More Is Different¶
Anderson, P. W. (1972). More Is Different: Broken Symmetry and the Nature of the Hierarchical Structure of Science. Science, 177(4047), 393-396.
Cited by¶
10 citations across 10 artifacts.
Each citation links to the sentence it supports in the citing article.
Primes¶
- Bottom-Up Perspectives
- Displays the general principle of emergent order
This sourceStrongly interacting many-body systems possess properties not derivable from component-level baselines; the constructionist-hypothesis critique of reduction.
- Displays the general principle of emergent order
- Downward Causation
- George Ellis's work on downward causation in fundamental physics and thermodynamics.
This sourceArgues strongly-interacting many-body systems possess emergent properties not derivable from component baselines; supports D19-089 (emergent collective behaviour and hierarchical structure in physics). NOTE: the pre-existing annotation's 'baseline-plus-deviation framings break down' phrasing is mis-pasted from another prime; corrected here.
- George Ellis's work on downward causation in fundamental physics and thermodynamics.
- Emergence
- Physics and chemistry: Anderson's "More is different" (1972) argued that hierarchical scales of complexity exhibit qualitatively novel behaviors not reducible to lower levels
This sourceArgues strongly-interacting many-body systems possess qualitatively novel properties not derivable from component baselines — directly supports marker 046 (physics/chemistry emergence, phase transitions).
- Physics and chemistry: Anderson's "More is different" (1972) argued that hierarchical scales of complexity exhibit qualitatively novel behaviors not reducible to lower levels
- Hierarchy
- Anderson's 1972 More is Different
This sourceFoundational essay on emergent collective behavior; argues that strongly interacting many-body systems possess properties that cannot be derived from component-level baselines, identifying the regime in which baseline-plus-deviation framings break down.
- Anderson's 1972 More is Different
- Holism
- Physics and emergence: Anderson's "More is Different" (1972)
This sourceFoundational essay on emergent collective behavior; argues that strongly interacting many-body systems possess properties that cannot be derived from component-level baselines, identifying the regime in which baseline-plus-deviation framings break down.
- Physics and emergence: Anderson's "More is Different" (1972)
- Scale
- … reasoning in science and engineering: Galileo's 1638 cube-square argument first articulated that a giant made of the same material as a man would not simply be a bigger man (bone cross-section grows as L² while weight grows as L³, so bones must be disproportionately thick); Anderson's 1972 "More is Different"
This sourceFoundational essay on emergent collective behavior; argues that strongly interacting many-body systems possess properties that cannot be derived from component-level baselines, identifying the regime in which baseline-plus-deviation framings break down.
- … reasoning in science and engineering: Galileo's 1638 cube-square argument first articulated that a giant made of the same material as a man would not simply be a bigger man (bone cross-section grows as L² while weight grows as L³, so bones must be disproportionately thick); Anderson's 1972 "More is Different"
- Scaling and Scale Dependence
- The dominant physics, bottlenecks, and control mechanisms differ at different scales, requiring explicitly scale-appropriate design and intervention, as Anderson (1972) argued in his classic critique of strict reductionism.
This sourceFoundational essay on emergent collective behavior; argues that strongly interacting many-body systems possess properties that cannot be derived from component-level baselines, identifying the regime in which baseline-plus-deviation framings break down.
- The dominant physics, bottlenecks, and control mechanisms differ at different scales, requiring explicitly scale-appropriate design and intervention, as Anderson (1972) argued in his classic critique of strict reductionism.
- Synergy and Antagonism
- Failure mode: the framework is applied to systems whose decomposition is not well-defined, forcing quantitative measurement onto phenomena whose qualitative structure the measurement misrepresents — the situation Anderson (1972) crystallized in "More is Different," where collective behavior at one scale resists reduction to component-level baselines.
This sourceFoundational essay on emergent collective behavior; argues that strongly interacting many-body systems possess properties that cannot be derived from component-level baselines, identifying the regime in which baseline-plus-deviation framings break down.
- Failure mode: the framework is applied to systems whose decomposition is not well-defined, forcing quantitative measurement onto phenomena whose qualitative structure the measurement misrepresents — the situation Anderson (1972) crystallized in "More is Different," where collective behavior at one scale resists reduction to component-level baselines.
Mechanisms¶
- Residual Explanation Review
- The touchstone here is the recognition that "more is different"
This sourceAnderson's 'more is different' argument holds that qualitatively new properties can emerge at larger scales and are not simply readable from elementary constituents.
- The touchstone here is the recognition that "more is different"
- Symmetry Exception Register
- It gives the archetype its escape valve: the pattern preserves the relation by default and breaks it only through this register, echoing how symmetry breaking names the sanctioned, explained departure from an otherwise-preserved symmetry.
This sourceUses symmetry breaking for an explained departure in the realized state from an underlying symmetric relation.
- It gives the archetype its escape valve: the pattern preserves the relation by default and breaks it only through this register, echoing how symmetry breaking names the sanctioned, explained departure from an otherwise-preserved symmetry.
Verification¶
Does it exist? Confirmed. This work's DOI resolves to a registered record, which fixes its identity. That is all it fixes.
Does it back the claim? Not recorded. Neither this nor any other of the 10 citations of this work carries a recorded support check.
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