According to decades of behavioral experiments, humans defy logic.
Maybe that's not irrationality; maybe it's better math waiting to be found. Or just to be used to describe non-classical decisions, w/o need for quantum brains.
#ComplexityThoughts
manlius.substack.com/p/the-unreas...
Maybe that's not irrationality; maybe it's better math waiting to be found. Or just to be used to describe non-classical decisions, w/o need for quantum brains.
#ComplexityThoughts
manlius.substack.com/p/the-unreas...
The unreasonable math of decisions? Part I
Non-classical behaviors without quantum brains
manlius.substack.com
November 9, 2025 at 3:53 PM
According to decades of behavioral experiments, humans defy logic.
Maybe that's not irrationality; maybe it's better math waiting to be found. Or just to be used to describe non-classical decisions, w/o need for quantum brains.
#ComplexityThoughts
manlius.substack.com/p/the-unreas...
Maybe that's not irrationality; maybe it's better math waiting to be found. Or just to be used to describe non-classical decisions, w/o need for quantum brains.
#ComplexityThoughts
manlius.substack.com/p/the-unreas...
What connects molecules, ecosystems, brains and societies?
Exactly 1y ago, I captured that question in this video, showing how simple mechanisms generate the complexity of life and behavior.
Now heading towards the 3rd birthday of #ComplexityThoughts: unbelievable.
#Complexity #NetworkScience
Exactly 1y ago, I captured that question in this video, showing how simple mechanisms generate the complexity of life and behavior.
Now heading towards the 3rd birthday of #ComplexityThoughts: unbelievable.
#Complexity #NetworkScience
Why #ComplexitySci is fascinating?
#ComplexSystems are ubiquitous!🧬🦠🧫🔬🐠🦜🧠🌪️🧪
And provide an analytical framework to study the behavior of phys, bio, eco, human & artificial systems #AcademicSky
Curious? I write about them 👉 #ComplexityThoughts: manlius.substack.com
www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8Sv...
#ComplexSystems are ubiquitous!🧬🦠🧫🔬🐠🦜🧠🌪️🧪
And provide an analytical framework to study the behavior of phys, bio, eco, human & artificial systems #AcademicSky
Curious? I write about them 👉 #ComplexityThoughts: manlius.substack.com
www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8Sv...
Complexity Thoughts
YouTube video by Manlio De Domenico
www.youtube.com
October 27, 2025 at 10:36 AM
What connects molecules, ecosystems, brains and societies?
Exactly 1y ago, I captured that question in this video, showing how simple mechanisms generate the complexity of life and behavior.
Now heading towards the 3rd birthday of #ComplexityThoughts: unbelievable.
#Complexity #NetworkScience
Exactly 1y ago, I captured that question in this video, showing how simple mechanisms generate the complexity of life and behavior.
Now heading towards the 3rd birthday of #ComplexityThoughts: unbelievable.
#Complexity #NetworkScience
Enjoy exploring how complexity shapes our world?
Join ~ 3,000 readers, practitioners, researchers, and curious minds. Recent posts are always free to read:
🔗 manlius.substack.com
#ComplexityThoughts #ComplexSystems #NetworkScience #Resilience #SystemsThinking
Join ~ 3,000 readers, practitioners, researchers, and curious minds. Recent posts are always free to read:
🔗 manlius.substack.com
#ComplexityThoughts #ComplexSystems #NetworkScience #Resilience #SystemsThinking
Complexity Thoughts | Manlio De Domenico, Ph.D. | Substack
Making sense of reality and sharing my view on networks, from cells to societies. Complexity, network science and artificial intelligence for public health and a sustainable society. Applications from...
manlius.substack.com
October 26, 2025 at 9:34 AM
Enjoy exploring how complexity shapes our world?
Join ~ 3,000 readers, practitioners, researchers, and curious minds. Recent posts are always free to read:
🔗 manlius.substack.com
#ComplexityThoughts #ComplexSystems #NetworkScience #Resilience #SystemsThinking
Join ~ 3,000 readers, practitioners, researchers, and curious minds. Recent posts are always free to read:
🔗 manlius.substack.com
#ComplexityThoughts #ComplexSystems #NetworkScience #Resilience #SystemsThinking
A microscopic organism can survive the vacuum of space: yet our infrastructures collapse under a summer storm.
Why? 👉 Because structure isn’t enough.
Resilience depends on functionality.
And we need a lot of network science to grasp it.
📖 manlius.substack.com/p/making-sen...
#ComplexityThoughts
Why? 👉 Because structure isn’t enough.
Resilience depends on functionality.
