Building Communication Networks with Living Organisms


Event Details
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Talk:
4:00 p.m., Avery 115

Reception:
3:30 p.m., Avery 348

Marcello Caleffi, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, University of Naples, Italy

Abstract

In the last several years, many algorithms trying to mimic biological processes have been proposed to enhance the performance of communication networks. However, these bio-inspired algorithms represent only the very first step toward the design of a smart adaptive communication network. In fact, they model only a limited set of the rules underlying the biological processes, thus, omitting fundamental functionalities. Moreover, they are executed on traditional computer architectures, thus, failing to achieve the intrinsic parallelism exhibited by biological processes. To overcome these issues, very recently the BioNetwork paradigm, a novel communication in which the traditional network nodes are replaced by living organisms, has been proposed. The BioNetwork paradigm provides very attractive features over traditional network paradigms, such as efficiency, adaptivity, reliability, self-organization and scalability. Moreover, it has a huge potential, since it can be adopted in many different applications. In this seminar, the BioNetwork paradigm potential is disclosed by theoretically proving that a BioNetwork based on a unicellular organism, the Physarum polycephalum slime mold, can efficiently solve one of the most fundamental NP-hard problems in networks, i.e., the Steiner tree problem. Stemming from this fundamental result, an in-depth view of the BioNetwork paradigm is provided from the communication and the computation perspectives. Moreover, the open research challenges in terms of effectiveness, controllability and survivability of the living organisms composing a BioNetwork are highlighted, defining so the roadmap for the development and the deployment of this new communication paradigm within the next couple of decades.

Speaker Bio

Marcello Caleffi is currently an Assistant Professor with the Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technologies at the University of Naples Federico II. He received the Dr. Eng. Degree summa cum laude in Computer Science Engineering from University of Lecce, Italy, in 2005, and the Ph.D. degree in Electronic and Telecommunications Engineering from the University of Naples Federico II, Italy, in 2009. From 2010 to 2011, Marcello Caleffi joined the Broadband BWNLab at the Georgia Institute of Technology as visiting researcher. In 2011, he also joined the N3Cat at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya as visiting research. His current research interests are in cognitive radio networks and biological networks.