More Like this

1. What Makes a Rule Complex

   https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.20191717  

   Oprea, Ryan (December 2021, American economic review)

   We study the complexity of rules by paying experimental subjects to implement a series of algorithms and then eliciting their willingness-to-pay to avoid implementing them again in the future. The design allows us to examine hypotheses from the theoretical “automata” literature about the characteristics of rules that generate complexity costs. We find substantial aversion to complexity and a number of regularities in the characteristics of rules that make them complex and costly for subjects. Experience with a rule, the way a rule is represented, and the context in which a rule is implemented (mentally versus physically) also influence complexity. 

   more » « less
2. A Redox-Switchable, Allosteric Coordination Complex

   https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.8b09321  

   Cheng, Ho Fung; d’Aquino, Andrea I.; Barroso-Flores, Joaquín; Mirkin, Chad A. (October 2018, Journal of the American Chemical Society)
3. Evolution education is a complex landscape

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-019-0802-9  

   Dunk, Ryan D.; Barnes, M. Elizabeth; Reiss, Michael J.; Alters, Brian; Asghar, Anila; Carter, B. Elijah; Cotner, Sehoya; Glaze, Amanda L.; Hawley, Patricia H.; Jensen, Jamie L.; et al (March 2019, Nature Ecology & Evolution)
4. A tendency to simplify complex systems

   https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2019.02.001  

   Montgomery, Robert A.; Moll, Remington J.; Say-Sallaz, Elise; Valeix, Marion; Prugh, Laura R. (May 2019, Biological Conservation)
5. A sweet solution to complex microprinting

   https://doi.org/10.1126/science.ade6722  

   Johnson, Blake N. (November 2022, Science)

   Design and manufacturing processes that modify surfaces have seen rapid development in recent years ( 1 – 4 ). Besides aesthetics, these modifications can add new functionalities to an object. For example, the regular arrangement of modifications on a surface (periodic structuring) is used to create chemical sensors, cloaking devices, and optical fibers, among other tools ( 5 ). Despite the versatility of surface modification techniques, such as direct transfer, three-dimensional (3D) printing, and “wrapping,” there are limitations associated with properties of the functional components and target objects, as well as from the desired deposition patterns. On page 894 of this issue, Zabow ( 6 ) presents a relatively simple approach for transferring arrays of diverse functional components onto objects with complex 3D geometries. The method uses a familiar material—table sugar—in a “reflow” process that leverages sugar’s melting and dissolving properties to create a flowable “stamp.” 

   more » « less