(1934-1997): American mathematician, theoretical biologist/mathematical biophysicist and
Professor of Biophysics, worked first between 1964 and 1973 at the Center for Theoretical Biology
at Buffalo, New York, and after 1974 at Dalhousie University. He completed his PhD studies in
Mathematical Biophysics with Professor Nicolas Rashevsky, the Founder of Mathematical
Biophysics and Mathematical Biology at the University of Chicago in the Committee for
Mathematical Biology. During this very productive period he developed a categorical
representation of Metabolic-Repair systems or (M,R)–systems for organisms, their relational
structure and biodynamics. His last books entitled “Life Itself” and “Essays on Life
Itself address the fundamental question “What is Life?”, biological complexity and
logical-mathematical foundations of theoretical biology. He served as President of the Society for
General Systems Research, (now ISSS), during 1980-82. Rosen’s abstract relational
biology approach focuses on a definition of living organisms, and all complex systems, in
terms of their internal “organization” as open systems that cannot be reduced to their
interacting components because of the multiple relations between metabolic and repair
components that govern the organism’s complex biodynamics. He deliberately chose
the ‘simplest’ graphs and categories for his representations of Metabolic-Replication
Systems in small categories of sets endowed only with the discrete topology of sets,
envisaging this choice as the most general and less restrictive. It turns out however
that the categories of (M,R)-systems are Cartesian closed, and may be considered in a
very strict mathematical sense as subcategories of the category of sequential machines
or automata, in a somewhat ironical vindication of the French philosopher Descartes’
supposition that ‘all animals are only ellaborate machines’ or mechanisms. The latter,
mechanistic view prevails even today in most of general biology, but not in sociology or
psychology.
On the other hand, Rosen’s metabolic-replication systems– when extended to generalized, variable
(M,R)-systems– that were endowed with unique algebraic and variable topological structures, are
different from any type of classical automaton, with the possible exception of quantum automata.
Rosen’s relational approach to Biology is an extension and amplification of Nicolas Rashevsky’s
treatment of n-relations in, and among, organismic sets that he developed over two decades as a
representation of both biological and social ‘organisms’.
Robert Rosen’s contributions to abstract relational biology as well as theoretical biology are
however much more numerous and substantial than the concise, outline presentation of his work
provided in this brief biography. The reader may find many more interesting details in the
following bibliography related to Robert Rosen’s contributions to Mathematical Biophysics,
Mathematical and Theoretical Biology.
[1] Rosen, R.: 1958a, A Relational Theory of Biological Systems Bulletin of
Mathematical Biophysics 20: 245-260.
[2] Rosen, R.: 1958b, The Representation of Biological Systems from the Standpoint of
the Theory of Categories., Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics 20: 317-341.
[3] Rosen, R. 1960. A quantum-theoretic approach to genetic problems. Bulletin of
Mathematical Biophysics 22: 227-255.
[4] Rosen,R. 1970, Dynamical Systems Theory in Biology. New York: Wiley Interscience.
[5] Rosen, R. 1970, Optimality Principles in Biology, New York and London: Academic
Press.
[6] Rosen, R. 1978, Fundamentals of Measurement and Representation of Natural
Systems, Elsevier Science Ltd,
[7]
Rosen, R. 1985, Anticipatory Systems: Philosophical, Mathematical and Methodological
Foundations. Pergamon Press: New York.
[8] Rosen, R.: 1987, On Complex Systems, European Journal of Operational Research
30, 129-134.
[9] Rosen, R. 1991, Life Itself: A Comprehensive Inquiry into the Nature, Origin, and
Fabrication of Life, Columbia University Press
[10] Ehresmann, A. C. and J.-P. Vanbremersch: 2006, The Memory Evolutive Systems
as a Model of Rosen’s Organisms, in Complex Systems Biology, I.C. Baianu, Editor,
Axiomathes 16 (1–2), pp. 13-50.
[11] Elsasser, M.W.: 1981, A Form of Logic Suited for Biology., In: Robert, Rosen, ed.,
Progress in Theoretical Biology, Volume 6, Academic Press, New York and London, pp
23-62.
[12] Rashevsky, N.: 1965, The Representation of Organisms in Terms of Predicates,
Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics 27: 477-491.
[13] Rashevsky, N.: 1969, Outline of a Unified Approach to Physics, Biology and
Sociology., Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics 31: 159–198.
[14] Baianu, I. C.: 2006, Robert Rosen’s Work and Complex Systems Biology, Axiomathes
16(1–2):25–34.
[15] Baianu, I.C.: 1970, Organismic Supercategories: II. On Multistable Systems. Bulletin
of Mathematical Biophysics, 32: 539-561.
[16] Baianu, I.C.: 1973, Some Algebraic Properties of (M,R) – Systems. Bulletin of
Mathematical Biophysics 35, 213-217.
[17] Baianu, I.C. and M. Marinescu: 1974, On A Functorial Construction of (M,R)–
Systems. Revue Roumaine de Mathematiques Pures et Appliquées 19: 388-391.
[18] Baianu, I.C.: 1980, Natural Transformations of Organismic Structures., Bulletin of
Mathematical Biology,42: 431-446.
[19] Baianu, I. C.: 1986–1987, Computer Models and Automata Theory in Biology
and Medicine., in M. Witten (ed.), Mathematical Models in Medicine, vol. 7.,
Ch.11 Pergamon Press, New York, 1513 -1577; URLs: CERN Preprint No.
EXT-2004-072: http://doe.cern.ch//archive/electronic/other/ext/ext-2004-072.pdf ;
http://en.scientificcommons.org/1857371 .
[20] Baianu I. C., Brown R., Georgescu G. and J. F. Glazebrook: 2006b,
Complex Nonlinear Biodynamics in Categories, Higher Dimensional Algebra and
Łukasiewicz–Moisil Topos: Transformations of Neuronal, Genetic and Neoplastic
Networks., Axiomathes, 16 Nos. 1–2: 65–122.
