On the emergence of complex systems on the basis of the coordination of complex behaviors of their elements

Abstract

We argue that the coordination of the activities of individual complex agents enables a system to develop and sustain complexity at a higher level. We exemplify relevant mechanisms through computer simulations of a toy system, a coupled map lattice with transmission delays. The coordination here is achieved through the synchronization of the chaotic operations of the individual elements, and on the basis of this, regular behavior at a longer temporal scale emerges that is inaccessible to the uncoupled individual dynamics.