Selforganized criticality leads to spontaneous bursts of activity from "summary" of Complexity by Mitchell M. Waldrop
Self-organized criticality is a concept that arises in systems that are at the brink of chaos, yet able to maintain a delicate balance. When a system reaches this critical state, it becomes highly sensitive to even the smallest perturbations. This sensitivity can lead to cascades of events, where small triggers can set off a chain reaction of activity. In such systems, there is a feedback loop where the activity generated by one event can trigger subsequent events, leading to a burst of activity. This burst can be spontaneous and unpredictable, as the system responds to the initial trigger and amplifies it through a series of interactions. The system is in a state of heightened activity, with energy flowing through it in an uncontrolled manner. The bursts of activity that occur in self-organized critical systems are often characterized by patterns of clustering and avalanches. Clusters of activity can form as a result of interactions between components in the system, creating localized areas of heightened activity. These clusters can then trigger avalanches of events, where the activity spreads rapidly through the system. The concept of self-organized criticality is important because it illustrates how complex systems can exhibit emergent behavior that is not easily predicted from the behavior of individual components. In these systems, simple interactions between components can lead to complex patterns of activity, as the system self-organizes into a state of criticality.- Self-organized criticality is a fascinating concept that sheds light on the dynamics of complex systems. By understanding how systems can self-organize into critical states, we can gain insights into the mechanisms that underlie spontaneous bursts of activity in a wide range of natural and artificial systems.
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