Reviews examples and notions of robustness at specific levels of biological organization

Grounds general reflections upon concrete case studies

Addresses core issues with clear and accessible language, favoring non-expert readers and fostering interdisciplinarity

Autorentext

Marta Bertolaso is Assistant Professor for Philosophy of Science at the University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome, Faculty of Engineering, and member of FAST Institute of Philosophy of Scientific Practice at the same university. Her research concerns philosophy of science and philosophy of the life sciences with a specific focus on the dynamics of complex systems, on cancer and on the philosophical implications of the theoretical models that have been proposed to account for its occurrence. She is currently exploring the relationships between contingency, hierarchy and causal complexity in dynamic, engineered and living systems, drawing lessons for the modeling and epistemology of new bio-medical fields such as 'In Silico Medicine'. In particular, her interest deals with how features of organizational levels are structured and identified in scientific practice. She is coordinator of Bio-Techno-Practice, a Research Empowering Hub, and editor-in-chief of thebook series Human Perspectives in Bio-Medical Sciences and Technology (Springer).

Silvia&nbs p;Caianiello is Senior Researcher at the Institute for the History of Philosophy and Science in the Modern Age (ISPF) of the Italian National Research Council (C.N.R.) in Naples, Italy. Her current research field is the history and philosophy of evolutionary theory and evo-devo, with particular focus on the breakthrough of systemic and hierarchical approaches to biological organization and evolutionary change. She conducted extensive research on conceptual transfers across different scientific fields and their wider epistemic implications, and particularly on the dynamics of conceptual interactions between Human and Life Sciences in the XIX Century. She is co-editor of the Book Series Filosofia e saperi. Crossing boundaries between humanities and life sciences (CNR Edizioni) and Vice-Director of the Italian inter-university Center on epistemology and history of the life sciences Res viva.

Emanuele Serrelli is a researcher in the philosophy of science, specialized in philosophy of biology and evolutionary theory but vocated to interdisciplinary projects that span the whole range of disciplines and fields of knowledge. Currently fellow at the University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy, CISEPS Center for Interdisciplinary Studies in Economics, Psychology and Social Sciences, he also works as a freelance research consultant for several universities around the world. He is a member of the editorial board at Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution: Evolutionary Developmental Biology. His recent international works include Evolutionary Theory: A Hierarchical perspective (edited with N. Eldredge et al., University of Chicago Press, 2016), "Understanding Cultural Traits. A MultidisciplinaryPerspective on Cultural Diversity" (edited with F. Panebianco, Springer, 2016), and "Macroevolution: Explanation, Interpretation and Evidence" (edited with N. Gontier, Springer, 2015).

Inhalt

1. Introduction: Is Biological Robustness Unique?.- 2. Robustness, Mechanism, and the Counterfactual use of Goal-directedness in Biology (Marco Buzzoni).- 3. Difference (Alfredo Marcos).- 4. Robustness and Autonomy (Alvaro Moreno).- 5. Robustness as an Explanandum and Explanans in Evolutionary Biology and Ecology (Philippe Hunemann).- 6. Issues in Developmental Robustness (Manfred D. Laubichler).- 7. Physical Robustness and Biological Robustness: Dynamical Rearrangement of Symmetry and Minimum Stimulus (Giuseppe Vitiello).- 8. News from the 'Twilight Zone': Protein Molecules Between the Crystal and the Fluid (Alessandro Giuliani).- 9. Robustness and Emergent Dynamics in Noisy Biological Systems (Simonetta Filippi).- 10. Robustness in Neurological Systems (Sandra D. Mitchell).- 11. Robustness Notions and Physiological Adaptability: Philosophical and Biomedical Reflections on the Neurological Basis of Disorders (Raffaella Campaner).- 12. Reconciling Variability with Robust Behavior at Single-neuron Level (Timothy O'Leary).- 13. Functional Connectivity, Regulation, and SOM Interneurons Spontaneous Activity (Alison Barth).- 14. Temporal Organization and Robustness in Neural Systems (Trey Boone).- 15. Muscle Synergies: Concept, Principles, and Potential use in Neurorehabilitation Module (Emilio Bizzi).- 16. Robustness of Musical Language: The Role of Motor Systems (Flavio Keller).- 17. Conclusion - The Upcoming Role of Robustness in Biology.