This book; which resulted from an intensive discourse between experts from several disciplines ndash; complexity theorists; cognitive scientists; philosophers; urban planners and urban designers; as well as a zoologist and a physiologist ndash; addresses various issues regarding cities. It is a first step in responding to the challenge of generating just such a discourse; based on a dilemma identified in the CTC (Complexity Theories of Cities) domain. The latter has demonstrated that cities exhibit the properties of natural; organic complex systems: they are open; complex and bottom-up; have fractal structures and are often chaotic. CTC have further shown that many of the mathematical formalisms and models developed to study material and organic complex systems also apply to cities. The dilemma in the current state of CTC is that cities differ from natural complex systems in that they are hybrid complex systems composed; on the one hand; of artifacts such as buildings; roads and bridges; and of natural human agents on the other. This raises a plethora of new questions on the difference between the natural and the artificial; the cognitive origin of human action and behavior; and the role of planning and designing cities. The answers to these questions cannot come from a single discipline; they must instead emerge from a discourse between experts from several disciplines engaged in CTC.
#1593551 in eBooks 2016-05-18 2016-05-18File Name: B01FVXP5MS
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. He love. loveBy Leslie L. BellThis was a gift for a friend who reads all of Jerry Apps books and watches him on the Public Broadcasting Channel. He love. love. loved this book. The photographs are splendid. A beautiful book.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Wonderful "coffee table" bookBy Steven R. PeltonWonderful "coffee table" book. with stunning nature photos of every season and brief stories from Jerrys journal of 50 years of life on the old farm.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Could That Flower Really Be As Beautiful in Life As It is in this Book?By James GallenThe background is straightforward. Author Jerry Apps has owned his Central Wisconsin farm for 50 years during which he has kept a diary and collected pictures of nature. The format is simple: 1-3 dated quotes form the diary that mesh with color photos from the property. The results are priceless. The thoughtful reflections of a careful observer and the photographic art of a skilled professional gently lead the reader from Spring to Summer to Autumn and Winter.Some diary excerpts are touching. as when the young man tells of his years of deer hunting with his 90 year old Dad and his 8 year old son who then. as an old man. carries on the tradition with that same. now grown son. Others engender a jealously of a man who can observe such variety and write so descriptively:ldquo;In the last couple of weeks my prairie has turned from green to yellow and blue as the sea of goldenrods are in their glory and the blazing star flowers add a subtle blue as counterpoint to the yellow. It is a sight to behold-a spiritual harvest of color.rdquo;The pictures are exquisite. As one would expect from Steve Apps. the 8 year old hunter turned man and photographer for the Wisconsin State Journal. the focus. colors and the action waiting to happen all grab your attention and draw you in to look for each detail. How many colors are in that field? Where does that path in the woods lead? Is that sky really on fire? Could that flower really be as beautiful in life as it is in the book? The snow by the barn and on the woodpile almost chills me on this hot summer day. Which picture is my favorite? That is hard to pick. but I would say the one of the turtles sunning themselves on the branch emerging from the pond. I have always had a soft spot for turtles since meeting one on my aunt and unclersquo;s farm.The turning of the seasons produced a flow of emotions as I paged from one to another. The first is awe at the beauty of nature revealed in this work. I next felt a rising tide of envy directed at a family who has such a place to enjoy and share. The envy then ebbed into a serene gratitude as I came to appreciate that my familyrsquo;s traditions and experiences. though different. are just as precious. and just as binding as those of the Apps family.ldquo;Roshara Journalrdquo; is a treasure to absorb. Go through a few pages and then put it down. Let them sink in before you move on. When you get to the end. set it aside. but not too far away. Pick it up now and then to savor and enjoy.I did receive a free copy of this book to read and review.
