Network Theory
John Baez
November 2, 2012
Scientists use diagrams of networks in many different ways. To make
sense of this, I'm writing a series of articles on network theory.
You can navigate forwards and back through these using the blue
arrows. And by clicking the links that say "on Azimuth", you can see
blog entries containing these articles. Those let you read comments
about my articles—and also make comments or ask questions of
your own!
Parts 2 to 24 have been polished up and turned into this paper:
This will eventually become a book.
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Part 1 - toward a general theory of networks.
Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 2 - stochastic Petri nets; the master equation versus the rate equation. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 3 - the rate equation of a stochastic Petri net, and applications to chemistry and infectious disease. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 4 - the master equation of a stochastic Petri net, and analogies to quantum field theory. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 5 - the stochastic Petri net for a Poisson process; analogies between quantum theory and probability theory. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 6 - the master equation in terms of annihilation and creation operators. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 7 - a stochastic Petri net from population biology whose rate equation is the logistic equation; an equilibrium solution of the corresponding master equation. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 8 - the rate equation and master equation of a stochastic Petri net; the role of Feynman diagrams. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 9 - the Anderson–Craciun–Kurtz theorem, which gives equilibrium solutions of the master equation from complex balanced equilibrium solutions of the rate equation; coherent states. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 10 - an example of the Anderson-Craciun-Kurtz theorem. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 11 - a stochastic version of Noether's theorem. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 12 - comparing quantum mechanics and stochastic mechanics. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 13 - comparing the quantum and stochastic versions of Noether's theorem. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 14 - an example: chemistry and the Desargues graph. Also available on Azimuth, together with a special post on answers to the puzzle.
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Part 15 - Markov processes and quantum processes coming from graph Laplacians, illustrated using the Desargues graph. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 16 - Dirichlet operators and electrical circuits made of resistors. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 17 - reaction networks versus Petri nets; the deficiency zero theorem. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 18 - an example of the deficiency zero theorem: a diatomic gas. Also available on Azimuth
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Part 19 - an example of Noether's theorem and the Anderson–Craciun–Kurtz theorem: a diatomic gas. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 20 - Dirichlet operators and the Perron–Frobenius theorem. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 21 - warmup for the proof of the deficiency zero theorem: the concept of deficiency. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 22 - warmup for the proof of the deficiency zero theorem: reformulating the rate equation. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 23 - warmup for the proof of the deficiency zero theorem: finding the equilibria of a Markov process, and describing its Hamiltonian in a slick way. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 24 - proof of the deficiency zero theorem. Also available on Azimuth.
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Part 25 - Petri nets, logic, and computation: the reachability problem for Petri nets. Also available on Azimuth.
To understand ecosystems, ultimately will be to understand networks. -
B. C. Patten and M. Witkamp
© 2012 John Baez
baez@math.removethis.ucr.andthis.edu