Talk Topic: Engineering and Management Beyond the Complexity Threshold
Yaneer Bar-Yam, New England Complex Systems Institute
June 27, 2007

Abstract
Large engineering projects regularly fail. In this presentation I will describe the historical failure of engineering projects and how their failure reflects on the inadequacy of conventional management and engineering practices. We will discuss advances in the science of complex systems that both explain the failures and reveal how to avoid falling into the traditional engineering trap---that often overtakes successful projects as they mature---and instead to use distributed management and evolutionary engineering. These issues mirror the overall changes of society and the growth of networks. We need to understand these changes in order to address challenges in engineering as well as addressing other societal concerns, locally and globally, in effective healthcare, sustainable development, and environmental protection.

More Information

Papers:
http://necsi.org/research/engineering/
http://necsi.org/research/management/

Textbook:
http://necsi.org/education/bkdyn.html
http://necsi.org/education/programs/dyn-fulltext.html