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Synch Outline thru page 69

Page history last edited by PBworks 17 years, 1 month ago

Sarah Mae Butcher

 

IDH4000

 

February 21, 2007

 

“Synch” by Steven Stogatz, The Emerging Science of Spontaneous Order

 

Outline - Preface through page 69

 

I. Preface

a. “At the heart of the universe is a steady, insistent beat: the sound of cycles in synch.” (1)

i. Thousands of fireflies along the tidal rivers in Malaysia flash in unison

ii. Trillions of electrons synch in super conductors

iii. Pacemaker cells in our bodies fire together to keep us alive

b. “Scientists have long been baffled by the existence of spontaneous order in the universe.” (1)

i. laws of thermodynamics seem to dictate the opposite

ii. where the same things happen at the same time = synchrony

iii. when synch occurs among electrons or cells it seems almost miraculous

c. “This new science centers on the study of “coupled oscillators.” (3)

i. mathematics of nature

ii. the study of thousands of synched oscillators

iii. scientists working across disciplines

 

II. One - “Fireflies and the Inevitability of Synch”

a. “How could thousands of fireflies orchestrate their flashings so precisely on such a vast scale?” (11)

i. 1915-1935 - 20 articles on the mystery

ii. 1960’s – mystery began to be resolved

1. not only do they flash in unison, but in rhythm too

2. suggested internal oscillators

iii. “Synch occurs through mutual cuing, in the same way that an orchestra can keep perfect time without a conductor.” (13)

b. “For reasons we don’t understand, the tendency to synchronize is one of the most pervasive drives in the universe, extending from atoms to animals, from people to planets.” (14)

i. Charlie Peskin

1. mathematical biologist

2. ground breaking work with pacemaker cells and how they fire and synchronize

ii. Steven Stogatz (author)

1. took up the challenge of the “population problem” based on Art Winfree’s work

2. he and Rennie Mirollo proved that a generalized system almost always becomes synchronized

iii. Martha McClintock

1. menstrual synchronicity studies

2. consequence of larger phenomenon; chemical communication between women

c. “An improved model should accommodate continuous interaction as well.” (38)

i. mathematically more difficult

ii. three decades to construct

iii. efforts of three pioneers

III. Two – “Brain Waves and the Conditions for Synch”

a. Norbert Wiener – mathematician

i. first to take on the problem of millions of oscillators

ii. used alpha brain waves to try to demonstrate the brains “master clock”

iii. believed that “if an oscillator was running too fast, the rest of the group would slow it down; if it was going too slowly, the others would speed it up.” (42)

b. Art Winfree – theoretical biologist

i. concentrated on “the oscillators themselves, not just their frequencies.” (46)

ii. developed a theory that focused on the ability to send and receive signals; “the influence function” (47)

iii. included connectivity as well; used a computer to simulate his model; used the example of groups of runners going around a track becoming a synchronized pack

iv. lead the way for a hybrid theory featuring linear dynamics and statistical mechanics

c. Yoshiki Kuramoto – physicist

i. “revealed the essence of group synchronization” (55)

ii. predicted that the population would always settle into a state that’s as steady as possible

iii. implication in populations of fire flies or brain cells is that they have to be similar enough or nobody (nothing) will synch at all.

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