Bernardo A. Huberman and Tad Hogg
Dynamics of Computation Group
Xerox Palo Alto Research Center
Palo Alto, CA 94304
hogg@parc.xerox.com
@INCOLLECTION {,
AUTHOR = "Bernardo A. Huberman and Tad Hogg",
TITLE = "The Emergence of Computational Ecologies",
BOOKTITLE = "1992 Lectures in Complex Systems",
EDITOR = "Lynn Nadel and Daniel Stein",
PAGES = "185-205",
SERIES = "SFI Studies in the Sciences of Complexity",
VOLUME = "V",
PUBLISHER = "Addison-Wesley",
ADDRESS = "Reading, MA",
YEAR = "1993"}
We describe a form of distributed computation in which agents have
incomplete knowledge and imperfect information on the state of the
system, and an instantiation of such systems based on market mechanisms.
When agents can choose among several resources, the dynamics of the
system can be oscillatory and even chaotic. A mechanism is described for
achieving global stability through local controls.
postcript (594K, 22 pages, available on-line only within Xerox)