ABSTRACT
Aggregation of entities with common characteristics appears to
be a universal phenomenon associated with complex systems.
Survival, reproductive or safety behaviours are evident in most
plant and animal species in which integral “social” behaviours have
also emerged. Trees, and vegetation, of similar species tend to
“clump” or “cluster” together, birds flock, monkeys groom, cattle
and sheep herd, fish school, and so on. In humans, resulting
from or concurrently with the evolution of larger brains and an
innate capacity for language, social behaviour is observed in the
formation of networks of association that transcend these somewhat
instinctive elements of our lives.
