carol Burnett’s] favorites starred Jimmy Stewart, and ‘the bad guys always got their just deserts’.” Julieanne Smolinski; Whatever Happened to Fun?; Harper’s Bazaar (New York); Mar 2024.
The Golden Girls used many nonsensical, humorous words from her fictional hometown of St. Olaf, Minnesota, often describing complex emotions or situations with unique terms like "garconanokin" (a person you don't want to share with) or "tutenbobels" (butt cheeks), blending made-up words with slightly real Scandinavian-sounding roots, like "vanskapskaka" (friendship cake). These unique phrases, often nonsensical gibberish or descriptive, became a hallmark of her character.
Examples of Rose's St. Olaf Words:
Garconanokin: Someone undesirable; literally, the moment dog poop turns white.
Kaflügenachen: Someone who parks in a handicapped spot without a permit.
Origin & Meaning: These words weren't real Scandinavian words but were invented for the show, inspired by Norwegian-American culture, to reflect Rose's naive yet detailed view of her small town. They added to the show's humor and defined her character.
Beksiński made his paintings and drawings in what he called either a Baroque or a Gothic manner. His creations were made mainly in two periods. The first period of work is generally considered to contain expressionistic colour, with a strong style of "utopian realism" and surreal architecture. The second period contained more abstract style, with the main features of formalism.[1]
Beksiński was stabbed to death at his Warsawapartment on February 21, 2005, by a 19-year-old acquaintance from Wołomin, reportedly because Beksiński refused to lend him money.[2]
Life
Sculpture, 1960
Zdzisław Beksiński was born in Sanok, southern Poland. He studied architecture at Kraków Polytechnic in 1947, finishing his studies in 1952.[3] He returned to Sanok in 1955, working as a construction site supervisor, but found that he did not enjoy it. During this period, he had an interest in montage photography, sculpting, and painting. When he first started sculpting, he often used his construction site materials for his medium. His early photography was a precursor to his later paintings, often depicting peculiar wrinkles, desolate landscapes, and still-life faces on rough surfaces. His paintings often depict anxiety, such as torn doll faces, or faces erased or obscured by bandages wrapped around the portrait. His main focus was on abstract painting, and his works in the 1960s were inspired by surrealism.[1]
Painting and drawing
Oil painting, 1978Oil painting, 1984
Beksiński had no formal training as an artist. He was a graduate of the Faculty of Architecture at the Kraków Polytechnic, receiving an MSc in 1952.[2] His paintings were mainly created using oil paint on hardboard panels that he personally prepared, although he also experimented with acrylic paints. Beksiński listened to classical music while painting.[4]
Fantastic Realism
An exhibition of Beksiński's works organized by Janusz Bogucki in Warsaw in 1964 was his first major success.[5][6]
Beksiński soon became the leading figure in contemporary Polish art. In the late 1960s, Beksiński entered what he called his "fantastic period," which lasted into the mid-1980s. This is his best-known period, during which he created disturbing images, showing gloomy, nightmarish environments with detailed scenes of death, decay, landscapes filled with skeletons, deformed figures, and deserts. At the time, Beksiński said, "I wish to paint in such a manner as if I were photographing dreams."[7]
Despite the grim subjects, Beksiński claimed some of his works were misunderstood; in his opinion, they were rather optimistic or even humorous. For the most part, Beksiński was adamant that even he did not know the meaning of his artworks and was uninterested in possible interpretations; in keeping with this notion, he refused to provide titles for any of his drawings or paintings. Before moving to Warsaw in 1977, he destroyed a selection of his works in his own backyard, without leaving any documentation concerning them.[8]
Short stories
From 1963 to 1965, Beksiński wrote short stories. However, he was unhappy with the results and sealed them away, deciding to hone his skills in painting instead.[9] They remained unpublished until after his death. In 2015, a collection of his short stories was published. The stories have an unfinished and chaotic nature; they vary from abstract onirist tales and philosophical self-reflections to metaphorical post-apocalyptic fiction and crime thriller stories.[10][11] Beksiński's literary period is described as "short and intensive", as he wrote 40 short stories in fewer than two years, experimenting with form and narrative.[12][13]
Later work
Digital photomontage, c. 2000
In the later part of the 1990s, he became interested in computers, the Internet, digital photography and photo manipulation, a medium that he focused on until his death.[14]
Beksiński's wife, Zofia, died in 1998; a year later, on Christmas Eve 1999, his son Tomasz died by suicide by drug overdose. Beksiński discovered his son's body.
Beksiński was murdered in his flat in Warsaw on 21 February 2005 by Robert Kupiec, the teenage son of his longtime caretaker. His cousin Łukasz was also involved in the murder. Robert and his cousin were arrested shortly after the crime. On 9 November 2006 Robert was sentenced by the Supreme Court of Warsaw to 25 years in prison, and Łukasz was sentenced to 5 years.[15]
Personality
Although Beksiński's art was often grim, he himself was known to be a pleasant person who took enjoyment from conversation and had a keen sense of humor. He was modest and somewhat shy, avoiding public events such as the openings of his own exhibitions. He credited music as his main source of inspiration. He claimed not to be much influenced by literature, cinema or the work of other artists, and almost never visited museums or exhibitions. Beksiński avoided concrete analysis of the content of his work, saying "I don't want to say or convey anything. I just paint what comes to my mind".[16]
The town of Sanok, Poland, houses a museum dedicated to Beksiński. A Beksiński museum housing 50 paintings and 120 drawings from the Piotr Dmochowski (Wikidata) collection (who owns the biggest private collection of Beksiński's art)[19] opened in 2006 in the City Art Gallery of Częstochowa, Poland. On 18 May 2012 with the participation of Minister of Regional Development Elżbieta Bieńkowska and others took place ceremonial opening of the New Gallery of Zdzisław Beksiński (pl) in the rebuilt wing of the castle. On 19 May 2012, The New Gallery opened for the public.[20] A 'Beksiński cross', in the characteristic T-shape frequently employed by the artist, was installed for Burning Man to honor the artist's memory.[17]
He is the subject of the 2021 book Beksiński. Wizje życia i śmierci (lit.'Beksiński: Visions of Life and Death') by Dorota Szomko–Osękowska, which focuses on the existential themes in his works.[22]
In 2023, the online Zdzisław Beksiński Art Promotion Archive, an online collection of Beksiński's works, was created.[23]
Krzysztof Jurecki (August 2004). "Zdzisław Beksiński". Culture.pl, Museum of Art in Łódź. Translated by Marek Kępa, February 2012. Archived from the original on 15 November 2017.
Chomiszczak, Tomasz (2016). "Posłowie: „Zaledwie okruchy, bezużyteczne szczątki, niedojedzone przez czas resztki". Prozatorskie do-myślenia Zdzisława Beksińskiego". In Beksiński, Zdzisław (ed.). Opowiadania. Bosz. pp. 356–409. ISBN978-83-7576-253-2.
Cowan, J. (Ed.) 2006: The Fantastic Art of Beksiński – Zdzislaw Beksiński: 1929–2005, 3rd edn., Galerie Morpheus International, Las Vegas. ISBN1-883398-38-X.
Dmochowski, A. & P. 1991: Beksiński – Photographies, Dessins, Sculptures, Peintures, 2nd edn., API Publishing (Republic of Korea).
Dmochowski, A. & P. 1991: Beksiński – Peintures et Dessins 1987–1991, 1st edn., API Publishing (Republic of Korea).
