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A review of morphogenetic engineering

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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 (CS) 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? To answer these questions, we have launched in 2009, and developed through a series of workshops and a collective book, a new field of research called morphogenetic engineering. It is the first initiative of its kind to rally and promote models and implementations of complex self-architecturing systems. Particular emphasis is set on the programmability and computational abilities of self-organization, properties that are often underappreciated in CS science—while, conversely, the benefits of self-organization are often underappreciated in engineering methodologies. [This paper is an extended version of Doursat, Sayama and Michel (2012b) (Chapter 1, in Doursat R et al. (eds.) Morphogenetic engineering: toward programmable complex systems. Understanding complex systems. Springer, 2012a).]

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Biomedical Engineering, Drexel University, 3141 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    René Doursat

  2. Collective Dynamics of Complex Systems Research Group, Binghamton University, SUNY, PO Box 6000, Binghamton, NY, 13902, USA

    Hiroki Sayama

  3. Faculté des Sciences et Technologie, Université de Créteil, 61 Avenue du Général de Gaulle, 94010, Créteil Cedex, France

    Olivier Michel

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  1. René Doursat
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Correspondence to René Doursat.

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Doursat, R., Sayama, H. & Michel, O. A review of morphogenetic engineering. Nat Comput 12, 517–535 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11047-013-9398-1

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