Complex systems are composed of interconnected parts that exhibit behaviors not obvious from the properties of the individual parts. In other words, systems in which the whole is more than the sum of its parts (e.g. social insects, the brain, the stock market). These life-like systems exist on the "edge of chaos" (a term coined by John Conway, inventor of the Game of Life).

steadystate is a physical complex system, situated in physical reality. Its parts react to and affect its immediate environment, creating the feedback loop that is at the heart of the piece.