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Showing papers presented at "Conference on Computability in Europe in 2014"


Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: In this paper, a naturalist approach to cognition is presented, which can be seen as a network of info-computational, autopoietic processes in living systems, and it provides a conceptual framework for the unified view of cognition as evolved from the simplest to the most complex organisms.
Abstract: This article presents a naturalist approach to cognition understood as a network of info-computational, autopoietic processes in living systems. It provides a conceptual framework for the unified view of cognition as evolved from the simplest to the most complex organisms, based on new empirical and theoretical results. It addresses three fundamental questions: what cognition is, how cognition works and what cognition does at different levels of complexity of living organisms. By explicating the info-computational character of cognition, its evolution, agent-dependency and generative mechanisms we can better understand its life-sustaining and life-propagating role. The info-computational approach contributes to rethinking cognition as a process of natural computation in living beings that can be applied for cognitive computation in artificial systems.

35 citations


Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: It is shown that the decision problems of recognising many different dynamical behaviours in reaction systems span a number of complexity classes ranging from FO-uniform AC 0 to P-completeness with several intermediate problems being either NP or coNP-complete.
Abstract: We investigate the computational complexity of deciding the occurrence of many different dynamical behaviours in reaction systems, with an emphasis on biologically relevant problems (i.e., existence of fixed points and fixed point attractors). We show that the decision problems of recognising these dynamical behaviours span a number of complexity classes ranging from FO-uniform AC 0 to \({\Pi_2^{\rm P}}\)-completeness with several intermediate problems being either NP or coNP-complete.

32 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
01 Mar 2014
TL;DR: The state-of-the art of the research is traced and the opinion on possible applications of the preliminary results are presented, especially given the possibility to detect the mental state of the users.
Abstract: The reliability of commercial non-invasive BCI (brain computer Interface) devices and the lower cost of these EEG-based systems, as well as the equipment's portability, determined the increasing interest in their application in different research fields The latter feature makes BCI devices particularly suited for entertainment applications, especially given the possibility to detect the mental state of the users The relationship between emotions and entertainment is obvious, as is the influence of music in human emotional states While BCI devices represent a challenge in gaming motion control, they have been successfully applied in music production [Dan et al 2009] and composition [Hamadicharef et al 2010] In our previous work [Conscious and unconscious music from the brain in press] we focused on conscious production of music notes with the aim of developing a prototype for applications in entertainment In this work we trace the state-of-the art of our research and present our opinion on possible applications of the preliminary results

22 citations


Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: An operational semantics for strategic graph programs by means of an abstract machine specifies the valid transformation steps, providing a link between the model and its implementation in PORGY.
Abstract: PORGY is a visual modelling tool, where a system is defined by a strategic graph program. In this paper, we provide an operational semantics for strategic graph programs by means of an abstract machine. The semantics specifies the valid transformation steps, providing a link between the model and its implementation in PORGY.

20 citations


Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: In this paper, it was shown that there is no general function space construction for second-order polynomial-time computability, and that there are restrictions on the domain or the codomain that do not provide a function space with polynomially-time function evaluation.
Abstract: In the context of second-order polynomial-time computability, we prove that there is no general function space construction. We proceed to identify restrictions on the domain or the codomain that do provide a function space with polynomial-time function evaluation containing all polynomial-time computable functions of that type.

18 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
01 Sep 2014
TL;DR: Electric Agents is a transmedia game that presents new ways for children to actively engage with television content and demonstrates patterns of collaborative activity, scaffolded learning, and parasocial relationships that have been linked in previous literature to educational benefits.
Abstract: Electric Agents is a transmedia game that presents new ways for children to actively engage with television content. A typical-looking educational television show transforms into an interactive game in which children collaborate through a mobile augmented reality experience to find and collect vocabulary words that are missing from the show. The players return the words to the show by throwing them back into the television using their mobile devices. This blend of a linear video narrative and an interactive game strives to make educational television content more engaging and participatory while fostering collaborative play with vocabulary words. We describe the technical implementation to support this collaborative mobile augmented reality experience and report findings from a pilot user study. Results demonstrate patterns of collaborative activity, scaffolded learning, and parasocial relationships that have been linked in previous literature to educational benefits.

