For many of us, the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of understanding the networks within our social world. But network science can also be powerful when applied to physical and technological systems. In fact, experts herald this as a new frontier in research.
Consider the case of digital computers, originally developed as stand-alone devices. The subsequent creation of computer networks, in the form of computer clusters and the Internet, has radically expanded the functionality of these devices. Artificial satellites provide another example of systems developed to operate in isolation before networking enabled new capabilities like GPS. And while automobiles are currently used individually, it is not difficult to imagine a future where autonomous driving could not only free up commuters’ attention but also optimize travel time through communication between vehicles. These are just a few examples of systems that gain new functions when networked.
It can be argued that the fastest path to new technologies is to develop interactions between existing ones. We can catalyze discovery by investigating the new phenomena that emerge when physical systems interact through a network.
The Center for Network Dynamics (CND) focuses on the mechanisms underlying dynamical behavior in complex systems, paving the way for the development of new systems that rely on emergent network dynamics. The center capitalizes on the rapidly increasing opportunities for network research, both directly through dedicated programs and indirectly through growing support for quantum information, energy and sustainability, systems biophysics, complex systems, and data science, among other fields that interface with network science. Due to their inherent interdisciplinarity, projects in these areas are often collaborative and involve close interactions between theory, computation, and experiments. This collective effort involves researchers from different Northwestern departments as well as other institutions in the United States and abroad, including universities, national laboratories, and the private sector.