SMLC 2013

Schedule

“Synthetic Modeling of Life and Cognition: Open Questions” (SMLC 2013)

University of Bergamo, Bergamo, Italy 12-14.09.2013

University of Bergamo, Monastery of Sant’Agostino,
Piazzale Sant’Agostino, 2
Conference Hall (Aula Conferenze)
24129 Bergamo, Italy

Program

Registration will open on the 12.09.2013 at 10.00 am (Registration Room).

Thursday, 12.09.2013
10.30Welcoming Note
Luisa Damiano (University of Bergamo) and Vincent C. Müller (Anatolia College/ACT & University of Oxford)Introduction
Gianluca Bocchi (University of Bergamo)
10.50Keynote Session 110.50 Keynote talk
Stuart Kauffman (The Institute for Systems Biology of Seattle, USA)
Answering Descartes: Beyond Turing11.40 Respondent’s Comment – Gianluca Bocchi (University of Bergamo, Italy)12.00 Discussion
12.20Lunch
13.20Welcoming Note
Stefano Paleari (Dean of the University of Bergamo)Keynote Session 213.30 Keynote talk
Ricard Solé (Pompeu Fabra University, Spain)
Synthetic life: cells, machines and the boundaries of evolution14.20 Respondent’s Comment – Alvaro Moreno (University of the Basque Country, Spain)14.40 Discussion
15.00Coffee Break
15.20Open Question session – Question 1
What are the possibilities and the limits of the synthetic study of the origins of life?15.20 – L. Bich (University of the Basque Country, Spain)
Beyond the principle of continuity at the origins of life: Synthetic Biology and the challenge of prebiotic transitions PDF15.40 – K. Ruiz-Mirazo (University of the Basque Country, Spain)
On life’s nature and the intrinsic limits of Synthetic Biology PDF16.00 – Discussion
16.20Open Question session – Questions 3
Does the synthetic modeling of life need teleology?16.20 – M. Hersch (University of Lausanne, Switzerland)
Harnessing teleology for one’s own purpose PDF16.40 – A. Moreno (University of the Basque Country, Spain)
Why Minimal life requires functional constraints PDF17.00 – Discussion
17.20Coffee Break
17.30-19.00Open Question session – Mixed: Questions 13, 4 and 9Question 13 – Which levels of abstraction are appropriate in the synthetic modeling of life and cognition?
17.30 – G. Dodig Crnkovic (Mälardalen University, Sweden)
Info-computational constructivism in modeling of life PDFQuestion 4 – How can we test for artificial life?
17.55 – H. Zenil, G. Ball, J. Tegner (Karolinska Institute, Sweden)
Testing for Non-linear Sensitivity and Programmability PDFQuestion 9 – The extended mind thesis: can it be explored synthetically?
18.20 – J. Arranz, J. Noble, M. Brede (University of Southampton, UK)
Selective pressures towards the evolution of extended memory – PDF18.45 – Discussion
Friday, 13.09.2013
09.00Keynote Session 309.00 Keynote talk
Giulio Sandini (Italian Institute of Technology, Italy)
Brain for robots09.40 Respondent’s Talk
Luciano Fadiga (University of Ferrara & Italian Institute of Technology, Italy)
Robots for brains10.20 Discussion
10.40Coffee Break
11.00Keynote Session 411.00 Keynote talk
Giorgio Metta (Italian Institute of Technology, Italy)
Developing Intelligence in Humanoid Robots11.50 Respondent’s Comment – Paul Dumouchel (Ritsumeikan University, Japan)12.10 Discussion
12.30Lunch
13.30Keynote Session 513.30 Keynote talk
Minoru Asada (Osaka University, Japan)
Can “Synthetic Methodology” cause a paradigm shift?14.20 Respondent’s Comment – Fabio Bonsignorio (University Carlos III of Madrid, Spain)14.40 Discussion
15.00Coffee Break
15.20Open Question session – Question 6
What is the role of embodiment in the synthetic exploration of cognition?15.20 – M. Hoffman, A. Roncone, G. Metta (Italian Institute of Technology, Italy)
Modeling the development of human body representations – PDF15.40 – T. Yamamoto (CiNet, NICT, Japan) and H. Ishiguro (Osaka University, Japan)
Interaction between information representation and physical dynamics as a key to understand cognitive processes – PDF16.00 – F. Bonsignorio (University Carlos III of Madrid, Spain)
The Role of Embodiment in Life and Cognition PDF16.20 – Discussion
16.40Coffee Break
16.50-17.50Open Question session – Question 7
How can one build an agent aware of its environment?16.50 – M. Spencer (University of Reading), E. Roesch (University of Reading), J. Bishop (Goldsmiths, University of London), S. Nasuto (University of Reading)
Emergent representations from stochastic diffusion dynamics – PDF17.10 – D. Mazzei and D. De Rossi (Research Center E. Piaggio, University of Pisa, Italy)
Social Robots’ Umwelt – PDF17.30 – Discussion
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20.30Workshop Dinner
 Saturday, 14.09.2013
09.00Keynote Session 609.00 Keynote talk
Angelo Cangelosi (University of Plymouth, UK)
Embodied Language Learning: From Sensorimotor Intelligence to Symbols09.50 Respondent’s Comment – Vincent C. Müller (Anatolia College/ACT, Greece, & University of Oxford, UK)10.10 Discussion
10.30Coffee Break
10.50Keynote Session 710.50 Keynote talk
Pier Luigi Luisi (University of Rome Three, Italy)
Contingency in molecular evolution11.40 Respondent’s Comment – Luisa Damiano (University of Bergamo, Italy)12.00 Discussion
12.20Lunch
13.20Open Question session – Question 5
What can synthetic biology offer to the study of cognition?13.20 – M. Lucantoni (University of Rome Three, Italy)
Autopoiesis, Metabolism, Cognition – PDF13.40 – L. Bich and A. Moreno (University of the Basque Country, Spain)
On the role of Synthetic Biology in the investigation of minimal cognition: an argument from the point of view of regulation – PDF14.00 – F. Bianchini (University of Bologna, Italy)
Emergence from biology to cognition: the case of super-organisms – PDF14.20 – Discussion
14.40Open Question session – Question 11
What are the characteristics and roles of synthetic models?14.40 – M. J. Schroeder (Akita International University, Japan)
Modeling of Life and Cognition: Synthetic, but Not Alchemic – PDF15.00 – M. Bertolaso (University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Italy)
On the Bio-Logic of Soft Robotics: Cognitive Robotics as Functional Integrated Systems – PDF15.20 – M. Mirolli (ISTC-CNR, Italy)
The several uses of computational models as scientific tools – PDF15.40 – Discussion
16.00Coffee Break
16.10-16.40Panel discussion