Agent intention can also alter the patterns that emerge in complex systems. In the case of the Sand Pile model, if we give the falling grains of sand a bit of control on where they land and some desires (like maximizing the size of the resulting avalanche), the system is no longer governed by a power law and instead enters a bizarre periodic cycle. As we give agents even more strategic ability, we often see elaborate dances of strategies, with good and bad epochs, cycles, and crashes.
