Complexity Science: Does Autocatalysis Explain the Emergence of Organizations?

One of the newer complexity science books is The Emergence of Organizations and Markets by John F. Padgett and Walter W. Powell (2012).

At first glance, the book might seem like just another contemporarily-popular social network analysis dressed up in complexity language. The book presents the claim that chemistry concept autocatalysis is the explanatory model for the emergence and growth of organizations. The argument is that autocatalysis (the catalysis of a reaction by one of its products) is like the process of individuals acquiring skills which thereby transform products and organizations: “Skills, like chemical reactions, are rules that transform products into other products” (pp. 70-1). The process is reciprocal and ongoing as actors create relations in the short-term, and relations create actors in the longer-term.

One response of a critical reader would be asking the degree to which autocatalysis has explanatory power over the formation and persistence of organizations. In the absence of the consideration of other models, or the extent to which autocatalysis does not fit, it is hard to assess where this model falls on the anecdotal-to-accurate spectrum. This is a potential problem with all attempts, however valiant, to transplant the models and structures from one field to another. Going beyond interesting associations to correlations and even causal links is challenging.

Also not uncommonly, the authors postulate that the interesting, novel, and value-contributing aspects of a system (in this context, an organization) occur in the interstices, edges, and anomalies of the system. In actuality, this might be just one possibility (and not the principal element according to thinkers like Simondon for whom novelty most directly emerges from the central interaction of the components, features, and functionality). Worse, seeking the interstice forces the focus onto identifying borders, edges, and interstices, defining the phases of inherently [non-definable] dynamical systems. Also with a Simondonian eye, this is to miss the nature and contribution of dynamic processes at the higher level - this is trying to corral them into identifiable morphologies instead of apprehending their functionality.

Human augmentation substrate: the microbiome

The human microbiome, comprising 10x human cells, is interesting not only for its significant role in determining health, disease, drug response, and individuality, but also in possibly being a less-invasive human augmentation substrate, for example, bringing nanoscale connectivity and memory processing modules onboard via the microbiome.

New research has identified that only five microbial lineages exist on humans: firmicutes, bacteriodetes, actinobacteria, proteobacteria, and other phyla which is surprising compared to the diversity of microbial phyla on Earth. However, within the lineages, there are many strains and species, for example 1,600-2,000 distal gut species of microbial bacteria in each person, only 7% of which were known previously (paper). Gut bacteria is critical to human functioning, one activity is producing butyrate in colon epithelial cells to maintain energy homeostasis. (paper, article)

The microbiome is a complex adaptive system: resilience and vulnerability
Research extends beyond characterization - an investigation of perturbations to the human microbiome has shown resilience in recovery following a disturbance. However there is vulnerability with persistent perturbation. The human microbiome may not reassume its initial state unless the disturbance is at a frequency that the system has experienced before and for some time. In this case, the system may get stuck in an alternative state or local maximum. (paper).

How Daemon/Freedom is starting to happen

The books by Daniel Suarez, Daemon and Freedom, portray a possible extension of the world of today. Some elements contemplated in the books are obviously already in place such as worldwide gaming communities like World of Warcraft (11 million subscribers as of December 2008) and other MMORPGs. Botnetting of government and corporate computers is another existing feature of the contemporary world. High-magnitude financial crises (e.g., 2008) and dissatisfaction with the way they are handled is another obvious parallel, with grassroots responses such as the Move your Money movement to use local banks that did not receive bailout funds.

At a broader level, one of the most interesting ways that fundamental economic transformation could happen is the way that humans worldwide are starting to behave like a vast complex adaptive system (CAS).

1) Location-based services check-ins
Mobile-device users are checking in at the different physical locations they visit using FourSquare, Loopt, and other location-based services (LBS). People are shifting their physical-world behavior to unlock certain badges and points. In addition to earning badges and mayorships for the number of check-ins to a particular location, opt-in communities could develop using LBS platforms to award the type of check-ins, giving points and badges for behavior valued by the community. FourSquare's API is available and new applications are already being created. A simple example of rewarded behavior would be receiving double points for gym visits, escalating levels over time as visits accumulate. Another example for certain user communities might be earning double points for check-ins at local coffee shops vs. Starbucks. Starbucks actually comprises over 30% of all check-ins for LBS service Loopt.

Not just the geographical location, but also the type of activities could be rewarded. For example, there could be creativity, collaboration, learning, and teaching badges from check-ins at places like the TechShop, BioCurious, Hacker Dojo, or the Hub (social venturing collaboration). There could be time and location tagging for event attendance interpolation. Not every user would want this detail or would make their activity public, but this functionality could be useful for life-logging too. There could be sensors on public transit registering user behavior or some other way to ‘check in’ to transportation-based behavior.

There could be both incentives for positive behavior and disincentives for negative behavior. For example, users could receive points for not doing behaviors like checking in at fast-food restaurants, not going to gas stations (congratulations, you only went to a gas-station once this month!). A trustable automated check-in system could provide behavior validation, although there are obvious hacks such as not bringing the mobile device when going to fast-food locations. Finally, the spirit of incentivized check-ins should be opt-in, fun, and empowering, not didactic.

2) Real-time economy feeds
A second interesting complex adaptive system element that is arising is a real-time economy feed in the form of Blippy. Parts of the feed are publicly open and other parts just to the user community. The feed provides immediacy, transparency, and detail regarding economic activity, like real-time game-like granularity. Features could be added for zooming into views of more or less detail (e.g., real-time to-date, Amazon’s sales are down this month vs. last month). The user community can comment and interact around specific purchases.

In addition to the democratic openness of a real-time economy feed, this platform could be used the same was as LBS check-ins to reward certain behaviors. Blippy users could earn points for certain types of purchases, like carbon-neutral products certified by GoodGuide, Green Home, or ClimateCooler. Lower energy usage could be rewarded. With detailed purchase granularity, behavioral goals could be facilitated (e.g., Congratulations, you did not buy cigarettes this month! Congratulations, you bought less ice cream this month!)

3) DIYBio email list
A third fascinating development of humans as a complex adaptive system for change is the DIYbio movement. DIYbio is a worldwide self-sustaining collaborative community arising to build a new or complementary scientific order in biology. The story is told through these snippets of recent postings…

• DIYbio meeting Wednesday Jan 13th at 7PM: So all the DIYbio groups have hacked 300X microscopes out of $7 webcams.
• Plant stilbenes, SIRT1 activators; request for assistance: Hi, I am looking for tropical crop plants that produce phytoalexins called stilbenes; phenolic chemicals, that among other things, include molecules that activate the SIRT1 deacetylase. For the moment I am restricting my search to plants of the Fabaceae subfam. Faboideae (pea group). Currently, I am looking at the literature on Cajanus cajan (pigeonpea) & Arachis hypogaea (peanut, groundnut). I am also looking at literature on non-resveratrol stilbene activators of SIRT 1. I have linked two relevant papers for context.
• DIY movement in Shenzhen, China: I'm looking for a previous post about a DIY movement in Shenzhen, China, somebody posted it before but I can't find it now? It wasn't bio focused, more about electronics.