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Chance and Necessity in Cooperative Phenomena

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 April 2024

Pierre Gilles de Gennes
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Extract

A lone fish swims haphazardly in any direction, but. if we get enough fish of the same species together so that neighboring individual fish may exchange signals, they adopt a common direction. Here we have a phenomenon of cooperation: many individuals find themselves in strong interaction with each other, and overall behavior is noticeably affected.

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Type
Research Article
Information
Diogenes , Volume 25 , Issue 100 , March 1977, pp. 198 - 217
Copyright
Copyright © 1977 Fédération Internationale des Sociétés de Philosophie / International Federation of Philosophical Societies (FISP)

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References

1 Callen and Shapero, Physics Today, July, 1974, p. 23.

2 N. Boccara, La physique des transitions, Coll. "Que sais-je?," P.U.F., 1970.

3 Weidlich, "Dynamics of Interacting Social Groups," Progress in Synergetics, North Holland, H. Haken, ed., 1974.

4 Weidlich, British Journal of Mathematics and Statistical Psychology, 1971, 24, p. 251.

5 I. Prigogine, P. Glansdorff, Thermodvnamic Theory of Structure. Stability and Fluctuations, Wiley, 1971. Cf. also J. De Rosnay, Le Macroscope, Ed. Seuil, 1975.

6 Cf. N. Boccara, Symétries brisées et transitions de phase, Hermann, 1975.

7 Pierre Curie, Journal de physique, Sept., 1894, p. 393.

8 R. Caillois, Symétrie et dissymétrie, N.R.F.

9 I. Prigogine, op. cit.

10 M. Kleman, "Points lignes parois," Editions de Physique, 1977.

11 N. Boccara, Symétries brisées et transitions de phase, Hermann, 1975.

12 Ibid.

13 Ibid.

14 P. G. De Gennes, La Recherche, 1976, 7, p. 919.

15 R. Thom, Stabilité structurelle et morphogénèse, New York, Benjamin, 1972. For its application in sociology, see C. Isnard and E. Zeeman in Use of Models in the Social Sciences, ed. by L. Collins, London, Tavistock, 1974.

16 H. Haken, Introduction to Synergetics, Springer, 1976.

17 M. Eigen, Quarterly Review of Biophyscs, 1971, 4, p. 149.

18 Nucleation, ed. A. Zettlomayer, M. Dekker, New York, 1969.

19 R. M. May, Journal of Theoretical Biology, 1975, 49.

20 P. G. DeGennes, "Leçon inaugurale," Collège de France, 1971.

21 Under the motivation of Klapisch and Pomian.