IPI lecture - Prof. Bormashenko Edward, Ariel University, Israel

Our next IPI Lecture will be on the 24th of May at 16.00 London time. 

Title: Fibonacci Sequences, Symmetry and Order in Biological Patterns, Their Sources, Information Origin and the Landauer Principle

Abstract: Physical, informational roots, exemplifications and consequences of periodic and aperiodic ordering (represented by Fibonacci series) in biological systems are discussed. The physical, informational and biological roots and role of symmetry and asymmetry appearing in biological patterns are addressed. A generalization of the Curie–Neumann principle as applied to biological objects is presented, briefly summarized as: “asymmetry is what creates a biological phenomenon”. The “top-down” and “bottom-up” approaches to the explanation of symmetry in organisms are presented and discussed in detail. The “top-down” approach implies that the symmetry of the biological structure follows the symmetry of the media in which this structure is functioning; the “bottom-up” approach, in turn, accepts that the symmetry of biological structures emerges from the symmetry of molecules constituting the structure. A diversity of mathematical measures applicable for quantification of order in biological patterns is introduced. The continuous, Shannon and Voronoi measures of symmetry/ordering and their application to biological objects are addressed. The fine structure of the notion of “order” is discussed. Informational/algorithmic roots of order inherent in the biological systems are considered. Ordered/symmetrical patterns provide an economy of biological information, necessary for the algorithmic description of a biological entity. The application of the Landauer principle bridging physics and theory of information to the biological systems is discussed. Typical sizes of biological cells arise from informational reasons.

Author: Prof. Bormashenko Edward

BIO: Edward Bormashenko was born in Kharkov, former USSR, in 1962. He earned his MSc in Physics in Kharkov University; Thesis: Interaction of heavy high energy ions with thin gold films. Professor Bormashenko earned his PhD in  1990 in Polymer Science Moscow Institute of Plastics (USSR). The PhD was supervised by Professor M. Friedman. In 1997 he immigrated to Israel. Currently he is leading the Laboratory of Interface Science, founded in 1998 in Ariel University. His is an author of three monographs, more than 300 peer reviewed papers and 14 patents.

I am working mainly in the field of surface science, in particular in the fields of wetting phenomena, superhydrophobicity, superoleophobicity, ice-phobicity, interfacial crystallization, creating of surfaces with pre-scribed properties, plasma- and UV-treatment of surfaces. My laboratory also works in the field of plasma treatment of seeds and other biological objects. We also study liquid marbles and their self-propulsion. Last year we started to study the Moses effect (magnetically inspired deformation of liquid surfaces) and its applications. I am also interested in foundations of thermodynamics, informational interpretation of thermodynamics (the Landauer Principle),  theory of symmetry, Ramsey theory, quantitative linguistics, topological problems of physics (examplifications of the “hairy ball theorem”), advanced dimensional analysis (extensions of the Buckingham theorem), variational analysis of "free ends" physical problems, enabling application of the "transversality conditions" of variational problems. Last year we started to develop metamaterials exploiting liquid marbles. 

24th of May at 16.00 London time. Online ZOOM lecture - link will be emailed to the IPI members.