18 citations


Book ChapterDOI
Marius Zimand1
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: Bauwens, Mahklin, Vereshchagin and Zimand [1] and Teutsch [6] have shown that given a string x it is possible to construct in polynomial time a list containing a short description of it as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Bauwens, Mahklin, Vereshchagin and Zimand [1] and Teutsch [6] have shown that given a string x it is possible to construct in polynomial time a list containing a short description of it. We simplify their technique and present a shorter proof of this result, which also achieves better values for the main parameters.

17 citations


Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: A simple proof of this bound is presented and recent developments are surveyed that lead to the proof that also the absolute approximation ratio of these algorithms is exactly 1.7.
Abstract: In the bin packing problem we are given an instance consisting of a sequence of items with sizes between 0 and 1. The objective is to pack these items into the smallest possible number of bins of unit size. FirstFit and BestFit algorithms are simple online algorithms introduced in early seventies, when it was also shown that their asymptotic approximation ratio is equal to 1.7. We present a simple proof of this bound and survey recent developments that lead to the proof that also the absolute approximation ratio of these algorithms is exactly 1.7. More precisely, if the optimum needs opt bins, the algorithms use at most \(\lfloor1.7\cdot\) OPT \(\rfloor\) bins and for each value of opt, there are instances that actually need so many bins. We also discuss bounded-space bin packing, where the online algorithm is allowed to keep only a fixed number of bins open for future items. In this model, a variant of BestFit also has asymptotic approximation ratio 1.7, although it is possible that the bound is significantly smaller if also the offline solution is required to satisfy the bounded-space restriction.

13 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
16 Apr 2014
TL;DR: The ability of the Emoti-Chair to convey the emotional content of the soundtrack in a horror film is examined and results provide evidence that users can augment the communication of emotion in film through use of a high-resolution continuous vibrotactile display.
Abstract: Over the last decade consumers have witnessed a dramatic increase in the use of low fidelity, discrete vibrotactile feedback to enhance or replace audio stimuli in entertainment systems. However, use of high-resolution continuous vibrotactile displays remains quite uncommon. The Emoti-Chair is a high-resolution continuous vibrotactile display that may be driven by any type of audio signal, and is purported to convey the emotional properties of sound through organized vibrotactile stimulation. In the current study, we examined the ability of the Emoti-Chair to convey the emotional content of the soundtrack in a horror film. Increases in skin conductance levels were observed when vibrotactile stimuli were added to audio/visual film content. These results provide evidence that users can augment the communication of emotion in film through use of a high-resolution continuous vibrotactile display.

13 citations


Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: It is shown how RIVYERA can be applied to different kinds of problems regarding bioinformatics, including speed up the process of exact sequence alignment using the Smith-Waterman algorithm, querying protein sequence databases using BLASTp, and running genome-wide association studies using iLOCI or similar methods based on contingency tables.
Abstract: Bioinformatics specifies a wide field of applications with generally long runtimes or huge amounts of data to be processed – or even both. Typically, large computing clusters or special computing platforms are harnessed to solve problems in this field in reasonable time. One such platform is represented by the FPGA-based high-performance computer RIVYERA, which was intentionally developed for problems in cryptanalysis. On the basis of three easy examples taken from our current research field, we show how RIVYERA can be applied to different kinds of problems regarding bioinformatics. RIVYERA is able to significantly speed up the process of exact sequence alignment using the Smith-Waterman [1] algorithm, querying protein sequence databases using BLASTp [2], and running genome-wide association studies (GWAS) using iLOCI [3] or similar methods based on contingency tables. Likewise, energy savings with RIVYERA are in the same order as runtime reductions compared to standard PCs or computing clusters.

