Understanding Complexity (The Great Courses, 5181) by Scott E. Page - 2009

Chantilly, Virginia: The Teaching Company. 2009. DVD. Fine. Twelve 30-minute lectures on two As New DVDs in original case along with an As New paperback Course Guidebook (55 pages). Not from a library. Suitable for a gift.

Recent years have seen the introduction of concepts from the new and exciting field of complexity science that have captivated the attention of economists, sociologists, engineers, businesspeople, and many others. These include tipping points, the sociological term used to describe moments when unique or rare phenomena become more commonplace; the wisdom of crowds, the argument that certain types of groups harness information and make decisions in more effective ways than individuals; six degrees of separation, the idea that it takes no more than six steps to find some form of connection between two random individuals; and emergence, the idea that new properties, processes, and structures can emerge unexpectedly from complex systems.