And we need a lot of network science to grasp it.
📖 manlius.substack.com/p/making-sen...
#ComplexityThoughts
Making sense of complex systems functionality
What slime molds, neural systems and quantum physics have in common?
manlius.substack.com
October 26, 2025 at 9:34 AM
A microscopic organism can survive the vacuum of space: yet our infrastructures collapse under a summer storm.
Why? 👉 Because structure isn’t enough.
Resilience depends on functionality.
And we need a lot of network science to grasp it.
📖 manlius.substack.com/p/making-sen...
#ComplexityThoughts
Why? 👉 Because structure isn’t enough.
Resilience depends on functionality.
And we need a lot of network science to grasp it.
📖 manlius.substack.com/p/making-sen...
#ComplexityThoughts
Curious? Intrigued?
Follow or subscribe (for free) at #ComplexityThoughts
👉 manlius.substack.com
to read the full post and more threads like this.
Or listen to our podcast on Spotify and Apple 🎧
Thanks for reading up to here 🙏
Follow or subscribe (for free) at #ComplexityThoughts
👉 manlius.substack.com
to read the full post and more threads like this.
Or listen to our podcast on Spotify and Apple 🎧
Thanks for reading up to here 🙏
October 19, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Curious? Intrigued?
Follow or subscribe (for free) at #ComplexityThoughts
👉 manlius.substack.com
to read the full post and more threads like this.
Or listen to our podcast on Spotify and Apple 🎧
Thanks for reading up to here 🙏
Follow or subscribe (for free) at #ComplexityThoughts
👉 manlius.substack.com
to read the full post and more threads like this.
Or listen to our podcast on Spotify and Apple 🎧
Thanks for reading up to here 🙏
When change moves faster than systems can adapt, they tip
Our culture of “now-ism” risks pushing climate, economies and societies past their limits
The latest #ComplexityThoughts:
👉 manlius.substack.com/p/how-modern...
🎧 on Spotify and Apple
#ComplexSystems #Resilience
@ricardsole.bsky.social
Our culture of “now-ism” risks pushing climate, economies and societies past their limits
The latest #ComplexityThoughts:
👉 manlius.substack.com/p/how-modern...
🎧 on Spotify and Apple
#ComplexSystems #Resilience
@ricardsole.bsky.social
How modern “now-ism“ can accelerate crises in climate, finance and ecosystems
Slowing change may be our last line of defense
manlius.substack.com
October 13, 2025 at 6:17 AM
When change moves faster than systems can adapt, they tip
Our culture of “now-ism” risks pushing climate, economies and societies past their limits
The latest #ComplexityThoughts:
👉 manlius.substack.com/p/how-modern...
🎧 on Spotify and Apple
#ComplexSystems #Resilience
@ricardsole.bsky.social
Our culture of “now-ism” risks pushing climate, economies and societies past their limits
The latest #ComplexityThoughts:
👉 manlius.substack.com/p/how-modern...
🎧 on Spotify and Apple
#ComplexSystems #Resilience
@ricardsole.bsky.social
This is very interesting, Ricard.
Once you got it published on a journal, please get in touch: it could provide a nice trigger for a #ComplexityThoughts post.
Once you got it published on a journal, please get in touch: it could provide a nice trigger for a #ComplexityThoughts post.
October 1, 2025 at 8:28 AM
This is very interesting, Ricard.
Once you got it published on a journal, please get in touch: it could provide a nice trigger for a #ComplexityThoughts post.
Once you got it published on a journal, please get in touch: it could provide a nice trigger for a #ComplexityThoughts post.
Can a Netflix series teach us something important not about the ancient past, but about how we create and evaluate knowledge today?
Göbekli Tepe, underground cities, ancient deluges and Bayes theorem.
An unusual #ComplexityThoughts essay this week. Curious?
👉 open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
Göbekli Tepe, underground cities, ancient deluges and Bayes theorem.
An unusual #ComplexityThoughts essay this week. Curious?
👉 open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
Lost civilizations and the science of knowing what we don’t know
The most extraordinary claims need the most extraordinary evidence
open.substack.com
September 19, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Can a Netflix series teach us something important not about the ancient past, but about how we create and evaluate knowledge today?
Göbekli Tepe, underground cities, ancient deluges and Bayes theorem.
An unusual #ComplexityThoughts essay this week. Curious?
👉 open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
Göbekli Tepe, underground cities, ancient deluges and Bayes theorem.
An unusual #ComplexityThoughts essay this week. Curious?
👉 open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
A super-interesting new issue of #ComplexityThoughts out!