12 citations


Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: This problem models several practical issues like faults in distributed networks or word-to-mouth recommendations in social networks and shows that for any functions f and ρ this problem cannot be approximated within a factor of ρ(k) in f( k) ·n O(1) time, unless FPT = W[P], even for restricted thresholds.
Abstract: In this paper, we consider the Target Set Selection problem: given a graph and a threshold value Open image in new window for each vertex v of the graph, find a minimum size vertex-subset to “activate” s.t. all the vertices of the graph are activated at the end of the propagation process. A vertex v is activated during the propagation process if at least Open image in new window of its neighbors are activated. This problem models several practical issues like faults in distributed networks or word-to-mouth recommendations in social networks. We show that for any functions f and ρ this problem cannot be approximated within a factor of ρ(k) in f(k) ·n O(1) time, unless FPT = W[P], even for restricted thresholds (namely constant and majority thresholds). We also study the cardinality constraint maximization and minimization versions of the problem for which we prove similar hardness results.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: It is proved that Ramseyan factorization theorem (RF) is equivalent to RT^2_2 for all s,k ≥ 2, k ∈ ω over RCAo and it is in between ADS and CAC.
Abstract: We study, in the context of reverse mathematics, the strength of Ramseyan factorization theorem (\({\rm RF}^{s}_{k}\)), a Ramsey-type theorem used in automata theory. We prove that \({\rm RF}^s_k\) is equivalent to \({\rm RT}^2_2\) for all s,k ≥ 2, k ∈ ω over RCAo. We also consider a weak version of Ramseyan factorization theorem and prove that it is in between ADS and CAC.

Journal ArticleDOI
16 Apr 2014
TL;DR: The purpose of this study was to assess the energy expenditure experienced by children when playing six active video games, which can be used in a home environment and in a public setting to evaluate whether the intensity of playing these games can meet the threshold for moderate-intensity physical activity.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to assess the energy expenditure (EE) experienced by children when playing six active video games, which can be used in a home environment and in a public setting (e.g. game center), and to evaluate whether the intensity of playing these games can meet the threshold for moderate-intensity physical activity, which is set at an EE equivalent to three times resting metabolic rate. Children are recommended to be physically active at a moderate intensity for at least one hour a day.

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Sep 2014
TL;DR: The method proposed here to determine, in a simplified but still plausible way, the behavior of the characters participating in a story is based on rules that associate a given situation with a list of different goals, which may lead to goal and plan interferences.
Abstract: The method proposed here to determine, in a simplified but still plausible way, the behavior of the characters participating in a story is based on rules that associate a given situation with a list of different goals. In view of the rules whose situation holds at the current state, each character engages in a decision-making process along three steps: goal selection, plan selection, and commitment. The selection criteria reflect individual preferences originating, respectively, from drives, attitudes and emotions. Four kinds of inter-character relations are considered, which may lead to goal and plan interferences. A prototype logic, programming tool was developed to run experiments.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: This paper focuses on data refinement, where the species of the initial model are substituted with several subspecies in the refined one, each with its own individual behavior in the model.
Abstract: The systematic development of large biological models can benefit from an iterative approach based on a refinement process that gradually adds more details regarding the reactants and/or reactions of the model. We focus here on data refinement, where the species of the initial model are substituted with several subspecies in the refined one, each with its own individual behavior in the model. In this context, we distinguish between structural refinement, where the aim is to generate meaningful refined reactions, and quantitative refinement, where one looks for a data fit at least as good as that of the original model. The latter generally requires refitting the model and additional experimental data, a computationally expensive process. A fit-preserving refinement, i.e. one that captures the same species dynamics as the original model, can serve as a suitable alternative or as initialization for parameter estimation routines. We focus in this paper on the problem of finding all numerical setups that yield fit-preserving refinements of a given model and formulate a sufficient condition for it. Our result suggests a straightforward, computationally efficient automation of the quantitative model refinement process. We illustrate the use of our approach through a discussion of the Lotka-Volterra model for prey-predator dynamics.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: An automata-theoretic approach to analyzing an abstract channel modeled by a transducer and to characterizing its lossy rates is provided and the boundaries between the decidable and undecidable cases are shown.
Abstract: We provide an automata-theoretic approach to analyzing an abstract channel modeled by a transducer and to characterizing its lossy rates. In particular, we look at related decision problems and show the boundaries between the decidable and undecidable cases.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: This work uses Koenigsmann's work on Hilbert’s Tenth Problem to establish that nonstandard fields in computability theory are rigid, and obtains results about automorphisms of the lattices of computably enumerable vector spaces arising in the context of Ash's conjecture.
Abstract: Cohesive sets play an important role in computability theory Here we use cohesive sets to build nonstandard versions of the rationals We use Koenigsmann’s work on Hilbert’s Tenth Problem to establish that these nonstandard fields are rigid As a consequence we obtain results about automorphisms of the lattices of computably enumerable vector spaces arising in the context of Ash’s conjecture

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: It is shown that it is decidable whether a given a regular tree language belongs to the class ${\bf \Delta^0_2}$ of the Borel hierarchy, or equivalently whether the Wadge degree of aregular tree language is countable.
Abstract: We show that it is decidable whether a given a regular tree language belongs to the class \({\bf \Delta^0_2}\) of the Borel hierarchy, or equivalently whether the Wadge degree of a regular tree language is countable.

