Reviews
"Complexity, the theory that sees order arising naturally from the most complex systems, is being further plumbed by Oxford's At Home in the Universe by MacArthur Fellow and member of the influential Santa Fe Institute Stuart Kauffman, who applies the theory to business, politics, andeconomics."--Publishers Weekly, "Both passionate and personal, At Home in the Universe is a rigorously written argument that life is an inevitable result rather than a happy accident."--Across the Board, "Kauffman has done more than anyone else to supply the key missing piece of the propensity for self-organization that can join the random and the deterministic forces of evolution into a satisfactory theory of life's order."--Stephen Jay Gould, Harvard University, "One of the pioneers of complexity theory is Stuart Kauffman, who lays out its rudiments in an accessible way with this challenging and audacious book.... Mr. Kauffman is at work on one of the oldest puzzles in human thought: why is there order in nature?"--The Economist, "Courageous....I guarantee that any reader whose imagination has survived an academic education--or has never been exposed to one--will learn a lot, and be changed forever."--Ian Stewart,Nature "A new and far-reaching theory of order in the universe, introduced by a pioneer in that theory's development."--The Washington Post Book World "Kauffman has done more than anyone else to supply the key missing piece of the propensity for self-organization that can join the random and the deterministic forces of evolution into a satisfactory theory of life's order."--Stephen Jay Gould, author ofThe Panda's Thumb, "Just as the known laws of physics dictate a snowflake's exquisite six-pointed symmetry, [Kauffman] suggests, this natural order explains everything from the superiority of democracy and the path of technological development to the existence of life itself.... What most excites Kauffman is thenotion that life is the inevitable result of nature's hidden order.... A provocative quest."--Business Week, "Offers a new and far-reaching theory of order in the universe, introducedby a pioneer in that theory's development."--The Washington Post BookWorld, "Kauffman has done more than anyone else to supply the key missing pieceof the propensity for self-organization that can join the random and thedeterministic forces of evolution into a satisfactory theory of life'sorder."--Stephen Jay Gould, Harvard University, "Stuart Kauffman, backed by a remarkable erudition, a keen imagination and a sensitive perception takes a fresh look at who we are and how we got that way."--Integrative Physiological and Behavioral Science, "Complexity, the theory that sees order arising naturally from the mostcomplex systems, is being further plumbed by Oxford's At Home in the Universe byMacArthur Fellow and member of the influential Santa Fe Institute StuartKauffman, who applies the theory to business, politics, andeconomics."--Publishers Weekly, "Offers a new and far-reaching theory of order in the universe, introduced by a pioneer in that theory's development."--The Washington Post Book World, "For anyone--including earnest 14-year-olds--interested in big questions about science, history, and our place in the cosmos, At Home in the Universe offers an unparalleled combination of graceful writing, clear exposition, respect for the reader's intelligence, and the thrill of seeing theworld anew.... Stuart Kauffman has changed the terms in which thoughtful people will discuss the nature of evolution and natural law."--Steven Postrel of the Kellogg Graduate School of Management in Reason, "Courageous....I guarantee that any reader whose imagination has survived an academic education--or has never been exposed to one--will learn a lot, and be changed forever."--Ian Stewart, Nature "A new and far-reaching theory of order in the universe, introduced by a pioneer in that theory's development."--The Washington Post Book World "Kauffman has done more than anyone else to supply the key missing piece of the propensity for self-organization that can join the random and the deterministic forces of evolution into a satisfactory theory of life's order."--Stephen Jay Gould, author of The Panda's Thumb, "An important new argument on how the laws of nature extract order from chaos. Potential applications to almost all fields of knowledge."--Carl Sagan, The Washington Post, "This is a courageous book. It has a distinct spiritual focus, not in the religious sense, but in the sense of 'why are we here?' When coupled with an unorthodox message that is unavoidably critical of much mainstream science, the combination is dynamite.... Kauffman sings his song loud andlong, from the origins of life to the emergence of a global civilization.... I guarantee that any reader whose imagination has survived an academic education--or has never been exposed to one--will learn a lot, and be changed forever."--Ian Stewart, Nature, "Stuart Kauffman lucidly argues that, in addition to Darwinian selection,another force, the emergence of self-organized order from apparent chaosdetermines the beautiful systems that make up the world and cosmos. He contendsthat emergent order is a feature of many complex systems and general laws thatmay be defined from their study. It is an exciting and well-writtenvolume."--Barry Blumberg, Fox Chase Cancer Research Center and NobelLaureate, "One of the pioneers of complexity theory is Stuart Kauffman, who lays outits rudiments in an accessible way with this challenging and audacious book....Mr. Kauffman is at work on one of the oldest puzzles in human thought: why isthere order in nature?"--The Economist, "Courageous....I guarantee that any reader whose imagination has survived an academic education--or has never been exposed to one--will learn a lot, and be changed forever."--Ian Stewart, Nature"A new and far-reaching theory of order in the universe, introduced by a pioneer in that theory's development."--The Washington Post Book World"Kauffman has done more than anyone else to supply the key missing piece of the propensity for self-organization that can join the random and the deterministic forces of evolution into a satisfactory theory of life's order."--Stephen Jay Gould, author of The Panda's Thumb
