Researchers have discovered a universal pattern in the fossil record, showing that extreme events of diversification and extinction occur more frequently than expected. The study used superstatistics to describe fluctuations within clades, finding effective adaptive strategies and valleys of uninhabited space.
This book introduces computational legal analysis, studying law as data to transform how laws are experienced, practiced, and studied. Experimental work pushes methodological boundaries, expanding horizons of legal analysis.
Researchers found that current work environment is a better predictor of future success than doctoral training prestige. Despite this, early career researchers retain some benefit from prestigious programs in terms of citation accumulation.
New research by Albert Kao and Iain Couzin found that information loss due to modular groups can actually enhance accuracy, especially in complex environments. This challenges previous assumptions about the benefits of free-flowing communication among group members.
A recent study analyzing eight premodern states reveals that queen rulers and main wives exercised significant political power, including determining succession, governing policies, and influencing alliances. These women often wielded comparable power to their male counterparts, with agency extending beyond warfare.
Researchers at the Santa Fe Institute and MIT find that continuous-time systems must have hidden states and finite hidden timesteps to exhibit two-time dynamics. This discovery has implications for understanding biomolecular processes, ecosystem evolution, and financial market behavior.
Researchers developed a new model to explain the evolutionary origins of empathy, suggesting it lies in cognitive simulation. This approach shifts focus from cooperation to a single cognitive mechanism.
A study of messaging patterns on an online dating platform reveals geographic distance as the strongest driver of reciprocal interactions. Researchers found 19 distinct communities that closely mirrored geographic regions across the US, with age and race also influencing dating markets.
A cross-disciplinary study examines humans' interactions with plant and animal species across different cultures worldwide through time. The researchers found that humans can have a stabilizing effect on their ecosystems by providing ecosystem services such as lighting fires, while also playing a destructive role in other cases.
Researchers challenged a popular idea about how machine learning algorithms think by applying information theory to classification problems. They found that classifiers with many layers do not necessarily trade off between prediction and compression as previously thought.
Researchers analyzed global forest communities to understand how climate affects tree growth traits, revealing nine key changes that could impact forest productivity and composition. Temperature variability and vapor pressure emerged as major factors influencing these traits.
Researchers use information theory to identify complex anomalies in high-resolution ice core data, allowing for more accurate analysis of climate records. The technique enables the detection of small anomalies that could indicate significant climate events or errors in data processing.
A new analysis of E. coli cell data sheds light on the long-standing question of what triggers cell division, suggesting that both DNA replication and septum formation occur concurrently. This discovery challenges existing models and offers new perspectives on cellular growth and potential applications in understanding cancer.
A new paper proposes a broadly applicable formal definition of semantic information, which emphasizes how information contributes to a system's ability to perpetuate itself. Semantic info is causal necessary for a system to maintain its existence over time.
Researchers found that E. coli bacteria evolved mechanisms to cope with temperature stress, which also provides a defense against certain antibiotics. This discovery could lead to more precise antibiotic treatment strategies based on environmental factors.
Most online daters aim for partners who are 25% more desirable, using strategic messaging to reach higher tiers. Despite low response rates, persistence can lead to replies from a mate beyond one's league.
Researchers from the Santa Fe Institute developed a new algorithm called SpringRank that analyzes wins and losses in networks to predict outcomes. The algorithm outperformed others in efficiency and accuracy, even when applied to diverse datasets such as NCAA basketball teams and animal social behaviors.
Researchers found that highly unequal agricultural societies have fewer instances of polygyny due to the high concentration of wealth. The model tested on diverse societies revealed that wealthy individuals with multiple wives often have fewer children than those with similar wealth divided between two wives.
A team of researchers from the Santa Fe Institute has published a paper on the thermodynamics of computation, which involves elements of statistical physics, computer science, cellular biology, and neurobiology. The study aims to understand how computers process information and reduce energy waste by optimizing computational processes.
Researchers analyzed the effects of socialist Salvador Allende's electoral victory and subsequent nationalizations, finding a significant decrease in firm values. A second 'institutional shock' occurred with the coup that replaced Allende with Augusto Pinochet's autocratic rule, leading to a surge in stock market values.
A new study developed a mathematical correction to improve crowd estimates by accounting for individual bias and social information. Researchers found that collective intelligence is highly predictable and can be improved with the right rules for collective estimation.
A recent study found that gene regulation by protein transcription factors is the most likely mechanism for generating evolutionary change. This discovery challenges previous assumptions and sheds light on the process of evolutionary adaptation.
A new study using drones to track caribou movement found significant variation in sociality within herds, challenging the classic assumption of uniform behavior among group members. The research also showed that caribou follow isotropic interaction rules, with individuals influenced more by those in front of them than beside them.
A themed issue in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B gathers researchers exploring collective movement ecology, merging movement ecology and collective animal behavior. New technologies and data from wild groups are being integrated to inform conservation decision-making.
Researchers found that social-circle questions led to more accurate predictions for election outcomes than traditional polling methods. Social-circle questions provide information about people who aren't explicitly included in the sample and can help anticipate the processes of social influence.
