complexity theory

American  

noun

1. the study of complex and chaotic systems and how order, pattern, and structure can arise from them.

2. the theory that processes having a large number of seemingly independent agents can spontaneously order themselves into a coherent system.

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complexity theory British  

noun

1. maths the study of complex systems, including subjects such as chaos theory and genetic algorithms

2. computing a field in theoretical computer science dealing with the resources required during computation to solve a given problem

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complexity theory Scientific  

/ kəm-plĕk′sĭ-tē /

1. See computational complexity

2. Any of various branches of mathematics, physics, computer science, and other fields, concerned with the emergence of order and structure in complex and apparently chaotic systems.

3. See also chaos

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Example Sentences

This advance was possible because the researchers identified links between the equations used in dipole models and those found in complexity theory.

From Science Daily

May was a founder of complexity theory who helped bring mathematical sophistication to the science of ecology, teaching at Princeton, Imperial College London and Oxford University, and serving as president of the Royal Society and chief science advisor of Tony Blair’s government.

From Scientific American

In one fell swoop, their proof solves a number of related problems in pure mathematics, quantum mechanics and a branch of computer science known as complexity theory.

From Nature

If it checks out, it solves a number of related problems in pure mathematics, quantum mechanics and a branch of computer science known as complexity theory in one fell swoop.

From Nature

At the heart of the paper is a proof of a theorem in complexity theory, which is concerned with efficiency of algorithms.

From Nature