"This book integrates the theories of complex self-organizing systems with the rich body of discourse and literature developed in what might be called "social theory of cities and urbanism". This is done in several ways: First, by an explicit comparative discussion of the two theoretical bodies in conjunction with some classical issues such as the nature of cities, the urban process, urban and regional planning, decision making, and the urban revolution (or rather revolutions). Second, by developing a new family of heuristic models and using them to study the issue of socio-cultural spatial segregation in cities. We term these models FACS model (Free Agents in a Cellular Space). Third, by developing a synergetic/pattern recognition theory of cities and of decision-making in the context of city planning."--BOOK JACKET.