Sometimes we dive so deeply into our technical fields we almost forget why we chose them in the first place. Grand questions in simple language can pull us back up to the surface. Unfortunately the original questions may not be answerable in the same nontechnical terms in which they were posed! So without presuming to provide clear answers, here are some motivating grand questions for my research:
- How is life possible in a mechanistic universe?
Relevant work: computational biology papers. - How can we model the complexity of the real world on a computer?
Relevant work: modeling frameworks. - How can the neuronal and symbolic views of cognition be reconciled?
Relevant work: cognition papers. - How can we explore distant planetary surfaces?
Relevant work: computational field geology. - How can we get to the stars?
Relevant work: seedships .