Lesson plan

Simplexity

Simplexity is a neologism which proposes a possible complementary relationship between complexity and simplicity. One of the first formally published instances of the word was in the journal 'Childhood Education' (1924), in the article it appears to be used to discuss education and psychology related issues. Simplexity was defined by computer scientists Broder and Stolfi as: "The simplexity of a problem is the maximum inefficiency among the reluctant algorithms that solve P. An algorithm is said to be pessimal for a problem P if the best-case inefficiency of A is asymptotically equal to the simplexity of P." In 1974 Rustum Roy and Olaf Müller noted simplexity in the structure of ternary compounds: "By dealing with approximately ten ternary structural groupings we can cover the most important structures of science and technology specific to the non-metallics world. It is a remarkable instance of nature's 'simplexity'". In 2003 Philippe Compain in an article on the future of synthetic chemistry stated: "Simplexity may be defined as the combination of simplicity and complexity within the context of a dynamic relationship between means and ends."; Simplexity: Why Simple Things Become Complex (and How Complex Things Can Be Made Simple) by Jeffrey Kluger details ways in which simplexity theory can be applied to multiple disciplines.…

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Article summary

Simplexity is a neologism which proposes a possible complementary relationship between complexity and simplicity. One of the first formally published instances of the word was in the journal 'Childhood Education' (1924), in the article it appears to be used to discuss education and psychology related issues. Simplexity was defined by computer scientists Broder and Stolfi as: "The simplexity of a problem is the maximum inefficiency among the reluctant algorithms that solve P. An algorithm is said to be pessimal for a problem P if the best-case inefficiency of A is asymptotically equal to the simplexity of P." In 1974 Rustum Roy and Olaf Müller noted simplexity in the structure of ternary compounds: "By dealing with approximately ten ternary structural groupings we can cover the most important structures of science and technology specific to the non-metallics world. It is a remarkable instance of nature's 'simplexity'". In 2003 Philippe Compain in an article on the future of synthetic chemistry stated: "Simplexity may be defined as the combination of simplicity and complexity within the context of a dynamic relationship between means and ends."; Simplexity: Why Simple Things Become Complex (and How Complex Things Can Be Made Simple) by Jeffrey Kluger details ways in which simplexity theory can be applied to multiple disciplines.…

Key claims

  1. publication date: 1924 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. The record states that the publication date is "1924". What evidence would count against this claim?
  3. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  4. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

  1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1331954724

Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.