The INBIOSA White Paper will be published in 2012
The consortium has focused its effort on writing a practical position paper that can be used to direct future research in Integral Biomathics. More than 20 scientists have been involved in the discussion. White Paper, motivating the need for action, reflecting the impact foreseen in science, technology and society and defining goals and directions for research has been prepared. This forms the final section V of the INBIOSA Springer book entitled Integral Biomathics: Tracing the Road to Reality, P. L. Simeonov, L. S. Smith, A. C. Ehresmann (Eds.). The other 4 parts are composed of the articles submitted to ACIB'11 conference in Stirling and the iBioMath 2011 workshop in Paris. This book is about a new approach to biology (and physics, of course). Its subtitle “Tracing the Road to Reality” suggests a perpetual movement and interplay between two elusive aspects of modern science — reality/matter and potentiality/mind, between physics and biology (both captured and triggered by mathematics), to understand and explain emergence, development and life all the way up (and down) to consciousness. The simple answer to the question 'what is reality?' is this: "it is something that acts!”. Indeed, reality is acting upon us, and we, and life in general, are acting upon reality: these two systems are in interplay. Here potentiality, found both in quantum reality and in the activity of life, plays a key role. In quantum reality observation turns potentiality (as expressed in the state vector) into reality. Again, life computes possibilities in various ways based on past actions, and acts on the basis of these computations; this is how life emerges and evolves, how the personalities of individuals are shaped, and how communities, societies and cultures are created and developed. These are the overriding themes of this book. This book is the final outcome of the INBIOSA project which ends by the end of December 2011. A slighly different version including some appendices will be delivered to the EC later. INBIOSA Future The INBIOSA web site will continue to operate in 2012. It will be enhanced with more functionality. The project management team is planning to initiate a few projects next year, among which will be G-INBIOSA - Global INBIOSA with special focus on world wide coordination of: i) joint projects; ii) education (elaboration of curriculum programmes); iii) web thesaurus on Integral Biomathics terms and concepts; iv) conferences and workshops and other related networking activities. INBIOSA Team wishes you a Very Happy and Successful New Year 2012!