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Sep 2014
TL;DR: The design space of sketching in in-place augmented reality with particular attention to AR games is explored and a contextual model is proposed that offers a framework for the exploration of the design space by the research community.
Abstract: Sketching leverages human skills for various purposes, such as content authoring. This paper explores the different aspects of sketch-based interaction in augmented reality. We explore the design space of sketching in in-place augmented reality with particular attention to AR games. We propose a contextual model that offers a framework for the exploration of the design space by the research community. We describe different case studies of sketch-based AR games we developed based on our shape-based tracking library and our sketch-based 3-D game engine. We finally present user feedback from our games and introduce guidelines for AR game designers focusing on sketch-based interaction.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: In this paper, a regular tree automaton of Open image in new window over a ranked alphabet is presented, where R is the maximal rank of a symbol occurring in the alphabet and O is the size of the image.
Abstract: Champarnaud and Ziadi, and Khorsi et al. show how to compute the equation automaton of word regular expression Open image in new window via the k-C-Continuations. Kuske and Meinecke extend the computation of the equation automaton to a regular tree expression Open image in new window over a ranked alphabet Σ and produce a Open image in new window time and space complexity algorithm, where R is the maximal rank of a symbol occurring in Σ and Open image in new window is the size of Open image in new window . In this paper, we give a full description of the algorithm based on the acyclic minimization of Revuz. Our algorithm, which is performed in an Open image in new window time and space complexity, where |Q| is the number of states of the produced automaton, is more efficient than the one obtained by Kuske and Meinecke.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: A nature-inspired generic programming language for parallel algorithms that works for all data structures and control structures, each of which is an abstract state machine, augmented with the ability to spawn new cells.
Abstract: We develop a nature-inspired generic programming language for parallel algorithms, one that works for all data structures and control structures. Any parallel algorithm satisfying intuitively-appealing postulates can be modeled by a collection of cells, each of which is an abstract state machine, augmented with the ability to spawn new cells. All cells run the same algorithm and communicate via a shared global memory.

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Mar 2014
TL;DR: A Situation Design is proposed that designs not only the experience of behavior itself, but also theExperience of the environment around the behavior, with the goal of offering fun.
Abstract: This paper proposes a Situation Design that designs not only the experience of behavior itself, but also the experience of the environment around the behavior. The research question of this paper is how to motivate children to paint. To find answers, we implemented an iPhone application. The app we came up with was The World Is Canvas; using it, one will be able to enjoy coloring based on a Situation Design. We adopted physical interaction, the function of which is to paint on the screen with fingers, as a design of a painting experience itself. We also adopted social interaction as a design of the environment around behavior, with the goal of offering fun. For social interaction, we adopted a mobile device with a network connection and a function to generate a draft for coloring by using a photo taken by the user. We conducted user evaluation tests on 111 children to analyze their user experience, and we demonstrated that they enjoyed themselves through these approaches.

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Mar 2014
TL;DR: This work utilized the intellectual structure technique developed by the information scientist to help clarify the scope and themes of this research domain and tentatively identified 25 main research themes to facilitate the comprehension and study of online games.
Abstract: Computer-based games have become an important social phenomenon of modern society. Fast-growing online games are becoming the dominant sector in computer-based games. The development of online games involves many disparate disciplines from the technology, entertainment, and behavior sciences. Attracted by the potential impact of this rapidly growing segment, there is a growing literature addressing this fascinating topic. However, the scope, perspective, and main research themes of online games study are still unclear to date. Therefore, we utilized the intellectual structure technique developed by the information scientist to help clarify the scope and themes of this research domain. We analyzed thousands of relevant literature and tentatively identified 25 main research themes to facilitate the comprehension and study of online games. A research framework is developed by synthesizing the research themes and references. The framework encompasses research areas in network infrastructure, game platform architecture, game applications, player study, ICT mediated social activities, social capital, and game business models.

