What Is Emergence?

When do wholes get properties their parts don't have? Phase transitions, thresholds, and the structure of emergence.

Water is fluid. No H2O molecule is fluid. The flock moves as one. No bird intends the pattern. Consciousness (perhaps) arises from neurons. No neuron thinks. Emergence: properties of wholes not present in parts.

The Pattern

Across domains: many parts, interaction, new property at a certain scale. Fluidity, flocking, prices, wetness, life. What's constant: interaction matters. Isolated parts never produce emergence. And it often appears at a threshold—below a certain scale, nothing; above it, suddenly something.

Phase Transitions

Water becoming ice is a phase transition. Below critical temperature, new order appears suddenly. Structure changes discontinuously. Emergence may be phase transition generalized: collective behavior of many interacting units crossing a critical point. Small cause, big effect.

Correlation Threshold

When component correlations cross a threshold, qualitative shift. Quantity becomes quality. This fits: feedback loops among interacting parts reaching critical threshold. Explains why interaction matters. Explains threshold behavior. The principle: Emergence occurs when component correlations cross a threshold.

— Decoded by DECODER.