Everett@50 - Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics: 50 years on

Everett@50 - Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics: 50 years on

"

Some remarkable implications of probabilities without time - Andreas Albrecht

I consider the ambiguity in quantum gravity that arises from the choice of clock. As I emphasize in earlier work (gr-qc/9408023) this ambiguity leads to an absolute lack of predictability for the laws of physics, or more specifically a complete absence of physical laws. I review the clock ambiguity and then consider possible ways forward given this seemingly critical failure. Remarkably, there is an approach that could lead to a certain amount of predictability in physics. I describe this approach and assess its prospects. I also draw attention to possible flaws in the original assumptions on which the clock ambiguity is based, with special emphasis on the definition of probabilities in the absence of time."

Complacency in a Leaderless World by Joseph E. Stiglitz - Project Syndicate

Complacency in a Leaderless World by Joseph E. Stiglitz - Project Syndicate

"A high point of the meeting was the speech by Christine Lagarde, the International Monetary Fund’s managing director, who stressed the marked change in her institution, at least at the top: deep concern about women’s rights; renewed emphasis on the link between inequality and instability; and recognition that collective bargaining and minimum wages could play an important role in reducing inequality. If only the IMF programs in Greece and elsewhere fully reflected these sentiments!"

Tweeting Tyrants Out of Tunisia: Global Internet at Its Best | Threat Level | Wired.com

Tweeting Tyrants Out of Tunisia: Global Internet at Its Best | Threat Level | Wired.com

People risked their lives in the street, with some getting a bullet for their troubles, but the internet played a significant role in organizing these protests and in disseminating news and pictures of them to the world.

Complex Games Lead To Irrational Decision Making In Games And Markets - Science News - redOrbit

Complex Games Lead To Irrational Decision Making In Games And Markets - Science News - redOrbit
They went on to note that their findings could apply not only to enjoyable pastimes like games, but to financial trading on stock markets as well.

imagined networks: cybernetics and politics

imagined networks: cybernetics and politics

"I’ve read a little about the Cybersyn project implemented during Allende’s socialist government in Chile from 1971-1973. It attempted to control the Chilean economy from a central electronic top-down command center that could respond instantaneously to the various workings of Chilean industrial production—using Telex machines, it wanted to keep track of individual machine failings, worker productivity, etc, and to use these things to statistically forecast and model the Chilean economy. This top-down modeling happened, crucially, from a national command center—literally a room—where the information was directed, compiled, and acted upon by analysts working for the Chilean government. Real-time response gave these data points flow."

Coase: Are Economists Becoming Irrelevant?

Coase: Are Economists Becoming Irrelevant?

"Coase is a guiding force behind the New Institutional Economics.  NIE is an interdisciplinary enterprise combining economics, law, organization theory, political science, sociology and anthropology to understand the institutions of social, political and commercial life. It borrows from various social-science disciplines, but its primary language is economics. NIE’s goal is to explain what institutions are, how they arise, what purposes they serve, how they change and how – if at all – they should be reformed. In addition to Coase, Oliver E. Williamson, Elinor Ostrom and Douglass North are founding members."

P2P Foundation » Blog Archive » A key feature of peer production: How a Stigmergy of Actions Replaces Representation of Persons

P2P Foundation » Blog Archive » A key feature of peer production: How a Stigmergy of Actions Replaces Representation of Persons

"“Stigmergy is a mechanism of indirect coordination between agents or actions. The principle is that the trace left in the environment by an action stimulates the performance of a next action, by the same or a different agent. In that way, subsequent actions tend to reinforce and build on each other, leading to the spontaneous emergence of coherent, apparently systematic activity. Stigmergy is a form of self-organization. It produces complex, seemingly intelligent structures, without need for any planning, control, or even direct communication between the agents. – Wikipedia"