Noviota has published a new article setting out the thinking behind Sybil, its developing language and tooling environment for describing biological systems.
The project addresses a problem that sits at the centre of Noviota’s wider research programme: if increasingly complex biological systems are to be designed, modelled, compared and reproduced computationally, researchers need better ways of describing precisely what those systems are intended to do.
From biological description to biological design
Modern biological research generates enormous quantities of data, but describing a biological system is not necessarily the same as describing its intended behaviour. As biological engineering becomes more computational, this distinction becomes increasingly important.
Noviota is exploring how a domain-specific language can provide a more structured way of expressing biological designs, their components, relationships, constraints and intended behaviour. Sybil is being developed as part of that work.
Rather than replacing established biological standards and modelling tools, the objective is to investigate how a higher-level language can connect biological intent with the computational tools used to design, model and evaluate systems.
Part of a wider research architecture
Sybil does not exist as an isolated software project. It forms part of Noviota’s broader work on programmable cellular systems for infectious disease, alongside research into biological design, simulation, optimisation and reproducibility.
The longer-term aim is to make increasingly sophisticated biological design processes easier to describe, interrogate and reproduce while retaining a clear record of how a proposed system moved from an initial biological objective to a computational design. This also creates foundations for more sophisticated computational and AI-assisted approaches to biological design.
Building the tools as well as the research
Sybil illustrates an important part of Noviota’s approach. Where existing tools do not adequately support a research problem, the work may require building new infrastructure rather than simply adapting the research to the limitations of tools already available.
Sybil remains a developing research project, and its language, tooling and underlying concepts will continue to evolve alongside Noviota’s wider research programme.
Questions & Answers
What is Sybil?
Noviota’s developing language and tooling environment for describing biological systems and supporting increasingly computational approaches to biological design.
What problem is Sybil meant to solve?
Describing a biological system is not the same as describing its intended behaviour — as biological engineering becomes more computational, researchers need better ways of expressing what systems are meant to do.
Is Sybil meant to replace existing biological standards and tools?
No. The objective is to investigate how a higher-level language can connect biological intent with the computational tools already used to design, model and evaluate systems.
Does Sybil stand alone, or is it part of something bigger?
It forms part of Noviota’s broader work on programmable cellular systems for infectious disease, alongside research into biological design, simulation, optimisation and reproducibility.
Is Sybil a finished product?
No. It remains a developing research project, and its language, tooling and underlying concepts will continue to evolve alongside Noviota’s wider research programme.
Read: Why We Are Building Sybil →
Related project: Sybil