Hybrid control in the nematode

Summary form only given. A research effort on the structure and organization of complex systems, based on a simple biological model, the nematode species C. elegans an dAscaris, has been initiated. The work, which emphasizes the nervous system, centers on construction of a computer representation of the organism, using multiple interconnected partial models reflecting its interacting computational and control structures, and determination of the underlying principles of organization. A key problem is to develop a proper framework for the description of neuronal communication, which proceeds not only by means of electrical signals, but also by multiple interacting modes of chemical signaling, acting over characteristic time and distance scales. The model that is suggested is based on hybrid control, because it incorporates both continuous and discrete-event control and it combines logic and dynamics