Gel brain and body - What if intelligence does not arise from a brain controlling a body, but from a electroactive hydrogel that computes and moves simultaneously?

About the Project

Project Overview:

Life begins as a single cell. At this stage, there is no distinction between brain and body, no predefined controller, and no specialised architecture for computation or actuation. Through development, structure and function emerge together: cells divide, differentiate, and organise into tissues, while simultaneously establishing electrical, chemical, and mechanical communication. Neural systems do not appear as pre-designed controllers, but gradually arise from these distributed Multiphysics interactions, tightly coupled to the developing body and its environment. Intelligent behaviour, in this sense, is not programmed but emerges from continuous feedback between internal dynamics and physical form.

This project addresses a fundamental question in science: how intelligence emerges from interactions between brain, body, and environment. Conventional artificial intelligence treats cognition as computation within a centralized controller, largely separated from the physical system it governs. However, recent advances in bioelectricity, particularly the work of Michael Levin, suggest that intelligence can arise from distributed electrical signalling across living tissues.

Levin’s research on morphogenetic systems and Xenobots demonstrates that collections of cells can self-organize into functional, goal-directed entities without a nervous system. These stem cell–based “living robots” exhibit coordinated movement, self-repair, and collective behaviour, revealing that intelligence is an emergent property of bioelectrical and morphological dynamics rather than a feature of brains alone.

Inspired by this perspective, the project reconceptualizes intelligence as a bioelectrical and physicochemical process. Instead of digital neural networks or living neurons, it uses self-oscillating hydrogels as active materials that generate spatiotemporal electrical patterns—synthetic analogues of bioelectric tissues. This PhD project investigates electroactive hydrogels as unified substrates where computation and actuation coexist. These materials convert electrical activity into mechanical force while sustaining rich electrochemical dynamics for information processing.

Recent work supports this possibility. Experiments by Dr. Hayashi showed that electroactive gels, coupled to a sensory–motor feedback loop, can learn to play a simplified Pong game without predefined algorithms or neural networks (https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.xcrp.2024.102151). The material itself developed adaptive internal dynamics, suggesting that computation and learning can emerge directly from physical substrates.

We will understand how coordinated behaviour emerges in a material that both “thinks” and “moves.” Electrical activity within hydrogels drives deformation of the gel to move around, which in turn reshapes internal electrical dynamics, forming a closed feedback loop within the gel. Through this loop, electrical activity and motion may stabilize and evolve, enabling coordination, locomotion, and potentially goal-directed behaviour.

Complex Machine Group

Our research group explores the physics of complex systems through the lens of cybernetics, focusing on how intelligence and behavior emerge from closed-loop interactions between brain, body, and environment. We study living systems as inherently self-regulating and self-organizing, where sensing, actuation, and computation are not separated but deeply intertwined.

Challenging conventional frameworks that divide controller and body, we draw inspiration from development and biology, where structure and function co-emerge from distributed electrical, chemical, and mechanical interactions.

Using a combination of physical chemical experiments, behavioral analysis, EEG, Artificial Intelligence, and mathematical modeling, we investigate the principles of adaptation, coordination, and spatiotemporal pattern formation in both living and synthetic systems.

By applying these cybernetic principles, we develop assistive technologies for motor impairments and bioinspired robotic systems for extreme environments, advancing a unified understanding of embodied intelligence.

School of Biological Sciences, University of Reading:

The University of Reading, located west of London, England, provides world-class research education programs. The University’s main Whiteknights Campus is set in 120 hectares of beautiful parkland, a 30-minute train ride to central London and 40 minutes from London Heathrow airport.

Our School of Biological Sciences conducts high-impact research, tackling current global challenges faced by society and the planet. Our research ranges from understanding and improving human health and combating disease, through to understanding evolutionary processes and uncovering new ways to protect the natural world.

During your PhD at the University of Reading, you will expand your research knowledge and skills, receiving supervision in one-to-one and small group sessions. You will have access to cutting-edge technology and learn the latest research techniques. The University of Reading is a welcoming community for people of all faiths and cultures. We are committed to a healthy work-life balance and will work to ensure that you are supported personally and academically.

Eligibility:

Applicants should have a good degree (minimum of a UK Upper Second (2:1) undergraduate degree or equivalent) in Physics, Physical Chemistry, Engineering, Bioengineering or a strongly-related discipline. Applicants will also need to meet the University’s English Language requirements. We offer pre-sessional courses that can help with meeting these requirements. With a commitment to improving diversity in science and engineering, we encourage applications from underrepresented groups.

How to apply:

Submit an application for a PhD in Biological Sciences via our online application system.

Further information:

https://www.reading.ac.uk/biological-sciences/research

Enquiries:

Dr. Hayashi: email: y.hayashi@reading.ac.uk

Funding Notes

We welcome applications from self-funded students worldwide for this project. If you are applying to an international funding scheme, we encourage you to get in contact as we may be able to support you in your application.

References

• Strong, V. , Holderbaum, W. , Hayashi, Y. (2024) Electro-active polymer hydrogels exhibit emergent memory when embodied in a simulated game environment. Cell Reports Physical Science , 5 (9). ISSN: 2666-3864 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.xcrp.2024.102151
• Geher-Herczegh, T. , Wang, Z. , Masuda, T. , Vasudevan, N. , Yoshida, R. , Hayashi, Y. (2024) Harmonic resonance and entrainment of propagating chemical waves by external mechanical stimulation in BZ self-oscillating hydrogels. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , 121 (16). ISSN: 1091-6490 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.232033112
• Back, O. , Asally, M. , Wang, Z. , Hayashi, Y. (2023) Electrotaxis behavior of droplets composed of aqueous Belousov-Zhabotinsky solutions suspended in oil phase. Scientific Reports , 13 ISSN: 2045-2322 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-27639-8
• Strong, V. , Holderbaum, W. , Hayashi, Y. (2022) Electroactive polymer gels as probabilistic reservoir automata for computation. iScience , 25 (12). ISSN: 2589-0042 | doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2022.105558