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Mar 2014
TL;DR: The main ideas behind the system, its implementation, and the experiments performed using the system in a real game environment show that RTSMate fulfills its objective: most players considered the system useful and were able to improve their performance by using it.
Abstract: Real Time Strategy (RTS) games can be very challenging, especially to novice users, who are normally overwhelmed by the dynamic, distributed, and multi-objective structure of these games. In this paper we present RTSMate, an advice system designed to help the player of an RTS game. Using inference mechanisms to reason about the game state and a decision tree to encode its knowledge, RTSMate helps the player by giving him/her tactical and strategical tips about the best actions to be taken according to the current game state, aiming at improving player's performance. This paper describes the main ideas behind the system, its implementation, and the experiments performed using the system in a real game environment. Results show that RTSMate fulfills its objective: most players considered the system useful and were able to improve their performance by using it.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: It is shown that Minimum Leaf Removal is not approximable within factor b logm, where m is the number of leaves of the species tree and b > 0 is a constant, and a new variant of the problem is introduced, where the goal is the correction of a gene tree with the minimum number of leaf modifications.
Abstract: The reconciliation of a gene tree and a species tree is a well-known method to understand the evolution of a gene family in order to identify which evolutionary events (speciations, duplications and losses) occurred during gene evolution. Since reconciliation is usually affected by errors in the gene trees, they have to be preprocessed before the reconciliation process. A method to tackle with this problem aims to correct a gene tree by removing the minimum number of leaves (Minimum Leaf Removal). In this paper we show that Minimum Leaf Removal is not approximable within factor b logm, where m is the number of leaves of the species tree and b > 0 is a constant. Furthermore, we introduce a new variant of the problem, where the goal is the correction of a gene tree with the minimum number of leaf modifications. We show that this problem, differently from the removal version, is W[1]-hard, when parameterized by the number of leaf modifications.

Journal ArticleDOI
16 Apr 2014
TL;DR: A standardized framework that supports the seamless integration of distributed 3D resources as coarse-grained components of constructed Distributed Virtual Environments (DVEs) and incorporates streaming within the architecture for the real-time data delivery and improved performance is introduced.
Abstract: The popularization of podcasting provides Internet users more opportunities to access interesting and entertaining multimedia content. The podcasting content hosting sites became the shared platforms for all Internet users to access third-party contributions. More and more Internet users are encouraged to become active content providers that share their resources and multimedia productions. Building a large scale multi-user 3D application can benefit from the same content distribution pattern as the development cost can be distributed if the application implementation is outsourced. The application is constructed by integrating 3D content from various third-party service providers. In addition, the implementation outsourcing can inspire contributors to provide creative application content. Unfortunately, sharing and distributing 3D resources are more challenging and the podcasting framework cannot resolve the problems effectively.We introduce a standardized framework that supports the seamless integration of distributed 3D resources as coarse-grained components of constructed Distributed Virtual Environments (DVEs). Component Application Framework For Extensible NEtworked Virtual Environments (Caffe Neve) uses service-oriented architecture (SOA) and incorporates streaming technology for dynamic content delivery. Using Caffe Neve, third-party developers can create distributed services to stream 3D content. The framework provides an application integrator that constructs a shared virtual environment and delivers the application content to the end users.In this paper we describe the framework details. The application integration infrastructure of the framework is designed based on a distributed Model-View-Controller model. The framework uses an ontology to support the semantic level content integration and service coordination. In addition, the framework incorporates streaming within the architecture for the real-time data delivery and improved performance. By deploying services within the framework, 3D resource owners can conveniently podcast or broadcast their 3D content to the end users. In the end, we demonstrate how to use the framework to construct 3D podcast and broadcast applications. Regardless of the type of 3D applications and delay tolerance, performance is important and has to be carefully studied. We evaluate the framework performance by examining the sample application and present the analysis results. We also present the experiment results on the simulated framework application in large scale by using simulation tools.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: The authors, motivated by natural phenomena, propose a framework in which the abstract notion of boundaries along membranes is modeled, and behaviors of communication rules restricted to these membrane boundaries are presented, showing how these restrictions affect the maximal parallelism.
Abstract: In membrane systems, the maximal parallelism is a useful tool for modeling real biotic/chemical interactions. After all, there are many attempts to relax maximal parallelism at the definition level, e.g. minimal parallelism, bounded parallelism etc., or even at the system level as the metabolic P system. By the help of topological means, membrane computations and maximal parallelism can be controlled. Besides, in natural processes, the events represented by communication rules take place in the vicinity of the membranes. The authors, motivated by natural phenomena, propose a framework in which the abstract notion of boundaries along membranes is modeled. In this paper, behaviors of communication rules restricted to these membrane boundaries are presented, in particular, showing how these restrictions affect the maximal parallelism.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: The polynomial-size hierarchy is the hierarchy of ‘minicomplexity’ classes which correspond to two-way alternating finite automata with polynomially many states and finitely many alternations.
Abstract: The polynomial-size hierarchy is the hierarchy of ‘minicomplexity’ classes which correspond to two-way alternating finite automata with polynomially many states and finitely many alternations. It is defined by analogy to the polynomial-time hierarchy of standard complexity theory, and it has recently been shown to be strict above its first level.

