These sources show a few rules producing rich results. The rules might be an equation, a game, a heraldic grammar or a story form. Ask of each one what the rules leave open.
Finite State Machines in Forth
A technical note on building finite state machines in Forth from a state table.
Recursive Functions of Symbolic Expressions and Their Computation by Machine, Part I
The 1960 paper in which John McCarthy defines LISP.
Harmony Explained
A paper deriving harmony from physics plus the computation of hearing.
John Coltrane's Tone Circle
A close reading of a drawing Coltrane is said to have given Yusef Lateef.
Kishotenketsu - a plot structure without conflict
A short blog post explaining the four-part kishotenketsu story structure.
Game design is simple, actually
A blog essay that sets out twelve steps for understanding game design.
Network Wars and the Mystery of the Disappearing AI
A newsletter essay arguing that simple game bots are rules of the game, not opponents.
Digital Red Queen: Adversarial Program Evolution in Core War with LLMs
A research blog post on evolving competing programs in Core War with language models.
Alternate Clock Designs & Time Systems
Working clock faces that divide the day in different ways.
Introducing LACE
A cellular automata platform where the links between cells are part of the state.
Strange Attractors
An introduction to chaos through a particle visualization in the browser.
What Heraldry and Japanese Mon Can Teach Us About Building Visual-Identity Generators
A comparison of two emblem traditions as systems of generative rules.
Mathematical Patterns in African American Hairstyles
A short paper on tessellation patterns in African American hair braiding, with teaching ideas.
Ideonomy: A Science of Ideas
An introduction to ideonomy, a proposed science of ideas formulated by Patrick Gunkel.