Four kinds of emergence
hierarchical Different factors and agents at the base level contribute differently to the emerging phenomenon, but in a hierarchical way so that the contribution of some depends on the contribution of others in a hierarchical (possibly partial) order. Example : The system formed by herd and shepherd. A traditional business company. non-hierarchical structured Different factors and agents at the base level contribute differently to the emerging phenomenon, but not in a hierarchical way so that if the contribution of some depends on the contribution of others, it is in a complex, circular or symmetric way. Example : A funk band. genetic-evolutionary All factors and agents at the base level make the same sort of contributions but still different in a random (or close to random) way, reacting and building on each other’s contributions in a non-hierarchical way, generating recursive patterns of proposal-rejection/adoption. Example : A brainstorming session. Biological evolution. Genetic evo