Santa Fe Institute

Final week to apply for SFI’s 2026 immersive, summer programs in complexity science:

Apply by Feb 4, 2026

CSSS and GWCSS : www.santafe.edu/engage/learn...

Journalism Fellowship: santafe.edu/journalism-f...

Disentangling the Boltzmann brain hypothesis: Memory, entropy, and time We trust our memories because they feel natural, and we trust time because it seems to flow in only one direction. Physics, however, allows for stranger possibilities that challenge our intuition. In...

In a new paper, SFI researchers examine the Boltzmann brain, a thought experiment that raises fundamental questions about memory, entropy, and time. The work clarifies how arguments for or against these ideas depend on assumptions about the past that are not fixed by physical laws alone.

SFI President David Krakauer joins Jim Rutt, SFI Trustee Emeritus and Distinguished Fellow, on The Jim Rutt show for a wide-ranging conversation on intelligence, evolution, scientific risk-taking, how we come to understand complex phenomena, and much more.

www.jimruttshow.com/david-krakau...

SFI’s GWCSS program is designed for Ph.D. students pursuing thesis research in computational social science. Participants work closely with peers and faculty to advance their own research and take part in collaborative complexity-based problem solving.

Apply by Feb 4, 2026
santafe.edu/gwcss

Study: Does polygyny really exclude vast swaths of men from marriage? A new study co-authored by SFI External Professor Laura Fortunato (University of Oxford), challenges a long-standing claim that polygynous marriage, where men have multiple wives, creates a surplus of...

A new study co-authored by SFI External Professor Laura Fortunato @anthrolog.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy (University of Oxford) challenges a long-standing claim that polygynous marriage, where men have multiple wives, creates a surplus of men with no prospect of ever marrying.

Advance your research and expand your network at SFI's 2026 CSSS program with lectures, application-focused seminars, and team projects. Participants gain experience in transdisciplinary collaboration and explore real-world questions through complexity science.

Apply by Feb 4, 2026
santafe.edu/csss

Abstinence From AI Is Not the Answer Opinion | Refusing to use AI won’t protect society. Responsible resistance must include gaining knowledge about it.

In a new Undark op-ed, SFI Resident Professors Brandon Ogbunu and Cris Moore argue that refusing to use AI won’t protect society — and that responsible resistance must begin with understanding how AI works.

Are you a journalist looking to deepen your understanding of complex systems?

Join the 2026 CSSS Journalism Fellowship at SFI, offering a space to study complexity alongside researchers and reflect on science communication from within the field.

Apply by Feb. 4, 2026
santafe.edu/journalism-f...

More efficient computing through stochastic thermodynamics A December 10–12 working group met to bring together researchers from two fields — neuromorphic computing and stochastic thermodynamics — to think about ways our built computers might replicate the en...

A human brain runs on about 20 watts, roughly the power required to keep a dim bulb lit. Why can’t computers do the same?

At SFI, a working group convened experts in neuromorphic computing and stochastic thermodynamics to explore how physics could enable faster, more energy-efficient computing.

SFI welcomes Miller Scholar Francis Spufford Francis Spufford, an internationally award-winning writer of nonfiction and fiction, has joined SFI as Miller Scholar. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, Francis Spufford teaches writing at ...

SFI welcomes Miller Scholar Francis Spufford.

A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, he teaches at Goldsmiths, University of London. His books, including Red Plenty, Golden Hill, and the forthcoming Nonesuch, explore the entanglement of historical, economic, and social forces.

Wendy Carlin appointed “Dame Commander” in 2026 New Year Honours In late December 2025, SFI External Professor Wendy Carlin was appointed the title Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, among the highest honors in the British system, for her wide-rangi...

SFI External Professor Wendy Carlin has been appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire — among the highest honors in the British system.

Carlin is recognized for her wide-ranging research in economics and for launching CORE Econ with SFI Professor Sam Bowles in 2013.

Applications open for SFI’s 2026 GWCSS program, a 2-week workshop for Ph.D. students and early-career scholars to explore complex systems and computation, collaborate on challenges, and advance their research with support from SFI faculty.

Apply by Feb 4, 2026
www.santafe.edu/gwcss

Now accepting applications for SFI’s 2026 CSSS program, a 3-week experience for graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and professionals to explore foundational theory, engage in collaborative projects, and connect with a global research community.

Apply by Feb 4, 2026
www.santafe.edu/csss

Do you want to help develop new theories for systems that adapt, evolve, and interact?

Applications are open for SFI’s 2026 UCR program, a fully funded, 10-week experience for undergraduates, offering mentorship, seminars, and project development.

Apply by Jan 14, 2026

www.santafe.edu/ucr

Study: The surprising impact of COVID-19 on urban bird beaks Biologists at UCLA used a natural experiment during the COVID-19 lockdowns to study the effects of human activity on urban wildlife. In a new study, SFI External Professor Pamela Yeh and co-author Ele...

During the COVID-19 pandemic, UCLA biologists witnessed a rare natural experiment among dark-eyed juncos in Los Angeles. A new PNAS study by SFI External Professor Pamela Yeh and co-author Eleanor Diamant explores how sudden changes in human activity reshaped urban bird life.

Are you a journalist with a deep interest in complexity?

Each year, the Santa Fe Institute invites two experienced journalists to join the Complex Systems Summer School through the CSSS Journalism Fellowship.

Application deadline: Feb. 4, 2026

Learn more: santafe.edu/journalism-f...

