Social Systems

Food riots, revolutions, ethnic violence, urban health, fads and panics arise from collective actions. Complex systems science provides new opportunities to understand these collective behaviors by describing the patterns of behavior of individuals interacting through social networks. Predicting collective action is often easier than that of individuals because of the reduced role of individual choice. The role of individuals in the social context, as well as the role of organizational structures—governments, institutions, and corporations—can also be analyzed. See also our page oneconomic systems.

Publications

Global Food

M. Lagi, A.S. Gard-Murray and Y. Bar-Yam, Impact of ethanol conversion and speculation on Mexico corn imports, New England Complex Systems Institute, May 2012.

M. Lagi, Yavni Bar-Yam, K.Z. Bertrand, Yaneer Bar-Yam, UPDATE February 2012 — The Food Crises: Predictive validation of a quantitative model of food prices including speculators and ethanol conversion. arXiv:1203.1313, March 6, 2012. [PDF]

M. Lagi, Yavni Bar-Yam, K.Z. Bertrand, Yaneer Bar-Yam, The Food Crises: A Quantitative Model of Food Prices Including Speculators and Ethanol Conversion. arXiv:1109.4859, September 21, 2011. [PDF]

M. Lagi, K.Z. Bertrand, Y. Bar-Yam, The Food Crises and Political Instability in North Africa and the Middle East. arXiv:1108.2455, August 10, 2011. [PDF]

Ethnic Violence

A. Rutherford, D. Harmon, J. Werfel, S. Bar-Yam, A.S. Gard-Murray, A. Gros, Y. Bar-Yam, Good Fences: The Importance of Setting Boundaries for Peaceful Coexistence. arXiv:1110.1409, October 7, 2011. [PDF]

M. Lim, R. Metzler, and Y. Bar-Yam. Global Pattern Formation and Ethnic/Cultural Violence, Science 317, 5844 (September 14, 2007). abstract and full paper - press release

Y. Bar-Yam: Global Control, Ethnic Violence and Terrorism, from Making Things Work, Chapter 16. Knowledge Press, 2005. [PDF]

Ethnic Violence research page

Social Networks

A. Herdağdelen, W. Zuo, A.S. Gard-Murray, Y. Bar-Yam, An Exploration of Social Identity: The Geography and Politics of News-Sharing Communities in Twitter. arXiv:1202.4393, February 20, 2012. [PDF]

D. Braha, B. Stacey, and Y. Bar-Yam, Corporate competition: A self-organized network. Social Networks. Volume 33. Issue 3. Pages 219-230. July 2011. PDF File

D. Braha, Y. Bar-Yam, From centrality to temporary fame: dynamic centrality in complex networks,Complexity 12 (2006). abstract, PDF file, Extended Version (PDF), press release

Urban Food

M.J. Widener, S.S. Metcalf, and Y. Bar-Yam, Developing a Mobile Produce Distribution System for Low-income Urban Residents in Food Deserts. Journal of Urban Health, 2012. [PDF]

M.J. Widener, Yavni Bar-Yam, A. Gros, S. Metcalf, Yaneer Bar-Yam, Modeling Policy and Agricultural Decisions in Afghanistan. arXiv:1111.5351, November 21, 2011. [PDF]

M.J. Widener, S. Metcalf, Y. Bar-Yam, Dynamic Urban Food Environments A Temporal Analysis of Access to Healthy Foods, American Journal of Preventive Medicine 41, pp. 439-441, September 22, 2011. [PDF]

Right photo © Nasser Nouri