Graphic Abstract

Oral Presenters
Time allocations

• Invited speakers: 25 minutes (20 minutes presentation, 4 minutes discussion, 1 minute changeover).

• Plenary speakers: 50 minutes (45 minutes presentation, 5 minutes discussion).

Audio-visual equipment
Please refer to the information provided here.

Poster Presenters

• Posters should be prepared in A0 size (W841 mm × H1189 mm) and will be displayed using a hanging system.

• Please use the poster board indicated by your poster number.

• Posters may be put up starting at 9:30 on Monday, 22 September.

• Display periods:

  •     22 Sept (Mon) 9:30 – 23 Sept (Tue) 18:00

  •     25 Sept (Thu) 9:30 – 26 Sept (Fri) 13:00

• Please remove your poster after the poster session on 23 September. Removed posters may be stored at the venue for later re-display.

• All posters must be completely removed by 13:00 on 26 September.

Ethology, the study of behavioural patterns in organisms, reveals that even single-celled organisms like bacteria and protists possess remarkable adaptive abilities. These cellular behaviours are often mirrored in multicellular organisms, as seen in phenomena like sperm motility.

These adaptive skills in cellular locomotion can be seen as a form of "proto-intelligence" acquired through evolution. Such abilities become more apparent in controlled environments, like microfluidic chambers, where they can be studied and analysed.

Our research, titled "Ethological Dynamics," focuses on extracting fundamental biological algorithms or mathematical models from cellular movement in complex environments. Through experiments, modelling, and simulations, our KAKENHI project “Ethological Dynamics in Diorama Environment” seeks to establish "Ethological Equations" that link environmental stimuli to cellular behavioural responses. This work enables us to uncover universal biological algorithms, such as sperm chemotaxis, phototactic spirals in microalgae, and reinforcement learning in maze-solving slime molds.

We also explore whether these algorithms can be applied to a wide range of behaviours in both single and multicellular organisms. For example, could the principles guiding chemotactic sperm swimming also explain the navigation of migratory birds? Do microalgae and their phototactic responses share common algorithms? Could the reinforcement strategies of maze-solving slime molds inform the development of human infrastructure, such as roads and railways? How can we extract the key environmental response from red-tide plankton?

To advance our understanding, we propose diverse experimental, computational, and theoretical approaches. These range from modelling single-cell to collective behaviour, employing simple mathematical models, studying fluid dynamics with detailed cell shapes and motions, and mining vast experimental data. The themes and keywords include:

• Agent dynamics: Taxis, navigation, strategies

• Behavioral mining: Novel behaviors, measurement, diorama assay

• Collective dynamics: Slime mold, environmental red tide, tissue

• Data-driven algorithms: Data analysis, method, extraction of algorithms

• Exploring universality: Non-biological systems, multicellular organisms

• Fluid dynamics: Flow, swimming, body-environment coupling

The workshop's purpose is to share insights on these topics and discuss the potential of biological algorithms to address health and environmental challenges in society.

Poster Presenter List

1. Prof. Takaaki Aoki (Shiga, Japan)

2. Mr. James Boyle (Oxford, UK [PhD student])

3. Ms. Rebecca Crossley (Oxford, UK [PhD student])

4. Dr. Syun Echigoya (Hokkaido, Japan)

5. Mr. Carles Falcó (Oxford, UK [PhD student])

6. Dr. Charles Fosseprez (Hokkaido, Japan)

7. Prof. Yu Fukasawa (Tohoku, Japan)

8. Dr. Ali Hosseini (Sorbonne, France)

9. Ms. Nonoka Homma (Ryukyus, Japan [PhD student])

10. Mr. Samuel Johnson (Oxford, UK [PhD student])

11. Mr. Thomas Jun Jewell (Oxford, UK [PhD student])

12. Prof. Masashi Kajita (Fukui, Japan)

13. Prof. Itsuki Kunita (Ryukyus, Japan)

14. Prof. Radek Erban (Oxford, UK)

15. Mr. Kota Nishi (Kyushu, Japan [PhD student])

16. Prof. Yukinori Nishigami (Hokkaido, Japan)

17. Dr. Yoko Tominaga (Tokushima, Japan)

18. Prof. Hironori Ueno (Aichi, Japan)

19. Ms. Megumi Uza (Ryukyus, Japan [PhD student])

3. Ms. Rebecca Crossley (Oxford, UK [PhD student])

4. Dr. Syun Echigoya (Hokkaido, Japan)

6. Dr. Charles Fosseprez (Hokkaido, Japan)

8. Dr. Ali Hosseini (Sorbonne, France)

10. Mr. Samuel Johnson (Oxford, UK [PhD student])

11. Mr. Thomas Jun Jewell (Oxford, UK [PhD student])