IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ecomod/v220y2009i16p1880-1885.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Complexity change and space symmetry rupture

Author

Listed:
  • Ruzzenenti, F.
  • Basosi, R.

Abstract

Is complexity growth the result of a continuous process or a sudden breakthrough? An increased energy density rate is the effect or the cause of a complexity leap? Should we approach complexity change by the perspective of components behaviour or system's space geometry? In this work we address some of the questions regarding the theoretical approach to complexity change. For this purpose a case study drawn by the productive structure and the transport system is considered. We would like here to propose an example in which the system structure is reshaped in a more energy intensive fashion as to increase the components’ interactions due to a symmetry rupture in the space. Flows throughout the system are thereby incremented in a discontinuous way by a complexity leap. In the case study, we analyze how the productive system evolved its structure, between 1970s and 1990s, to increase interactions among its parts and thus further develop the transport sub-system. A two-stage shift has been considered: the fordian and the post-fordian productive structure. The second structure, given the same amount of parts, has been shown to increase the degree of freedom (path length and path diversity) of the system. The underlying evolutionary pattern is then analyzed. This evolutionary pattern relies on the hypothesis that thermodynamic evolutionary systems are characterized by an ever growing influx of energy driven into the system by self-catalytic processes that must find their way through the constraints of the system. The system initially disposes of the energy by expanding, in extent and in the number of components, up to saturation due to inner or outer constraints. The two counteractive forces, constraints and growing energy flux, expose the system to new gradients. Every new (spatial) gradient upon the system represents a symmetry rupture in the components’ space. By exploring a new gradient, the system imposes further restrictions on its components and increases its overall degree of freedom. The counteractive effects of reduction/increase of degree of freedom concern two different hierarchical levels and occur at two different space and time scales.

Suggested Citation

  • Ruzzenenti, F. & Basosi, R., 2009. "Complexity change and space symmetry rupture," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 220(16), pages 1880-1885.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:220:y:2009:i:16:p:1880-1885
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2009.04.016
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304380009002737
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2009.04.016?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Paul Krugman, 1995. "Growing World Trade: Causes and Consequences," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 26(1, 25th A), pages 327-377.
    2. Jayanth R. Banavar & Amos Maritan & Andrea Rinaldo, 1999. "Size and form in efficient transportation networks," Nature, Nature, vol. 399(6732), pages 130-132, May.
    3. Ruzzenenti, F. & Basosi, R., 2008. "The rebound effect: An evolutionary perspective," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(4), pages 526-537, November.
    4. Haas, Reinhard & Schipper, Lee, 1998. "Residential energy demand in OECD-countries and the role of irreversible efficiency improvements," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(4), pages 421-442, September.
    5. Geoffrey B. West & James H. Brown & Brian J. Enquist, 1999. "The Fourth Dimension of Life: Fractal Geometry and Allometric Scaling of Organisms," Working Papers 99-07-047, Santa Fe Institute.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Dalgaard, Carl-Johan & Strulik, Holger, 2011. "Energy distribution and economic growth," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 782-797.
    2. Ruzzenenti, F. & Basosi, R., 2009. "Evaluation of the energy efficiency evolution in the European road freight transport sector," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(10), pages 4079-4085, October.
    3. Song, Dong-Ming & Jiang, Zhi-Qiang & Zhou, Wei-Xing, 2009. "Statistical properties of world investment networks," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 388(12), pages 2450-2460.
    4. Liu, Chuang & Zhou, Wei-Xing & Yuan, Wei-Kang, 2010. "Statistical properties of visibility graph of energy dissipation rates in three-dimensional fully developed turbulence," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 389(13), pages 2675-2681.
    5. Elif Tekin & David Hunt & Mitchell G Newberry & Van M Savage, 2016. "Do Vascular Networks Branch Optimally or Randomly across Spatial Scales?," PLOS Computational Biology, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(11), pages 1-28, November.
    6. Elliott, Robert J.R. & Sun, Puyang & Xu, Qiqin, 2015. "Energy distribution and economic growth: An empirical test for China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 24-31.
    7. Lia Papadopoulos & Pablo Blinder & Henrik Ronellenfitsch & Florian Klimm & Eleni Katifori & David Kleinfeld & Danielle S Bassett, 2018. "Comparing two classes of biological distribution systems using network analysis," PLOS Computational Biology, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(9), pages 1-31, September.
    8. Jiang Zhang & Lingfei Wu, 2013. "Allometry and Dissipation of Ecological Flow Networks," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 8(9), pages 1-8, September.
    9. Witting, Lars, 2017. "The natural selection of metabolism and mass selects allometric transitions from prokaryotes to mammals," Theoretical Population Biology, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 23-42.
    10. Dalgaard, Carl-Johan & Strulik, Holger, 2008. "Energy Distribution, Power Laws, and Economic Growth," Hannover Economic Papers (HEP) dp-385, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Wirtschaftswissenschaftliche Fakultät.
    11. Cigno, Alessandro & Rosati, Furio C. & Guarcello, Lorenzo, 2002. "Does Globalization Increase Child Labor?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 30(9), pages 1579-1589, September.
    12. Tiago Pereira, 2016. "The effect of developing countries' competition on regional labour markets in Portugal," GEE Papers 0058, Gabinete de Estratégia e Estudos, Ministério da Economia, revised Mar 2016.
    13. Sakurai, Kojiro, 2001. "Biased Technological Change and Japanese Manufacturing Employment," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 15(3), pages 298-322, September.
    14. Oslington, Paul, 2002. "Factor market linkages in a global economy," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 76(1), pages 85-93, June.
    15. Marco Dueñas & Giorgio Fagiolo, 2013. "Modeling the International-Trade Network: a gravity approach," Journal of Economic Interaction and Coordination, Springer;Society for Economic Science with Heterogeneous Interacting Agents, vol. 8(1), pages 155-178, April.
    16. Katharina Längle, 2020. "Offshoring: What Consequences for Workers? Evidence from Global Value Chains," Documents de travail du Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne 20005, Université Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris 1), Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne.
    17. Frédérique Bec, 2002. "Mondialisation, mobilité du capital et volatilité macro-économique," Economie & Prévision, La Documentation Française, vol. 0(1), pages 29-53.
    18. Karen Turner, 2013. ""Rebound" Effects from Increased Energy Efficiency: A Time to Pause and Reflect," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 4).
    19. Prema-chandra Athukorala & Hal Hill, 2010. "Asian trade: long-term patterns and key policy issues," Asian-Pacific Economic Literature, The Crawford School, The Australian National University, vol. 24(2), pages 52-82, November.
    20. Hoy, Kyle A. & Wrenn, Douglas H., 2018. "Unconventional energy, taxation, and interstate welfare: An analysis of Pennsylvania's severance tax policy," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 53-65.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:220:y:2009:i:16:p:1880-1885. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/ecological-modelling .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.