Santa Fe Institute Courses

Stability in Complex Financial Systems - Lessons from Ecology - Lecture 2

Exploring financial system stability through an ecological lens, examining how to design efficient yet robust capital distribution systems without hidden costs and fragility.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 18 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Beauty and Truth in Mathematics and Science - Lecture 1

Explore the role of beauty in guiding humanity's quest for understanding the world, examining interactions between beliefs, values, and scientific truth.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 7 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Reading Ancient Minds: Metaphor, Culture, and Complexity

Explore how cognitive science and archaeology reveal the impact of conceptual metaphors on human societies, challenging traditional views on cultural influence throughout history.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 10 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

The Variational Universe - From Strings to Neurons

Explore variational principles in physics and biology, from quantum mechanics to neural systems, revealing nature's efficiency and optimization across scales.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 5 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Framing the Rise and Variability of Past Complex Societies

Explore principles of complexity in ancient civilizations, examining societal development, scale, and variability through archaeological and anthropological perspectives.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 13 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Complexity and the Future of Learning and Education

Explore principles of complexity in life, scale, and civilization, and their impact on future learning and education with experts from leading institutions.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 5 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

The Global and Urban Energy Challenges - Principles of Complexity

Explore global energy challenges, urban energy use, and potential solutions with Sir Christopher Llewellyn-Smith in this comprehensive lecture on the complexities of our energy future.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 12 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Symmetry Breaking and Non-Equilibrium Phenomena - Lecture 3

Explore symmetry breaking and non-equilibrium phenomena in complex systems, covering topics from brain theory to thermal equilibrium and the El Farol problem.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 6 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Effective Theories for Computational Systems - Lecture 2

Explore effective theories for computational systems, covering aggregation, finite state machines, regular languages, and emergence in complex systems modeling.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 20 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Coarse-Graining, Renormalization and Universality - Lecture 1

Explore coarse-graining, renormalization, and universality in complex systems. Learn key concepts and applications in mathematical, biological, cognitive, and social sciences.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 29 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Complexity: Life, Scale, and Civilization

Explore the nature of complexity across scales, from genes to civilizations, with leading thinkers discussing fundamental questions about the universe, life, and human existence.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 27 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Why We Come to the Aid of Our Friends - An Evolutionary Puzzle

Explore the evolutionary puzzle of unconditional friendship, its benefits, and how humans avoid exploitation. Discover the origins, cultural variations, and comparisons to social ties in other species.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 2 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Groundhog Day: Scientific Practice and Time Loops

Explore how "Groundhog Day" reflects scientific practice with Murray Gell-Mann and Danny Rubin. Gain insights into the film's connection to scientific inquiry and experimentation.

• YouTube
• 34 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

How We Came To Be Deluged By Tweets - The Evolution of Information Technology

Explore the evolution of information technologies and their impact on human consciousness, from ancient scripts to modern digital communication, featuring key historical figures.

• YouTube
• 49 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video

Measuring Social Networks for Disease and Health Behavior Dynamics

Explore innovative methods for analyzing social networks to understand disease spread and health behaviors, with insights from cutting-edge research in network science and epidemiology.

• YouTube
• 57 minutes
• On-Demand
• Free Video