Morphogenetic Engineering: Reconciling Self-Organization and Architecture
Generally, phenomena of spontaneous pattern formation are random and repetitive, whereas elaborate devices are the deterministic product of human design. Yet, biological organisms and collective insect constructions are exceptional examples of complex sys
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Morphogenetic Engineering: Reconciling Self-Organization and Architecture René Doursat, Hiroki Sayama and Olivier Michel
Abstract Generally, phenomena of spontaneous pattern formation are random and repetitive, whereas elaborate devices are the deterministic product of human design. Yet, biological organisms and collective insect constructions are exceptional examples of complex systems that are both architectured and self-organized. Can we understand their precise self-formation capabilities and integrate them with technological planning? Can physical systems be endowed with information, or informational systems be embedded in physics, to create autonomous morphologies and functions? This book is the first initiative of its kind toward establishing a new field of research, Morphogenetic Engineering, to explore the modeling and implementation of “self-architecturing” systems. Particular emphasis is set on the programmability and computational abilities of self-organization, properties that are often underappreciated in complex systems science—while, conversely, the benefits of self-organization are often underappreciated in engineering methodologies. This chapter is an extended version of Refs. [16, 17]. R. Doursat (B) Complex Systems Institute, Paris Ile-de-France (ISC-PIF), CNRS & Ecole Polytechnique, 57–59, rue Lhomond, 75005 Paris, France e-mail: [email protected] H. Sayama Collective Dynamics of Complex Systems Research Group (CoCo), Departments of Bioengineering & Systems Science and Industrial Engineering, Binghamton University, SUNY, Binghamton, NY 13902-6000, USA e-mail: [email protected] O. Michel Algorithmic, Complexity and Logic Laboratory (LACL), Department of Computer Science, Université de Paris-Est Créteil, 94010 Créteil, France e-mail: [email protected] R. Doursat et al. (eds.), Morphogenetic Engineering, Understanding Complex Systems, DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-33902-8_1, © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2012
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1.1 Introduction Classical engineered products (mechanical, electrical, computer, civil) are generally made of a number of unique, heterogeneous components assembled in very precise and complicated ways. They are expected to work as deterministically and predictably as possible following the specifications given by their designers (Fig. 1.1d). By contrast, self-organization in natural systems (physical, biological, ecological, social) often relies on myriads of identical agents and essentially stochastic dynamics. Admittedly, here, nontrivial patterns and collective behavior can emerge from relatively simple agent rules—a fact often touted as the hallmark of complex systems (Fig. 1.1a). Yet, the great majority of these naturally emergent motifs (spots, stripes, waves, clusters, etc. [2]) are essentially stochastic and can be guided or reshaped only through external boundary conditions. They are fully described with a few statistical variables, such as order parameters, but do not exhibit an intrinsic architecture like machines and industrial s
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