Research and Education in Computational Science and Engineering

Over the past two decades the field of computational science and engineering (CSE) has penetrated both basic and applied research in academia, industry, and laboratories to advance discovery, optimize systems, support decision-makers, and educate the scientific and engineering workforce. Informed by centuries of theory and experiment, CSE performs computational experiments to answer questions that neither theory nor experiment alone is equipped to answer. CSE provides scientists and engineers of all persuasions with algorithmic inventions and software systems that transcend disciplines and scales. Carried on a wave of digital technology, CSE brings the power of parallelism to bear on troves of data. Mathematics-based advanced computing has become a prevalent means of discovery and innovation in essentially all areas of science, engineering, technology, and society; and the CSE community is at the core of this transformation. However, a combination of disruptive developments---including the architectural complexity of extreme-scale computing, the data revolution that engulfs the planet, and the specialization required to follow the applications to new frontiers---is redefining the scope and reach of the CSE endeavor. This report describes the rapid expansion of CSE and the challenges to sustaining its bold advances. The report also presents strategies and directions for CSE research and education for the next decade.Comment: Major revision, to appear in SIAM Revie

First principles in the life sciences: The free-energy principle, organicism, and mechanism

The free-energy principle claims that biological systems behave adaptively maintaining their physical integrity only if they minimize the free energy of their sensory states. Originally proposed to account for perception, learning, and action, the free-energy principle has been applied to the evolution, development, morphology, and function of the brain, and has been called a “postulate,” a “mandatory principle,” and an “imperative.” While it might afford a theoretical foundation for understanding the complex relationship between physical environment, life, and mind, its epistemic status and scope are unclear. Also unclear is how the free-energy principle relates to prominent theoretical approaches to life science phenomena, such as organicism and mechanicism. This paper clarifies both issues, and identifies limits and prospects for the free-energy principle as a first principle in the life sciences

The Markov blankets of life: autonomy, active inference and the free energy principle

This work addresses the autonomous organization of biological systems. It does so by considering the boundaries of biological systems, from individual cells to Home sapiens, in terms of the presence of Markov blankets under the active inference scheme—a corollary of the free energy principle. A Markov blanket defines the boundaries of a system in a statistical sense. Here we consider how a collective of Markov blankets can self-assemble into a global system that itself has a Markov blanket; thereby providing an illustration of how autonomous systems can be understood as having layers of nested and self-sustaining boundaries. This allows us to show that: (i) any living system is a Markov blanketed system and (ii) the boundaries of such systems need not be co-extensive with the biophysical boundaries of a living organism. In other words, autonomous systems are hierarchically composed of Markov blankets of Markov blankets—all the way down to individual cells, all the way up to you and me, and all the way out to include elements of the local environment

Marine Biocatalysts: Enzymatic Features and Applications

In several recent reports related to biocatalysis the enormous pool of biodiversity found in marine ecosystems is considered a profitable natural reservoir for acquiring an inventory of useful biocatalysts. These enzymes are characterized by well-known habitat-related features such as salt tolerance, hyperthermostability, barophilicity and cold adaptivity. In addition, their novel chemical and stereochemical characteristics increase the interest of biocatalysis practitioners both in academia and research industry. In this review, starting from the analysis of these featuring habitat-related properties, important examples of marine enzymes in biocatalysis will be reported. Completion of this report is devoted to the analysis of novel chemical and stereochemical biodiversity offered by marine biocatalysts with particular emphasis on current or potential applications of these enzymes in chemical and pharmaceutical fields. The analysis of literature cited here and the many published patent applications concerning the use of marine enzymes supports the view that these biocatalysts are just waiting to be discovered, reflecting the importance of the marine environment. The potential of this habitat should be thoroughly explored and possibly the way to access useful biocatalysts should avoid destructive large-scale collections of marine biomass for enzyme production. These two aspects are day by day increasing in interest and a future increase in the use of marine enzymes in biocatalysis should be expected

Evolutionary robotics and neuroscience

No description supplie

V Jornadas de Investigación de la Facultad de Ciencia y Tecnología. 2016

171 p.I. Abstracts. Ahozko komunikazioak / Comunicaciones orales: 1. Biozientziak: Alderdi Molekularrak / Biociencias: Aspectos moleculares. 2. Biozientziak: Ingurune Alderdiak / Biociencias: Aspectos Ambientales. 3. Fisika eta Ingenieritza Elektronika / Física e Ingeniería Electrónica. 4. Geología / Geología. 5. Matematika / Matemáticas. 6. Kimika / Química. 7. Ingenieritza Kimikoa eta Kimika / Ingeniería Química y Química. II. Abstracts. Idatzizko Komunikazioak (Posterrak) / Comunicaciones escritas (Pósters): 1. Biozientziak / Biociencias. 2. Fisika eta Ingenieritza Elektronika / Física e Ingeniería Electrónica. 3. Geologia / Geologia. 4. Matematika / Matemáticas. 5. Kimika / Química. 6. Ingenieritza Kimikoa / Ingeniería Química

Perspectives on adaptive dynamical systems

Adaptivity is a dynamical feature that is omnipresent in nature, socio-economics, and technology. For example, adaptive couplings appear in various real-world systems, such as the power grid, social, and neural networks, and they form the backbone of closed-loop control strategies and machine learning algorithms. In this article, we provide an interdisciplinary perspective on adaptive systems. We reflect on the notion and terminology of adaptivity in different disciplines and discuss which role adaptivity plays for various fields. We highlight common open challenges and give perspectives on future research directions, looking to inspire interdisciplinary approaches

Perspectives on adaptive dynamical systems

Adaptivity is a dynamical feature that is omnipresent in nature, socio-economics, and technology. For example, adaptive couplings appear in various real-world systems like the power grid, social, and neural networks, and they form the backbone of closed-loop control strategies and machine learning algorithms. In this article, we provide an interdisciplinary perspective on adaptive systems. We reflect on the notion and terminology of adaptivity in different disciplines and discuss which role adaptivity plays for various fields. We highlight common open challenges, and give perspectives on future research directions, looking to inspire interdisciplinary approaches.Comment: 46 pages, 9 figure