Computational Emergence and Computational Emotion

This paper presents an analysis of the issues pertaining to computational emergence and emotion in (cognitive) agent systems whether their ecology is carbon or silicon-based. We consider how a developing computational theory of cognition can be used to monitor and manage interactions with and within complex systems and so harness unwanted and emergent states and behaviours before the computational system becomes dysfunctional. A comparison is made between these emergent computational states and emotional states. The opening scenario provides a global systems context for the interaction between man and the cyberdomain. The final focus of this paper weaves these threads together in a consideration of the nature of goals, emotion and philosophical issues related to (computational) modelling.