| The universe is made up of things that interact. From microscopic particles in matter to human minds on the internet, these interactions can produce remarkable examples of “emergence”, or complex behaviour that cannot be predicted from individual parts.
Physicists remain deeply puzzled by emergence, as it produces remarkable properties observed in some materials. The mystery extends beyond physics to the rise of life, the existence of consciousness, and even the spread of internet memes. In this lecture, Prof. Roger Melko will follow common threads connecting these phenomena to the most striking recent example of emergence, artificial intelligence. AI may itself offer new tools for unravelling the mysteries of emergence. Melko will describe how we are already using it to understand and control complex quantum systems, including quantum computers. Finally, he will ask whether a deeper understanding of hierarchies of emergence could allow us to harness it as a scientific and technological resource. |
