Prior to the evolution of the nervous system or neurons, in the precambrian times, soft-bodied animals crawling the planet possibly relied on chemo-mechanical modes of information processing. This talk will explore principles and limits of mechanical computing, building on our work on physical computation implemented in drops/bubbles and other soft materials. Through their work, they have discovered how complex behavior is encoded in unicellular protists and flat “simple” animals without neurons. Time permitting, Manu will reflect on lessons learned trying to democratize access to scientific tools—aka “frugal science.”

Manu is Associate Professor in Dept. of Bioengineering at Stanford and senior fellow at Woods institute of the environment and center for innovation in global health. He is recipient of NSF CAREER Award (2014), NIH Directors New Innovator Award (2015), National Geographic Emerging Explorer (2015), MacArthur Fellow (2016), INDEX Design award (2017), Microbiology Society Unilever Colworth Prize (2020), and Ernst Abbe Award (2021).

Manu runs a curiosity driven lab at Stanford broadly exploring how computation is embodied in biological matter. The lab also focuses on design, development, and deployment of “frugal science” tools to democratize access to science for all.