Statistical physics has proven to be a very fruitful framework to describe phenomena outside the realm of traditional physics. The last years have witnessed the attempt by physicists to study collective phenomena emerging from the interactions of individuals as elementary units in social structures. Here we review the state of the art by focusing on a wide list of topics ranging from opinion, c...

Research in social neuroscience provides increasing evidence that self and other are interconnected, both on a conceptual and on an affective representational level. Moreover, the ability to recognize the other as "like the self" is thought to be essential for social phenomena like empathy and compassion. Meditation practices such as loving-kindness meditation (LKM) have been found to enhance t...

Stephen Turner’s work on practice theory makes important progress toward constructing a consistent narrative incorporating contemporary social theory, cognitive science, and neuroscience. The purpose in this article is not primarily to criticize this work, but rather to build on it by discussing results from related disciplines that may further enrich social theory. My article is structured as ...

As modern networks grow in size, complexity and variety, the change in networks is not just terms of scale but also in the emergence of newer types of communication networks such as wireless sensor, ad-hoc, peer-to-peer (P2P), multiagent, nano-communication, mobile robot, Internet of Things (IoT), cloud-based and social networks. Various inherent nonlinearities in network operations can lead to...