Scientists propose a nuanced model for extinction that incorporates body size and metabolic scaling, revealing why animal species tend to evolve toward larger body sizes. The model predicts an energetically ideal mammal size 2.5 times that of an African elephant, making it more stable against extinction by starvation.
Research at the Santa Fe Institute shows that living systems use collective computation to make decisions, with individuals contributing their own opinions and preferences. The system can produce accurate distributions of power, even in complex environments like primate social groups.
Researchers identify three paradoxical dynamics: the curse of increased efficiency, where less efficient microbes thrive; and the curse of decreased inefficiency, leading to slower population growth. The study highlights complexities in engineered microbial communities and microbiomes, challenging assumptions about optimal strategies.
A new study analyzing medieval skeletons found that contracting leprosy increased a person's chances of dying, but social status and sex also played roles. The researchers created a model to explore morbidity and mortality through a unique data set, shedding light on the complexities of the disease in the past.
A recent study reveals that nearly half a million monk parakeets were imported into Mexico over five years, leading to rapid expansion across the country. The species was declared an invasive species in 2016, highlighting the need for management steps.
Conflict durations in monkey societies grow more quickly as others join, according to researchers studying dynamic conflict patterns. The first interaction sets the tone for the fight, with brief episodes likely to follow if initial interactions are brief.
A study shows that male birds choose their mates with ornamental traits, similar to how females choose males. Researchers created population genetic models to understand the evolution of these preferences.
Researchers used algae modeling to study competing ideologies and their survival rates. They found that a balance between offensive and defensive strategies is key, with a 50-50 mix being the most effective.
Researchers found that populations of males who have sex with males can form an outbreak-sustaining core, while heterosexual populations experience smaller outbreaks. This raises concerns about silent, sustained outbreaks in the community, particularly among men who are least likely to get tested for Zika.
A new study applies a maximum entropy theory of ecology to describe natural systems and communities without light-limitation parameters. The model, called MaxEnt, uses coarse information to derive detailed distributions and accurately describes ecological patterns.
Balinese rice farmers' planting patterns create fractal designs that yield optimal harvests without global planning. The pattern's emergence is driven by water availability and pest damage, making the system more resilient. Farmers adapt locally, taking individual decisions that optimize their own harvests, resulting in a stable system.
Researchers found that neurons initially rely on many neurons for good prediction of a macaque monkey's decision, but eventually each neuron is maximally predictive as the decision point approaches.
The Tsimane Health and Life History Project found that many individuals reach a social and economic peak between the ages of 40 and 60. They adapt by devoting less time to hunting and more to horticulture, producing the majority of calories for their extended families.
A new paper in Science Advances challenges the approach of using metadata to validate community detection algorithms, showing that this method introduces biases and limits algorithm diversity. Researchers propose two new statistical approaches to explore deeper patterns within network data.
A new study from the Santa Fe Institute proposes a quantitative index to measure sustainable development in cities, revealing systematic correlations between urbanization and poverty reduction. The research also highlights persistent inequalities in access to housing and services across neighborhoods.
Research by Santa Fe Institute Omidyar Fellow Marion Dumas shows that citizen lawsuits can re-shape how policies are implemented on the ground, forging a more just and representative middle ground. This process weakens polarized lawmakers' bargaining positions, leading to legislative moves towards a middle ground.
A new study finds that active religious participation correlates with stronger social support networks in communities. Regular religious activity is viewed as trustworthy and generous, leading to more sought-after support from others.
A new game-theoretic model, Blame Game, provides guidance to policymakers on attributing cyber attacks and making strategic decisions. The model suggests that in many cases, nations may rationalize cyber attacks, even under public criticism.
Researchers analyzed conflicts within a captive community of macaque monkeys to understand how agitated individuals can trigger large-scale brawls. They found that a small number of agitated monkeys can destabilize the system, but individual differences among group members may allow for more controlled distance from criticality.
Santa Fe Institute researchers investigated the lower bound of energy required for life and found that smallest species are most protein dense. As cell size increases, RNA concentrations grow, leading to a decrease in protein density, with larger cells eventually reaching an energy limit.
A new study published in Physical Review E presents an optimal search strategy for foragers to maximize resource efficiency. The model suggests that searching a current foraging ground for a time equal to the time it would take to set up and move to a new territory is the most effective approach.
Researchers have developed a new method to interpret the West Antarctic Ice Sheet Divide core, extracting data on sea surface temperatures and tracking climate change. The technique reveals signs of an entropy increase around 10,000 years ago, suggesting human impacts on climate began before the Industrial Revolution.
A new theoretical model shows that dense networks evolve differently depending on the rate of second-neighbor connections. Networks with high copying probabilities exhibit densifying behavior, growing faster than themselves, and an unlimited number of growth transitions related to copying are discovered.
A new recommendation algorithm allows individuals and items to belong to multiple overlapping groups, making it more realistic than existing models. The algorithm's predicted ratings proved more accurate than those from existing systems on five large datasets.
Researchers found that network structure determines success in group problem-solving strategies, and vice versa. Teams should be designed around their learning style to strike the right balance between exploration and exploitation.