For computational devices, talk isn't cheap Every task we perform on a computer requires different components of the machine to interact with one another — to communicate. But scientists don't fully grasp how much energy computational devices s...

For computational devices, talk isn’t cheap.

A new study by SFI Prof. David Wolpert and former Graduate Fellow Abhishek Yadav shows that every bit of information — from neurons firing to CPUs reading memory — has an unavoidable energy cost, and more accurate communication always means more heat.

This book was supported by the Emergent Political Economies Grant from the Omidyar Network to the Santa Fe Institute.

Review: Allocation, Distribution, and Policy by Bowles and Chen "Over the past 40 years, the field of microeconomics has gone through a revolution in real-world applications, yet the theoretical models taught in Ph.D. coursework have been slow to catch up," writes...

New book: Allocation, Distribution, and Policy

In a new textbook, SFI Professor Sam Bowles and Weikai Chen, a professor of economics at Renmin University of China, present Ph.D.-level problem sets, exam questions, and detailed solutions based on a novel approach to microeconomics.

New mathematical framework reshapes debate over simulation hypothesis The simulation hypothesis — the idea that our universe might be an artificial construct running on some advanced alien computer — has long captured the public imagination. Yet most arguments about it ...

The simulation hypothesis has long captured our imagination, yet most arguments rely on intuition over clear definitions.

A new paper by SFI Professor David Wolpert introduces the first precise mathematical framework for defining simulation — and shows many common assumptions don’t hold up.

Understanding the historical forces driving the expansion of human rights For most of human history, large societies have drawn clear lines between people who belong to the in-group and those who do not. These lines determine who is recognized, protected, or granted status,...

For most of history, societies drew firm lines between those who belonged and those who didn't, shaping who was protected or excluded. Beginning in the Enlightenment, European societies began expanding rights.

A recent SFI working group is examining the historical forces driving this expansion.

Fundamental logic of life paper receives Outstanding Publication award In October, the International Society for Artificial Life recognized several SFI researchers and co-authors with the ISAL Award for Outstanding Publication of 2024. The award celebrates the paper “Fun...

In October, the International Society for Artificial Life recognized several SFI researchers and co-authors with the ISAL Award for Outstanding Publication of 2024.

The award celebrates the paper “Fundamental constraints to the logic of living systems," which was published last fall.

New book: Introduction to Ergodicity Economics An Introduction to Ergodicity Economics is a new textbook that draws on physics to re-examine traditional economic theory. It begins with flipping a coin. And a hypothetical gambit. Imagine you were o...

New book: An Introduction to Ergodicity Economics

A new textbook by SFI External Professor Ole Peters and Alexander Adamou re-examines core assumptions in economic theory. It presents a formal challenge to expected-value thinking and shows how non-ergodicity can arise naturally in economic models.

GINI Project receives Research Award from the Shanghai Archaeology Forum Three SFI External Professors and their collaborators received a 2025 SAF Research Award from the Shanghai Archaeology Forum for their ongoing project, “The Global Dynamics of Inequality over the Long...

Three SFI External Professors and collaborators received a 2025 SAF Research Award from the Shanghai Archaeology Forum for their ongoing project, “The Global Dynamics of Inequality over the Long Term.”

The project was one of 10 celebrated at the 2025 SAF meeting, selected from 140 nominations.

Are you an early-career researcher or research professional with a broad interest in complexity science?

Applications are open for SFI’s 2026 CSSS program, a three-week, in-residence program offering an intensive introduction to complexity science.

Apply by Feb 4, 2026
santafe.edu/csss

Researchers reveal bias in a widely used measure of algorithm performance When scientists test algorithms that sort or classify data they often turn to a trusted tool called Normalized Mutual Information (or NMI) to measure how well an algorithm’s output matches reality. Bu...

A new study co-authored by SFI’s Mark Newman and Max Jerdee shows that a widely used metric for evaluating algorithms (NMI) can produce biased results, impacting scientific conclusions.

To address this, the authors developed an asymmetric, reduced version of the mutual information metric.

Applications open for SFI’s 2026 UCR program.

Are you fascinated by transdisciplinary questions that transcend or combine disciplines? UCR is a fully funded, 10-week summer research experience for undergraduates curious about complexity science.

Apply by Jan 14, 2026
santafe.edu/ucr

Constructing a science of stories From December 10–12, computer scientists, folklorists, physicists, marketing experts, cognitive neuroscientists, economists, mathematicians, psychologists, and other researchers convene at SFI to conn...

Can we build a science of stories? This week, a transdisciplinary group at SFI asks: What if we treated stories as data? As networks? As science?

By mapping their patterns across time and culture, researchers aim to reveal how narratives shape knowledge, meaning, and power.

Personal risk tolerance has sweeping implications for how societies evolve How much risk is any individual willing to take on? That depends, in part, on their individual resources and environment, which shape the learning strategies that influence their personal proclivity t...

How likely are you to invest in a new business? Ask your partner to marry you? Move to a new country?

A new model by SFI External Professor Paul Smaldino and colleagues explains how wealth, experience, and environment shape our risk tolerance — and how those effects persist across generations.

Applications are open for SFI’s 2026 summer education programs, offering research and training in complexity science in Santa Fe, NM:

– Undergraduate Complexity Research
– Complex Systems Summer School
– Graduate Workshop in Computational Social Science

Info: www.santafe.edu/engage/learn...