Throughout history, we’ve seen societies rise and dramatically fall, but why? 

In this episode, Marten Scheffer, a Professor at Wageningen University and Research Centre and an External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute, explains how social, political, and environmental factors contribute to a decrease in resilience over time, leaving previously powerful societies vulnerable to collapse.

This episode is part one of our two-part chat with Marten.

 

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• Simplifying Complexity on X
• Simplifying Complexity on YouTube
• Sean Brady on X
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.

Jim Rutt is the Host of The Jim Rutt Show podcast, former Chair of the Santa Fe Institute, Co-founder of the GameB Social Change Movement, and “Retired Business Dude” after a long career as a businessman in the tech industry.

In this episode, Jim outlines how his career as a tech executive intersected with complexity science to contribute to groundbreaking research in genetic algorithms and market simulations. He also discusses the role of AI in programming and the need for multidisciplinary talent in tech development.

 

Resources and links:

• The Jim Rutt Show website
• The Jim Rutt Show on YouTube
• Jim Rutt on X
• Jim Rutt on Bluesky

 

Connect:

• Simplifying Complexity on X
• Simplifying Complexity on YouTube
• Sean Brady on X
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.

This is part two of our discussion with Lee Cronin on Assembly Theory. Lee Cronin is Regius Professor of Chemistry at the University of Glasgow and the Founder & CEO of Chemify. 

In this episode, Lee explains how assembly theory can actually be measured in the laboratory using mass spectrometry and other techniques, reveals the critical threshold of 15 that separates living from non-living systems, and discusses his ambitious vision for using assembly theory to detect life elsewhere in the universe and even measure consciousness itself.

 

Resources and links:

• ‘Assembly theory explains and quantifies selection and evolution’ on Nature

 

Connect:

• Simplifying Complexity on X
• Sean Brady on X
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.

In 2023, a highly controversial paper titled ‘Assembly theory explains and quantifies selection and evolution’ was released to the world.

In today’s episode, we’re chatting to one of the its authors, Lee Cronin, Regius Professor of Chemistry at the University of Glasgow and the Founder & CEO of Chemify, to discuss assembly theory and the motivation behind the paper, as well as key concepts such as the assembly index and the copy number.

This episode is part one of our two-part chat with Lee. Join us for the next episode, where Lee discusses the Nature paper.

 

Resources and links:

• ‘Assembly theory explains and quantifies selection and evolution’ on Nature

 

Connect:

• Simplifying Complexity on X
• Sean Brady on X
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.

In the last episode, Christopher Lynn, Assistant Professor of Physics at Yale University, discussed how we can better understand brain function and consciousness using statistical mechanics and information theory.

In this episode, Christopher expands on the practical applications of statistical mechanics and information theory for modelling neuron firing rates and predicting brain activity patterns. 

 

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• Simplifying Complexity on X
• Sean Brady on X
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.

We're welcoming back Christopher Lynn, Assistant Professor of Physics at Yale University, to chat about how the brain works.

In this episode, Christopher discusses how statistical mechanics and information theory can help us gain a deeper understanding of brain function and consciousness.

 

Connect:

• Simplifying Complexity on Twitter
• Sean Brady on Twitter
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.

Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK, and Nicholas Gruen, CEO of Lateral Economics, have both returned to debate the efficacy and limitations of applying systems thinking to complex problems.

 

Resources and links:

• Ogilvy UK website
• Lateral Economics website

 

Connect:

• Simplifying Complexity on X
• Simplifying Complexity on YouTube
• Sean Brady on X
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.

In the last episode, Paul Smaldino, Professor of Cognitive and Information Sciences at the University of California, Merced, and an External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute discussed how human behaviour is shaped by cultural evolution.

In this episode, Paul discusses social learning and identity signalling and how they’re both being affected by rapidly changing technologies.

 

Connect:

• Simplifying Complexity on Twitter
• Sean Brady on Twitter
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.

We all know that we are shaped by evolution, but we're also shaped by cultural evolution.

In this episode, we’re joined by Paul Smaldino, Professor of Cognitive and Information Sciences at the University of California, Merced, and an External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute, to explain how cultural evolution has shaped human behaviour.

 

Connect:

• Simplifying Complexity on Twitter
• Sean Brady on Twitter
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.

Ricardo Hausmann is the Founder and Director of Harvard’s Growth Lab and the Rafik Hariri Professor of the Practice of International Political Economy at Harvard Kennedy School.

In this episode, Ricardo explains how the amount and diversity of knowledge within an economy shapes its current capabilities and influences a country’s possible economic growth.

 

Resources and links:

• The Atlas of Economic Complexity website

 

Connect:

• Simplifying Complexity on Twitter
• Sean Brady on Twitter
• Sean Brady on LinkedIn
• Brady Heywood website

This show is produced in collaboration with Wavelength Creative. Visit wavelengthcreative.com for more information.