Computational Mechanics: Pattern and Prediction, Structure and Simplicity

Cosma Rohilla Shalizi and James P. Crutchfield

Working Papers from Santa Fe Institute

Abstract: Computational mechanics, an approach to structural complexity, defines a process's causal states and gives a procedure for finding them. We show that the causal-state representation--an e-machine--is the minimal one consistent with accurate prediction. We establish several results on e-machine optimality and uniqueness and on how e-machines compare to alternative representations. Further results relate measures of randomness and structural complexity obtained from e-machines to those from ergodic and information theories.

Keywords: Complexity; computation; entropy; information; pattern; statistical mechanics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1999-07
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cmp and nep-evo
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:wop:safiwp:99-07-044

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