Exploring Possibility Spaces in Zürich

(Andrea)

From May 5-9, 2024, Andrea visited the research group of evolutionary systems biologists Andreas Wagner at the University of Zürich to discuss the various way in which possibility
spaces are conceived, constructed and modeled by the members of the group. What are biologically accessible possibilities and how are they explored by evolution? Are such possibilities predefined or do they evolve in time? How do structures in the genotype space constrain and generate phenotypes? And how does the space of possibilities relate to evolutionary fitness landscapes? These are some of the questions we discussed by looking at specific topics such as multicellularity, constructing fitness landscapes, and mapping genotypes to phenotypes. One of the most interesting observations of this visit was how interested practicing biologists can be in conceptual questions such as the meaning of robustness and innovation in the context of evolutionary biology, and how these concepts become instantiated through model construction and modeling. It has been an intellectual treat spending a week in this group and the plan is to have these visits on a more regular basis.