This book contains the manuscripts of the papers delivered at the International Sym­ posium on Synergetics held at SchloB Elmau, Bavaria, Germany, from April 30 until May 5, 1979. This conference followed several previous ones (Elmau 1972, Sicily 1974, Elmau 1977). This time the subject of the symposium was "pattern formation by dynam­ ic systems and pattern recognition". The meeting brought together scientists from such diverse fields as mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, history as well as experts in the fields of pattern recognition and associative memory. When I started this type of conference in 1972 it appeared to be a daring enter­ prise. Indeed, we began to explore virgin land of science: the systematic study of cooperative effects in physical systems far from equi~ibrium and in other disciplines. Though these meetings were attended by scientists from quite different disciplines, a basic concept and even a common language were found from the very beginning. The idea that there exist profound analogies in the behaviour of large classes of complex systems, though the systems themselves may be quite different, proved to be most fruitful. I was delighted to see that over the past one or two years quite similar conferences were now held in various places allover the world. The inclusion of prob­ lems of pattern recognition at the present meeting is a novel feature, however.

Inhalt

I. Introduction.- Pattern Formation and Pattern Recognition - An Attempt at a Synthesis.- II. Temporal Patterns: Laser Oscillations and Other Quantum-Optical Effects.- Atomic Cooperation in Quantum Optics: Superfluorescence and Optical Bistability.- Experimental Aspects of Transition Phenomena in Quantum Optics.- Laser with Saturable Absorber. Fluctuations and Stability.- III. Pattern Formation in Fluids.- Patterns of Convection in Plane Layers and in Spherical Shells.- Laserlike Approach to the Dynamics of the Rayleigh-Bénard and the Soret-Driven Instabilities.- Phase Locking in the Oscillations Leading to Turbulence.- IV. Turbulence and Chaos.- A Simplified Theory of Intermittent Fully-Developed Turbulence.- Chaos and Its Description.- V. Pattern Recognition and Pattern Formation in Biology.- Figure-Ground Discrimination by the Visual System of the Fly.- A Theory of Drug Induced Visual Hallucination Patterns.- Physiological Mechanisms for the Perception of Random Dot Moiré Patterns.- Similarities Between Pattern Formation and Pattern Recognition (Interpretation) During Biological Development.- Electrical Effects in Nonlinear Physico-Chemical Systems: Field Chemical Wave Interaction and Bio-Self Electrophoresis.- Patterns in the Immune System.- The Oscillatory Basis of Cell Energy Metabolism.- VI. Pattern Recognition and Associations.- Recent Advances in Syntactic Pattern Recognition.- Abduction of Semantic Patterns.- Representation and Processing of Associations Using Vector Space Operations.- VII. Pattern Formation in Ecology, Sociology and History.- Non-Uniform Stable Solutions to Reaction-Diffusion Equations: Applications to Ecological Pattern Formation.- Socioeconomic Inequalities: Adaptation and Application of a Theory of Biological Pattern Formation.- Systems and Changes of Systems in History.- VIII. General Approaches.- Bifurcation and Nonlinear Focusing.- Thermodynamics of Nonequilibrium Processes.- Growth of Fluctuations in Thermodynamically Unstable Systems.- Evolution of Systems. Time Scaling and Scaling Factors.- Index of Contributors.