🧪🌐🧬🌍
🔗 Read: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎙️ As usual, it’s accompanied by a podcast episode where we explain complex results in a clear, accessible way, almost like “pop science” for complexity: creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
🧪🌐🧬🌍
🔗 Read: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎙️ As usual, it’s accompanied by a podcast episode where we explain complex results in a clear, accessible way, almost like “pop science” for complexity: creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
Complexity Thoughts: Issue #67
Unraveling complexity: building knowledge, one paper at a time
open.substack.com
September 12, 2025 at 4:33 PM
A super-interesting new issue of #ComplexityThoughts out!
🧪🌐🧬🌍
🔗 Read: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎙️ As usual, it’s accompanied by a podcast episode where we explain complex results in a clear, accessible way, almost like “pop science” for complexity: creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
🧪🌐🧬🌍
🔗 Read: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎙️ As usual, it’s accompanied by a podcast episode where we explain complex results in a clear, accessible way, almost like “pop science” for complexity: creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
Platforms, financial interests, human behavior at individual and collective levels, interconnectedness: the perfect mix of ingredients for a complex system that requires systemic solutions well beyond linear thinking.
New piece out in #ComplexityThoughts:
manlius.substack.com/p/competing-...
New piece out in #ComplexityThoughts:
manlius.substack.com/p/competing-...
Competing with pseudoscience in algorithmic ecosystems
The complex trade-off between the abundance of information and the scarcity of attention
manlius.substack.com
August 22, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Platforms, financial interests, human behavior at individual and collective levels, interconnectedness: the perfect mix of ingredients for a complex system that requires systemic solutions well beyond linear thinking.
New piece out in #ComplexityThoughts:
manlius.substack.com/p/competing-...
New piece out in #ComplexityThoughts:
manlius.substack.com/p/competing-...
If you caught some of my summer‑conference sessions, you’ve already seen how the network density matrix and emergent latent geometry let us quantify a system's functionality.
While I finish an updated post, here's a concise #ComplexityThoughts refresher 👇
#NetworkScience #ComplexSystems
While I finish an updated post, here's a concise #ComplexityThoughts refresher 👇
#NetworkScience #ComplexSystems
Less is more, more is different and sparse is better: but why?
The answer can come from an unexpected connection with the statistical physics of quantum systems
manlius.substack.com
July 23, 2025 at 12:54 PM
If you caught some of my summer‑conference sessions, you’ve already seen how the network density matrix and emergent latent geometry let us quantify a system's functionality.
While I finish an updated post, here's a concise #ComplexityThoughts refresher 👇
#NetworkScience #ComplexSystems
While I finish an updated post, here's a concise #ComplexityThoughts refresher 👇
#NetworkScience #ComplexSystems
#ComplexityThoughts is going to reach 3k readers on Substack: this is beyond my starting expectations, given the format.
If you enjoy reading it, you might want to spread the word about it among your friends and peers!
🙏 for following us
If you enjoy reading it, you might want to spread the word about it among your friends and peers!
🙏 for following us
July 11, 2025 at 7:41 AM
#ComplexityThoughts is going to reach 3k readers on Substack: this is beyond my starting expectations, given the format.
If you enjoy reading it, you might want to spread the word about it among your friends and peers!
🙏 for following us
If you enjoy reading it, you might want to spread the word about it among your friends and peers!
🙏 for following us
Even if I'll be traveling today, the Issue #64 of #ComplexityThoughts will be published as usual:
📝 Post: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 Spotify: creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
🎧 Apple: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...
👀 RSS: manlius.substack.com/feed
👉 Like it? Join us! It's free.
📝 Post: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 Spotify: creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
🎧 Apple: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...
👀 RSS: manlius.substack.com/feed
👉 Like it? Join us! It's free.
Complexity Thoughts: Issue #64
Unraveling complexity: building knowledge, one paper at a time
open.substack.com
July 11, 2025 at 7:41 AM
Even if I'll be traveling today, the Issue #64 of #ComplexityThoughts will be published as usual:
📝 Post: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 Spotify: creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
🎧 Apple: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...
👀 RSS: manlius.substack.com/feed
👉 Like it? Join us! It's free.
📝 Post: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 Spotify: creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
🎧 Apple: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/c...
👀 RSS: manlius.substack.com/feed
👉 Like it? Join us! It's free.
#ComplexityThoughts back after 1 month. Did you miss it?
A dozen of amazing papers – covering foundations, evolution, ecosystems and even #AI – is waiting for you.
