Simulating the Social Context of Human Choice

An astronomer can predict with pinpoint accuracy the movement of far-off stars through the nighttime sky. Every point of light slides in its inevitable arc across the lens of her telescope in accordance with paths which can be plotted centuries in advance with a relatively simple set of formulae. Ironically, the same astronomer might have considerable difficulty in predicting what she will wear the following day, much less her own mood. Even viewed close-up, the twisted trajectories of action and emotion traveled by human beings are far more difficult to follow than the motions of the heavens.