Rating: 
Summary: An eye-opener
Review: This book is not intended to be the end-to-finish detailed study of the science of complexity, but rather as an appetiser, the introduction which familiarises you with the impressive scope of the phenomena, making you hungry for more.Some of the people giving a review on this page obviously have not understood the purpose of the book - they were expecting a full course, with mathematical detail and precision, and no appetiser, no matter how good, was able to satisfy that hunger. This book is made for the important purpose of popularising science, and as such, to succeed, must work equally well for the casual lay-man reader and the physics professor. In my oppinion it accomplishes this task exeptionally well - it explains the phenomena in a thought provoking way, giving detail when it is necessary, but mostly consentrating in conveying the experience of discovery to the reader. For readers yearning for more, it provides a good list of references and further reading. I sincerely recommend the book for anyone wondering what the fuss over this phenomena is all about, or anyone who hasn't even noticed that there is any fuss in the first place. If you have ever spent even a moment wondering about the fundamental questions of life, the universe and the stock market, this is your book. You'll be talking everybody to death about emergence for weeks to come...
Rating:
Summary: Thinkers from the Land of Enchantment.
Review: The recombinant DNA technology pioneers had their heyday at Asilomar; the Manhattan Project brought together some of the best minds in physics at a pivotal time of the century just passed; lately, tucked between the Jemez Mountains and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of northern New Mexico, think-tankers at the Sante Fe Institute brought us the concept of order at the brink of chaos. The universe, and life as we know it, teeters close to the edge of all-out disorder and boring, predictable superorganization and "super-stability", and somehow has managed to stay always in between. Roll the tape of the evolution of the universe and life backward, allow it to move forward, and see whether complexity is an intrinsic property of the cosmos rather than happenstance. Does Stuart Kauffman's "order for free" tendency for self-organization operate in past and future---or other---universes? This book is a good primer to the concept of complexity as applied to economics, life, and the universe, and is an engaging read. I can imagine some biologists would tend to check out Kauffman's book "At home in the universe" after reading "Complexity".
Rating: 
Summary: Does not deliver.
Review: I expected phsyics, I expected science and theory. I expected my horizons to be expanded. This book is trash. This book is just a jumble of science history, and narratives about other peoples accomplishments. Anyone who reviewed this book over 1 star should be ashamed of themselves.
Rating:
Summary: Hair raising!
Review: While I am generally, philosophically opposed to the whole thinking thing, If my head were a can, this book is the can-opener.
Rating:
Summary: Enlightening!
Review: Waldrop vividly describes the mathematical justification for all sorts of "crazy" behavior in economics, human relationships, biology, government, etc. Though I could've gone for a bit more mathematical rigor, Complexity greatly appealed to my philosophical side -- it shows how there cannot be simple, one-sided answers to questions of self-interest. (It's enough to make an Objectivist cringe.)
Rating:
Summary: Is this a work of fiction?
Review: If you know even a little of the truth of the stories here, you have to be disappointed in this treatment, and even more disappointed that so many seem to just lap it up. In the end, the result will be massive disappointment with complexity research and researchers. But most of the people who achieve star status in this book will likely be long gone.
Rating: 
Summary: so-so
Review: This book is an interesting overview of complexity but seems more like a novel about scientists than a novel about science. I think Gleick's "Chaos" is a better overview of the science involved. I was disappointed by the lack of equations or pictures that I could think about or play with. An interesting book for the layman, but if you want to really know how things work - look somehwhere else.
Rating:
Summary: Superb and very readable
Review: An excellent, thought-provoking book with ideas that resonate. It serves to remind us that some of our current conceits about the world are really the product of static paradigms, not of deep seeking and restless curiosity. An inspiring, stimulating book.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing, A must read!
Review: This book is a must read for anyone interested in the field of chaos theory and complexity. Details the lives, and passions of people who invented this new science. Suitable for new as well as advanced readers.
Rating:
Summary: this book should get 6 stars
Review: In one word, this book was awesome. Waldrop's account of the development of the science of complexity is both compelling and spell-binding. His historical account of the Sante Fe Institute and its members was an inspiring story. Written like a novel, this book was very simple to read and understand and very easy to follow. Even the casual reader could follow its simplifying explanations of the complicated theories invovled in the science of complexity. This book is also a great follow-on to James Gleick's "Chaos - Making a New Science". I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in complex adaptive systems theory, especially its applications in the realm of economics. Waldrop's work here is outstanding!!!
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