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Sep 2014
TL;DR: This framework constitutes a complete solution for the development of tabletop computer games facilitating the authoring and management of complex and large terrains while providing a reusable and extensible input infrastructure that significantly reduces the need to implement common input elements across different games.
Abstract: We have implemented an integrated development framework for tabletop computer games focusing on the aspects of terrain composition and input management. To support multiple game genres and varying board setups we propose a generic terrain structure based on a directed graph where each game node is represented by a graph node in the underlying structure. To capture and express the repeating path-patterns commonly found in tabletop games we also utilize reusable building blocks called structured tiles. Structured tiles combine information about graphical representation, geometry as well as path structure, essentially constituting sub-graphs of a respective tile image. In this sense, the terrain is composed by assembling sub-graphs and the resulting complete graph can be used to perform semantic terrain analysis like node connectivity and reachability checks. Finally structured tiles can be used to standardize common game mechanics like plausible path computation, path selection by players, and in-path movement and incorporate them into the game engine. To support the various and dynamically changing input configurations required by the pervasive nature of tabletop computer games we also propose a multimodal input system that allows game actions to be performed via numerous virtual input devices abstracting over physical input devices, while supporting their dynamic plugging or unplugging during gameplay. The input system keeps track of the physical input devices associated for each player and it can dynamically identify missing game commands caused by the unplugging of a device. To prevent stalling interaction in such cases, we introduce animated interactive panels encompassing the required game commands. These panels, called soft dialogues, require only pointing input and allow maintaining interaction regardless of the type of game input required during runtime (e.g. keypad, or switch-based input). Soft dialogues also help achieve input accessibility by combining them with scanning interaction techniques. Overall, our framework constitutes a complete solution for the development of tabletop computer games facilitating the authoring and management of complex and large terrains while providing a reusable and extensible input infrastructure that significantly reduces the need to implement common input elements across different games.

Book ChapterDOI
23 Jun 2014
TL;DR: It is demonstrated how compartmentalisation can greatly reduce the complexity required to implement computational functionality, and how addressable compartments permit the scaling-up of programmable chemical synthesis.
Abstract: Biological systems employ compartmentalisation in order to orchestrate a multitude of biochemical processes by simultaneously enabling “data hiding” and modularisation. In this paper, we present recent research projects that embrace compartmentalisation as an organisational programmatic principle in synthetic biological and biomimetic systems. In these systems, artificial vesicles and synthetic minimal cells are envisioned as nanoscale reactors for programmable biochemical synthesis and as chassis for molecular information processing. We present P systems, brane calculi, and the recently developed chemtainer calculus as formal frameworks providing data hiding and modularisation and thus enabling the representation of highly complicated hierarchically organised compartmentalised reaction systems. We demonstrate how compartmentalisation can greatly reduce the complexity required to implement computational functionality, and how addressable compartments permit the scaling-up of programmable chemical synthesis.