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During the Information Universe conference we aspire to bring together experts as well as young researchers from a number of different communities, to discuss and debate the definition and interpretation of information. We study the role of information in the way we try to build understanding and accumulate insights in physics, astronomy, cosmology, computational science, mathematics, bio-informatics, neuroscience and life sciences in general.
The online conference which we will have this year hosts sessions on:
1. Information in physics and cosmology
The ΛCDM tension, Euclid and the Dark Universe
Keynote: Wendy Freedman
“The Hubble constant … is a measure of how fast the universe is expanding at the current time. We find ourselves with a discrepancy. Now, there are several possibilities: one is that there is an error in one or both of the experiments, or both measurements could actually be correct, and it’s telling us something about the Universe. … our standard model makes a prediction, and we’re seeing cracks in this prediction. So it is possible that we are missing something in this overall picture. We don’t have the final answer. But that’s exciting; the opportunity to learn something new.”
Wendy Freedman, in her interview: The Hubble Constant measurement mystery
Emergent gravity and space-time: a unified theory based on information
Keynote: Erik Verlinde
“We use concepts like time and space, but we don’t really understand what this means microscopically. That might change… I think there’s something we haven’t found yet, and this will help us discover the origins of our universe.” - in his interview with UvA in the Spotlight.
2. The future of computing: exploring new pathways
Open Space: Data visualization for a new generation
Keynote: Carter Emmart
“Who speaks for the Earth? Those who have experienced it ... by seeing it not as a diagram, but as the system it truly is. What the Earth actually looks like from space can now be constructed from full color, high resolution, global daily imaging by satellites. ... The question is whether common access to this perspective will forge a more integrated awareness of our condition and inspire action for better integrated stewardship.” - on the Overview institute website.
3. Complexity and chaos in nature and computers
Life sciences: the overwhelming complexity of nature
Keynote: Charley Lineweaver
“The techniques of particle physics or cosmology fail utterly to describe the nature and origin of biological complexity. Darwinian evolution gives us an understanding of how biological complexity arose, but is less capable of providing a general principle of why it arises. "Survival of the fittest" is not necessarily "survival of the most complex".” - in his book: Complexity and the Arrow of Time.