#ComplexSystems #NetworkScience 🧪🌐🧬🦠
manlius.substack.com/p/complexity...
A dozen of amazing papers – covering foundations, evolution, ecosystems and even #AI – is waiting for you.
#ComplexSystems #NetworkScience 🧪🌐🧬🦠
manlius.substack.com/p/complexity...
June 26, 2025 at 3:11 PM
#ComplexityThoughts back after 1 month. Did you miss it?
A dozen of amazing papers – covering foundations, evolution, ecosystems and even #AI – is waiting for you.
#ComplexSystems #NetworkScience 🧪🌐🧬🦠
manlius.substack.com/p/complexity...
A dozen of amazing papers – covering foundations, evolution, ecosystems and even #AI – is waiting for you.
#ComplexSystems #NetworkScience 🧪🌐🧬🦠
manlius.substack.com/p/complexity...
Model-free is never free, at best is hidden.
Many methods are powerful, and most of them work very well. Within the basin of their assumptions. 🧪
#ComplexityThoughts #ComplexSystems
open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
Many methods are powerful, and most of them work very well. Within the basin of their assumptions. 🧪
#ComplexityThoughts #ComplexSystems
open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
“Model-free“ analysis of a complex system. Part II
Or: when you don't even see what your model is
open.substack.com
June 25, 2025 at 12:25 PM
Model-free is never free, at best is hidden.
Many methods are powerful, and most of them work very well. Within the basin of their assumptions. 🧪
#ComplexityThoughts #ComplexSystems
open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
Many methods are powerful, and most of them work very well. Within the basin of their assumptions. 🧪
#ComplexityThoughts #ComplexSystems
open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
No time to summarize 2.5h lecture in a few posts
Some of the most important messages can be found by reading #ComplexityThoughts at manlius.substack.com and by reading our paper w/ @piratepeel.bsky.social @tiago.skewed.de at www.nature.com/articles/s41...
If you are in Maastricht, say hello
/fin
Some of the most important messages can be found by reading #ComplexityThoughts at manlius.substack.com and by reading our paper w/ @piratepeel.bsky.social @tiago.skewed.de at www.nature.com/articles/s41...
If you are in Maastricht, say hello
/fin
June 2, 2025 at 3:46 PM
No time to summarize 2.5h lecture in a few posts
Some of the most important messages can be found by reading #ComplexityThoughts at manlius.substack.com and by reading our paper w/ @piratepeel.bsky.social @tiago.skewed.de at www.nature.com/articles/s41...
If you are in Maastricht, say hello
/fin
Some of the most important messages can be found by reading #ComplexityThoughts at manlius.substack.com and by reading our paper w/ @piratepeel.bsky.social @tiago.skewed.de at www.nature.com/articles/s41...
If you are in Maastricht, say hello
/fin
It was a pleasure to lecture at the @netsciconf.bsky.social for an interested & interactive audience.
What's a model? Why do we model? Is our network a network? Can we restore broken and forgotten links?
I will post on #ComplexityThoughts about this lecture, which I have enjoyed to prepare.
🧵 1/
What's a model? Why do we model? Is our network a network? Can we restore broken and forgotten links?
I will post on #ComplexityThoughts about this lecture, which I have enjoyed to prepare.
🧵 1/
June 2, 2025 at 3:46 PM
It was a pleasure to lecture at the @netsciconf.bsky.social for an interested & interactive audience.
What's a model? Why do we model? Is our network a network? Can we restore broken and forgotten links?
I will post on #ComplexityThoughts about this lecture, which I have enjoyed to prepare.
🧵 1/
What's a model? Why do we model? Is our network a network? Can we restore broken and forgotten links?
I will post on #ComplexityThoughts about this lecture, which I have enjoyed to prepare.
🧵 1/
Preparing my next @netsciconf.bsky.social School lecture.
There are several #ComplexityThoughts I'll unpack across 2.5 hours (and many liquids).
💡 One spoiler: all unreliable networks are alike; each reliable network is reliable in its own way.
See you in Maastricht. #NetSky
There are several #ComplexityThoughts I'll unpack across 2.5 hours (and many liquids).
💡 One spoiler: all unreliable networks are alike; each reliable network is reliable in its own way.
See you in Maastricht. #NetSky
May 14, 2025 at 9:20 AM
Preparing my next @netsciconf.bsky.social School lecture.
There are several #ComplexityThoughts I'll unpack across 2.5 hours (and many liquids).
💡 One spoiler: all unreliable networks are alike; each reliable network is reliable in its own way.
See you in Maastricht. #NetSky
There are several #ComplexityThoughts I'll unpack across 2.5 hours (and many liquids).
