Modularity of Complex Systems in Biology and Beyond
PI:
Reinhard Laubenbacher, PhD
Project Summary
Modularity is a powerful concept in the study, design, and control of complex systems. Across a range of domains, from biology to engineering, business, or the design and training of large language models, the concept is central, even though there is no consistency in its definition across fields, or even within fields, especially biology. The core idea is simple and compelling: many complex systems, whether natural or engineered, are composed of simpler pieces that can be understood and result in desirable system properties, such as stability, robustness, or phenotypic complexity. The complexity of the resulting whole arises from the way in which these simpler pieces are assembled. We have laid the mathematical groundwork and have obtained some early preliminary results to investigate the following question: How does the assembly method affect system properties? This proposal aims to provide an answer for a wide range of systems, including multiscale stochastic systems. Having actionable mathematical properties that characterize a deep relationship between structure and function of complex systems in biology will make possible the effective analysis, design (in synthetic biology), and control (in biomedicine) of many complex systems. The mathematical results and tools we aim to develop will be applicable in many other contexts, for instance in engineered socio-technical systems operational in military and national security contexts.