More Is Different (1972) [pdf]

"Quantity has a quality all its own." (Misattributed to Stalin, probably related to the Marx quote in the paper. https://en.wikiquote.org/w/index.php?title=Joseph_Stalin&old...)

Some stray observations.

"More is Different" is also the slogan of the Nanyang Technological University annual conference on complexity. There are some phenomenal presentations there, many on YouTube.

http://www.ntu.edu.sg/ias/upcomingevents/complexity12/Pages/...

Related to the issue of emergent phenomena is:

Polanyi, Michael. "Life transcending physics and chemistry." Chemical & Engineering News 45.35 (1967): 54.

As someone who was in condensed matter physics, I think this is one of the most important articles for understanding the modern mindset in physics, and even fields like machine learning.

Seeing how something can be based on the rules of something else, but have novel emergent behaviour, opens up a whole new ways of thinking about phenomena.

This is one of the most insightful articles of the last 50 years of physics, and written in a way that nearly anyone with some scientific training can understand.

Aside: Not quite sure why the random ohio state pdf got the link... then went to the original and realized it's _still_ behind a paywall at Science. There is NO good reason to keep it locked up.