I’ve sought to summarise the ideas and arguments of this compact and compelling summation of complexity theory in 2 sections each with 3 parts.
The 1st section I’ve named ‘The landscape and origins of complexity theory’ and its first part ‘The complexity worldview’ - contrasts its perspective of multiple & unpredictable non-linear causality with our dominant mechanical world view of simple linear causality and predictive certainty. Section 2 ‘Philosophical and scientific origins’, locates pre-Socratic philosophy, Buddhism and Taoism as its earliest expression and Theoretical physics as its most contemporary foundation. Finally, section 3 ‘Forests bringing theory to life’ illustrates complexities key concepts through the real-life observation of forests.
The section I’ve named ‘Complexity and the human world’ and its first part ‘Complexity what’s the point’ makes the case for complexity as a more realistic and therefore valuable perspective from which we can both understand the world and act upon it. Section 2 ‘Complexity for understanding’ further develops this by highlighting flaws in our exiting thinking and identifying areas it makes explicable where it wasn’t before. Finally, section 3 ‘Complexity for action’ sets out how human agency is built into its theory and has been practically applied’