Freakonomics and Complexity
Dave Pollard,
How to Save the World,
Jul 26, 2005
Dave Pollard's review of Freakonomics by economist Steven Levitt and journalist Stephen Dubner is worth a read. What I like is the discussion of complex (as opposed to merely complicated) systems and the need for pattern recognition. "Our long-term memory has a capacity of about 40,000 patterns (models, archetypes, plans, idealizations and other representations of reality), and when we see, hear or otherwise pay attention to something we only perceive and internalize the 5-10% that resonates and is consistent with those patterns, that understanding of reality." I'm not sure about the numbers, but I'm pretty sure about the patterns.
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