Richard Löffler - University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Biography
Title: Observation of complex behaviors in simple dissipative systems
Abstract: Even very simple and small-scale dissipative systems can express relatively complex spatio-temporal patterns with seemingly life-like properties. Furthermore, In this talk I will showcase a few examples of laboratory experiments with both soft and condensed matter systems that are self-propelled on aqueous surfaces. These systems demonstrate that with only minor increases in system complexity, the behavioral complexity can vary or increase significantly. Furthermore, it is striking how easy it feels for the observer to assign imaginary non-trivial goals to these clearly non-living objects. This may indicate that these dissipative systems operate on the verge of goal-directed behavior.
