Based on the provided sources, particularly Alicia Juarrero’s Context Changes Everything and Dynamics in Action, and the work of Lila Gatlin, here is the “untangling” of the relationships between Hierarchy, Non-Ergodicity, Speciation, Causality, and Constraint.
The central thread tying these concepts together is the shift from a Newtonian view of reality (forces hitting particles) to a Complexity view (constraints shaping probability).
1. The Foundation: Causality as Constraint
The relationship begins by redefining causality. In this framework, causality is not solely “efficient” (one billiard ball hitting another). Instead, constraints are causes.
• How it works: Constraints do not add energy (force); they alter the probability distribution of events[1]. By making some outcomes much more likely than others, constraints direct energy flow, effectively “causing” structure and behavior to emerge[4][5].
• The Link: Constraint is the mechanism of causality in complex systems.
2. Constraints Create Hierarchy (Mereology)
Hierarchy is not just a ranking; it is a dynamical relationship created by the interaction of different types of constraints. This creates a “parts-to-whole” (mereological) relationship.
• **Bottom-Up (Enabling Constraints):**Context-dependent constraints (like feedback loops or catalysts) link individual parts together so they are no longer independent[6][7]. When these interactions reach a critical threshold, they precipitate a phase transition, creating a new, coherent whole (e.g., individual water molecules self-organizing into a rolling convection cell)[8][9].
• Top-Down (Governing Constraints): Once the whole forms, it acts as a governing constraint on the parts. The whole (the system) operates at a slower time scale than its parts[10][11]. It restricts the degrees of freedom of the parts, enslaving or entraining them to the system’s overall dynamic[12].
• The Link: Hierarchy is the result of constraints closing the loop between parts and wholes: parts enable the whole; the whole governs the parts.
3. Hierarchy and History Create Non-Ergodicity
In classical physics, systems are often “ergodic,” meaning given enough time, they will visit every possible state (randomness/equilibrium), and history doesn’t matter[15]. Complex systems are non-ergodic.
• Path Dependence: Because context-dependent constraints link events in a specific sequence, the system “carries its history on its back”[16][17]. Where the system goes next depends entirely on where it came from.
• Breaking Symmetry: The system does not visit all possible states. Instead, constraints carve out a specific “valley” or attractor in the landscape of possibilities[1][18]. The system gets locked into a specific trajectory.
• The Link: Non-ergodicity is the historical consequence of hierarchy and constraint. Because the system is constrained by its history and organization, it cannot just do “anything”—it follows a unique, irreversible path.
4. Non-Ergodicity Leads to Speciation
Speciation is the biological (or social) realization of non-ergodicity. It is the process of stabilizing a specific trajectory so it persists as a distinct type.
• Isolation as Constraint: To form a species (or a distinct culture/entity), a system must be prevented from mixing back into the general average. Isolation (geographic, reproductive, or behavioral) acts as a context-independent constraint[7][19]. It prevents the “homogenizing” effects of randomness.
• Unity of Type: By isolating a specific non-ergodic trajectory, the system establishes a “Unity of Type”[20][21]. The system becomes a specific kind of thing (a dog, a human, a culture) defined by a stable regime of constraints that persists over time[22].
• The Link: Speciation is what happens when a non-ergodic trajectory is “fenced in” by isolation constraints, allowing a specific hierarchy of organization to persist and reproduce without dissolving back into randomness.
Summary of the Relationship
1. Causality is redefined as the operation of Constraints (altering probabilities).
2. Constraints (specifically context-dependent ones) bind parts into a coherent Hierarchy (whole).
3. This Hierarchy traces a unique, history-dependent path, making the system Non-Ergodic (it doesn’t do everything; it does this specific thing).
4. Speciation occurs when constraints (like isolation) lock this non-ergodic path into a persistent, reproducible identity (“Unity of Type”).
Visualizing the Untangling:
• Constraint is the tool.
• Causality is the action of the tool.
• Hierarchy is the structure built by the tool.
• Non-Ergodicity is the unique path the structure takes.
• Speciation is the wall that protects that path from dissolving.
References
[1] Juarrero - The self organization of intentional action.pdf [4] Juarrero - The self organization of intentional action.pdf [5] [Book] Jarrero - Context Changes Everything.pdf [6] Juarrero - The self organization of intentional action.pdf [7] [Book] Jarrero - Context Changes Everything.pdf [8] [Book] Jarrero - Context Changes Everything.pdf [9] [Book] Juarerro - Dynamics in Action.pdf [10] [Book] Juarerro - Dynamics in Action.pdf [11] [Book] Juarerro - Dynamics in Action.pdf [12] Juarrero - The self organization of intentional action.pdf [15] [Book] Gatlin - Information theory and the lving system.pdf [16] [Book] Juarerro - Dynamics in Action.pdf [17] [Book] Juarerro - Dynamics in Action.pdf [18] [Book] Juarerro - Dynamics in Action.pdf [19] [Book] Jarrero - Context Changes Everything.pdf [20] [Book] Jarrero - Context Changes Everything.pdf [21] [Book] Jarrero - Context Changes Everything.pdf [22] [Book] Jarrero - Context Changes Everything.pdf