💡 One spoiler: all unreliable networks are alike; each reliable network is reliable in its own way.
See you in Maastricht. #NetSky
(Trying to) Measuring consciousness in the lab?
The latest essay from #ComplexityThoughts feat. @wiringthebrain.bsky.social & @kordinglab.bsky.social to discuss about consciousness and how to define/measure it:
👉 open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com...
1/
The latest essay from #ComplexityThoughts feat. @wiringthebrain.bsky.social & @kordinglab.bsky.social to discuss about consciousness and how to define/measure it:
👉 open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com...
1/
(Trying to) Measuring consciousness in the lab
What did we learn from a rigorous adversarial test?
open.substack.com
May 8, 2025 at 7:33 AM
(Trying to) Measuring consciousness in the lab?
The latest essay from #ComplexityThoughts feat. @wiringthebrain.bsky.social & @kordinglab.bsky.social to discuss about consciousness and how to define/measure it:
👉 open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com...
1/
The latest essay from #ComplexityThoughts feat. @wiringthebrain.bsky.social & @kordinglab.bsky.social to discuss about consciousness and how to define/measure it:
👉 open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com...
1/
This smells like the subject of a dedicated #ComplexityThoughts
@pessoabrain.bsky.social @wiringthebrain.bsky.social @kordinglab.bsky.social @nicolecrust.bsky.social you in for an interview?
@pessoabrain.bsky.social @wiringthebrain.bsky.social @kordinglab.bsky.social @nicolecrust.bsky.social you in for an interview?
May 1, 2025 at 6:31 AM
This smells like the subject of a dedicated #ComplexityThoughts
@pessoabrain.bsky.social @wiringthebrain.bsky.social @kordinglab.bsky.social @nicolecrust.bsky.social you in for an interview?
@pessoabrain.bsky.social @wiringthebrain.bsky.social @kordinglab.bsky.social @nicolecrust.bsky.social you in for an interview?
Do you think it might be worth a post for #ComplexityThoughts?
Similar in spirit to this one:
open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
Similar in spirit to this one:
open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
“Model-free“ analysis of a complex system. Part II
Or: when you don't even see what your model is
open.substack.com
April 20, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Do you think it might be worth a post for #ComplexityThoughts?
Similar in spirit to this one:
open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
Similar in spirit to this one:
open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
That's an interesting take. One could argue that such structures live at some NESS in general, or that they are driven far from equilibrium by environmental conditions.
I like the metaphor of time crystals:I will reach out soon for a post to #ComplexityThoughts!
I like the metaphor of time crystals:I will reach out soon for a post to #ComplexityThoughts!
April 14, 2025 at 5:42 AM
That's an interesting take. One could argue that such structures live at some NESS in general, or that they are driven far from equilibrium by environmental conditions.
I like the metaphor of time crystals:I will reach out soon for a post to #ComplexityThoughts!
I like the metaphor of time crystals:I will reach out soon for a post to #ComplexityThoughts!
As we enter an era marked by multipolar power dynamics, shifting alliances and institutional stress, the possibility of sudden breakdowns in global governance becomes real.
New #ComplexityThoughts: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com...
New #ComplexityThoughts: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com...
Fragile balances: understanding global stability
Predicting the fate of world order using a toy model
open.substack.com
April 9, 2025 at 5:49 PM
As we enter an era marked by multipolar power dynamics, shifting alliances and institutional stress, the possibility of sudden breakdowns in global governance becomes real.
New #ComplexityThoughts: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com...
New #ComplexityThoughts: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com...
New #ComplexityThoughts out there, about the resurgence of measles in the U.S.
Post: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
👉 With links to interactive experiments to better understand the complexity behind this process.
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com... (also available via Apple)
#EpiSky
Post: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
👉 With links to interactive experiments to better understand the complexity behind this process.
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com... (also available via Apple)
#EpiSky
April 8, 2025 at 3:54 PM
New #ComplexityThoughts out there, about the resurgence of measles in the U.S.
Post: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
👉 With links to interactive experiments to better understand the complexity behind this process.
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com... (also available via Apple)
#EpiSky
Post: open.substack.com/pub/manlius/...
👉 With links to interactive experiments to better understand the complexity behind this process.
🎧 creators.spotify.com/pod/show/com... (also available via Apple)
#EpiSky
That's very kind from you and I am glad you like the #ComplexityThoughts!
🙏
🙏
April 4, 2025 at 4:38 PM
That's very kind from you and I am glad you like the #ComplexityThoughts!
🙏
🙏