Synergies: Atoms of Brain and Behavior

Using a Socratic method, the hypothesis is proposed that the fundamental units of the behavior of complex living things on multiple levels-all the way from cells to societies are structural-functional organizations called synergies. In the context of motor control, synergies arose because of the need to control, coordinate and exploit enormous numbers of degrees of freedom in complex systems. Synergies are the unique expression of two fundamental mechanisms heretofore conceived of as independent: self-organization and natural selection. Synergies offer a principled means to connect behavior, brains and genes and open up new possibilities for the design of machines.