Two's Company, Three is Complexity

Complexity is a subject which makes it into many popular science books, but this is often not written by those doing the research. Two's Company, Three is Complexity is a non-technical account of complexity science written by Neil Johnson, who is an active researcher in the subject. The book includes a look at the formation of crowds as well as anti-crowds. There are also chapters on traffic flow, on financial markets and on the difficulties of finding a partner. The study of biological networks is an important part of complexity science, and Johnson describes work on the distribution of nutrients in fungi as well as looking at work which may lead to new treatments for cancer. At the end of the book Johnson takes a look at quantum entanglement, and the new forms of complexity which this implies.

I felt, though, that this book doesn't present the subject in the most interesting way. Naturally a book like this should avoid too much mathematics, but instead Johnson seems to get bogged down with a metaphor about moivng a file up and down on shelves, which doesn't seem to lead anywhere. Also, I would have liked to hear more of the results of research - Johnson describes what work is being done, but there isn't so much of the sometimes counterintuitive outcomes one has come to expect from complexity science. I feel that the book would have been bette if had been written from a more personal viewpoint - what challenges Johnson has faced, who are the upcoming people in the subject, and the like. On the plus side, the book does have an extensive list of recent research papers, and if you were planning to read some of these then this book would be a useful intoduction to the subject.