Complex unbounded problems: prime attributes and core concepts

Peter M. Weiske, Stephen Dovers, William J. Durch and John Handmer

Chapter 2 in Re-imagining Risk and Disruption, 2026, pp 12-23 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter explains the core concepts and prime attributes of complex unbounded problems (CUPs) that are later employed to explore four areas of focus: Earth System disruption, nuclear accidents, pandemics and other biological threats and cascading disorder in near-Earth space. These concepts and attributes include exceedance, coalescence, porosity and unsoundness, along with tempo, Information~Action, the Entropy~Anti-entropy dance and the ‘boom continuum’, which focuses attention on the precursors and long-tail impacts of disruptions. It explains the need to approach CUPs through the lens of complex adaptive systems, recognising the complexity and dynamic nature of problem formation, manifestation and response. The challenges of problem-matching and problemic solubility are described in the context of an understanding of CUPs developed through an understanding of shared problem attributes.

Keywords: Complex Adaptive Systems; Coalescence; Exceedance; Porosity; Tempo (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035375264
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