Is complex like complicated?
So complicated = not simple, but ultimately knowable.
Complex is hard to control and to predict. An example: The success rate of a new company that sells an innovative unique product.
Practically speaking, the main difference between complicated and complex systems is that with the former, one can usually predict outcomes by knowing the starting conditions. In a complex system, the same starting conditions can produce different outcomes, depending on the interactions of the elements in the system.
Simple = easily knowable. Complicated = not simple, but still knowable. Complex = not fully knowable, but reasonably predictable.
A complex person is like an iPod. That is to say that they are consistent, straightforward and 'user friendly' while also being rather sophisticated. Unlike the complicated person, interacting with a complex person does not require special knowledge of their complicated ways-because their ways are not complicated.
First, a way to think about the difference:
Something “complex” involves many things. Something “complicated” involves extra things. My computer, on which I'm writing this, is complex, as machines go. My computer crashing because I dropkicked it (don't ask why I'd do that) would be a complication.
Humans are complex. Human systems are complex. The way we interact with our complex technical world is complex. We live in a complex socio-technical world.
"Things that are complex have no such degree of order, control, or predictability," says Nason. A complex thing is much more challenging--and different--than the sum of its parts, because its parts interact in unpredictable ways. Managing people is a complex challenge.
com·plex ˈkäm-ˌpleks. : a whole made up of complicated or interrelated parts. a complex of welfare programs. the military-industrial complex. : a group of culture traits relating to a single activity (such as hunting), process (such as use of flint), or culture unit.
an emotional problem caused by unreasonable fears or worries. have/develop a complex about something: I used to have a complex about being in crowds. give someone a complex: If you keep telling her she's clumsy, you'll give her a complex.
Simple is not the opposite of complex. Simple is the distillation of the complex. It's making a seemingly hard problem appear simple through comprehension and skill. Complexity is easy to create, yet in software discussion, development, and design we celebrate it.
Is language complex or complicated?
Language is complicated. The point is, modern human language is incredibly complex. It is an ever-evolving behemoth of information. Its meanings and interpretations can be impacted by numerous human factors as well, including context, tone, and intention.
Something that is complex has many different parts, and is therefore often difficult to understand.
- arduous.
- convoluted.
- difficult.
- fancy.
- hard.
- intricate.
- knotty.
- perplexing.
- complicated.
- convoluted.
- composite.
- compound.
- conglomerate.
- manifold.
- motley.
- multiple.
Being "complicated" can actually make someone more attractive, says clinical psychologist John Mayer, Ph. D., author of Family Fit: Find Your Balance in Life. "Complicated translates psychologically into interesting, and interesting morphs into seductive," he says.
Different complexes include the Oedipus/Electra, persecution, inferiority, superiority, Madonna-whore, God, guilt and martyr complexes.
(kɒmplɪkeɪtɪd ) adjective. If you say that something is complicated, you mean it has so many parts or aspects that it is difficult to understand or deal with.
“ … the main difference between complicated and complex systems is that with the former, one can usually predict outcomes by knowing the starting conditions. in a complex system, the same starting conditions can produce different outcomes, depending on interactions of the elements in the system.”
A complex is an informal term for what happens when someone develops a belief (often an exadurated belief) that a particular situation is dangerous or embarrassing. For example, you might say, “For heaven's sake, don't call attention to her nose being so big! You'll give her a complex”.
Since the human species is the last species evolved in the evolutionary process seen at large, this means that we are the species with the highest complexity.
What is the most complex being on earth?
Daphnia pulex is the first crustacean... A microscopic, see-through water flea is the most complex creature ever studied, genomically speaking. Daphnia pulex is the first crustacean to ever have its genome sequenced, and it turns out it has about 31,000 genes — 25 percent more than we humans.
Use complex to refer to something that is not simple. Something complex has two or more related parts, or is not simple in its structure. As a noun, a complex is a group of units, often a group of buildings.
difficult to understand or find an answer to because of having many different parts: It's a very complex issue to which there is no straightforward answer. The film's plot was so complex that I couldn't follow it. Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples. not easy to deal with or understand.
complex, complicated, intricate, involved, knotty mean having confusingly interrelated parts. complex suggests the unavoidable result of a necessary combining and does not imply a fault or failure. complicated applies to what offers great difficulty in understanding, solving, or explaining.
difficult to understand or find an answer to because of having many different parts: It's a very complex issue to which there is no straightforward answer. The film's plot was so complex that I couldn't follow it. Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples. not easy to deal with or understand.
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