CURRICULUM VITAE

Dr Andrzej Gecow
Polska Akademia Nauk Centrum Badań Ekologicznych
Polish Academy of Sciences  Centre for Ecological Research
ul. M. Konopnickiej 1 Dziekanów Leśny 05-092 Łomianki

Personal data
Address: Bogusławskiego 4 m 76,   01-923 Warszawa
Born 15 March 1948 in Warsaw, Poland
Married, two daughters & four grandchildren
Phone: +48 226699862,  +48 601260727
e-mail: gecow@op.pl
Web page to 2008 : www.paleo.pan.pl/people/Gecow/Gecow

Degrees

1970  MSc in Physics,  specialization: Nuclear Physics - High Energy Physics (Elementary Particles), Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw

1985 Adiunkt  between Adjunct Professor and Assistant Professor.

1987 PhD in technical science. Dissertation on "Statistical analysis of structural tendencies in complex systems vs. ontogeny" defended in the Institute for System Research of the PAS, Warsaw [Statystyczne tendencje strukturalne w systemach wielkich a ontogeneza. Instytut Badań Systemowych PAN, Warszawa] (interdisciplinary dissertation in fields of evolutionary biology, system theory, computer science - simulations)

Education

* 1965-1970  University of Warsaw, Faculty of Physics, Studies in Physics.

* 1969-1971  Additional studies in subject 'evolution' (lecture, classes, examination) in  Faculty of Biology University of Warsaw

* 1972  Course for System Analyst of CDC system structure and maintenance, 4 months in Poland and 3 months in CDC Center, Sunnyvaley California US

* 1975 Course of DOS and RSX 11-D operating systems for PDP 11/45 computer
(2 months) Reading, Great Britain

Employment       

* 1970-1990 Computer Scientist - System Programmer, Institute of Nuclear Research, (IBJ) Świerk, Poland, in 1976 converted into the Andrzej Sołtan Institute for Nuclear Studies (IPJ)

* 1970-72 Department IX High Energy. Effect: Operating system for unique computer Kar-65 working in real time with 4 measure equipments and other 12 diverse parallel processes

* 1973-76 CYFRONET - CDC computer CYBER center in IBJ. Task: Software maintenance

* 1974 Visiting Research Assistant in Computer Center CDC of Leibniz University of Hanover, Hanover Germany (one month)

* 1974  Part-time Department III. (zlecone z Zakładu III) Effect: Basic software for CAMAC Processor 130 - Optionally configured system and assembler on 1k 24bit memory

* 1976-90 Department III of Electronics (Zakład III IPJ)

* 1977  Head of programmers group in Department III of Electronics

#76-83    Effect: Basic and complete autonomous software CAMASS for CAMAC Processor 131 - optionally configured operating system, large additional library of procedures (teamwork), special dedicated for CAMAC language (assembler, interpreter, compilator), all in one, in version for 1k or 4k 24bit memory

#83-87    Effect: Software tools for system CAMAC 86

* 1985 Adiunkt  (position between Adjunct Professor and Assistant Professor)

* 1987 Visiting Research Fellow in Nuclear Research Institute Rez Czechoslovakia  (one month)

#87-90 Effect: First stage of software development for IBM PC-based multichannel  analyzer for nuclear spectroscopy (teamwork)

* 1974-1975 Researches, works ordered (badania na zlecone) by Committee of Evolutionary and Theoretical Biology of the PAS in range of themes headed by Prof. W. Kunicki-Goldfinger in Faculty of Biology University of Warsaw

* 1986-1990 Director in Microvex sp.z.o.o. (limited trade company) task: instalation of Polish diacritical letters in computer equipment. Effect: author of Microvex codepage, second in Poland at 87, establishing codepage Mazovia by withdrawal from own Microvex codepage

* 1990-2006 Managing Director and Owner, business specialized in electronic services: decoding and changing of font generators in computer equipments

