Biological Robustness

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.            

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 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