* 1992-1996 Managing Director and Owner, business DOMOBIL - building tent-camper on Polonez cars

* 2006-2008 Principal Investigator of research grant from the Polish Committee of Scientific Research (KBN)  "Structural source of evolution regularities of regulative type ontogenesis (The research of tendencies of  adaptive changeability in the diverse complex networks of condition)" [Strukturalne źródła prawidłowości ewolucji ontogenezy typu regulacyjnego (Badanie prawidłowości zmienności adaptacyjnej w różnorodnych złożonych sieciach uwarunkowań)].  Institute of Paleobiology of the PAS, Warsaw

* 2008 Research Fellow, (zlecone)  Working group 'Nonlinear Dynamics of Complex Systems', Center of Excellence for Complex Systems Research on Faculty of Physics, Warsaw University of Technology (PW),  Poland. (Participation in the EU Project GIACS "General Integration of the Applications of Complexity in Science" and in a grant of Warsaw University of Technology.)

* 2008-present   Retired Honorary Research Fellow, affiliated with the Centre for Ecological Research of the PAS

Professional activities and awards

* in biology and complex systems    

* 1973-1978 Member of the Research Group 'Philosophy of Nature and Methodology' of prof. Cz Nowiński, Institute of Philosophy and Sociology of the PAS

* 2005 Member of the Scientific Committee of the Conference "New Methods of Mathematics and Physics in Problems of Evolutionary Biology and Ecology", Warsaw, Committee of Evolutionary and Theoretical Biology of the PAS

* 2009 External Reviewer of symposium UICS (Understanding Intelligent and Complex Systems 22-23 Oct. 2009 Petru Maior University, Tg-Mures, Romania)

*in computer  science and practice

* 1973-1976 Secretary of Permanent Advisory Group for Software for CAMAC Systems, (IBJ)

* 1975-1983 Member of  CAMAC Committee  of the Association of Polish Electrical Engineers of the Polish Federation of Engineering Associations. (SEP NOT)

* 1976-1983 Chairman of the Working Group on Software for CAMAC System of  the Trade Advisory Commission for the Minister of Power Industry and Nuclear Energy

* 1978 The Teamwork Award II Degree from the Minister of Power Industry and Nuclear Energy for "The work out and put into production CAMAC processors family for processes control."

* 1990-1997 Expert in field of national code pages and keyboard structures in Group 170  of the Polish Committee for Standardization

Research Interests

* Statistical structural tendencies in adaptive evolution of complex, functioning, directed networks and their implications in biological evolution like e.g. old forgotten classic regularities in ontogeny evolution: Weismann's 'Terminal Additions', Naef's 'Terminal Modifications', Haeckel's 'Recapitulation of phylogeny in ontogeny'. Other new structural tendencies like 'covering' and 'integration' and their role in evolution

* Modeling and computer simulations. Models in the range: Kauffman network, chaos, damage spreading, complexity, complex networks and their evolution, especially adaptive evolution and its statistical tendencies

* Notions of information, purposeful information (connected to biological information and hereditary information) and coding in the basis of the life description. Basing on analysis of those notions constructing of a draft of deductive theory of life process as spontaneous process of collecting purposeful information

* Subversive thesis

1. Haeckel's 'recapitulation of phylogeny in ontogeny' is explained through structural tendencies and now recapitulation is expected

2. Structural tendency 'covering' (substituting of disappearing environmental factors by new internal mechanisms) is a strong mechanism which explain a lot in evolution but is not considered

3. Spontaneous process of collecting purposeful information looks like life process definition which leads to draft of deductive theory of life

4. Life is in chaos but not 'on the edge of chaos and order' which Kauffman suggests.

5. Boolean networks are not sufficient for statistical investigation of general systems, more signal variants are typically needed

Leisure interest: Scuba diver (Second degree CMAS diver), windsurfing, skiing, mountaineering, sailing and tent travels.