Forum am See

Access for Nobel Laureates and pre-registered Young Scientists only
Please see your personalized schedule for details

George F. Smoot
DIPC – Donostia International Physics Center, Spain

Abigail Stevenson
Mars, Incorporated, United Kingdom

Moderator: Adam Smith
Nobel Prize Outreach, Sweden

Understanding and influencing large-scale, complex, and highly inter-connected systems is emerging as a crucial lever for addressing global challenges, from climate change and sustainability to ecosystem preservation and population health. Physics plays a critical foundational role in the creation of capabilities for accessing, sensing, measuring, quantifying and modeling such systems. Comprehensive investigation of complex systems coupled with advances in fast-growing fields such as climate modeling, AI, quantum computing and material sciences is enabling researchers to further their understanding and develop tools that actively modulate these systems. As such, advancements in physics are key to humanity’s efforts to address the major risks and opportunities posed by the challenges we face today. In turn, the role of physicists themselves comes to the fore: how can physicists contribute to tackling complex challenges in complex systems? The Mars Partner Breakfast will explore this question, as well as what needs to happen to further connect disciplines.

The global challenges society faces are multifaceted and intrinsically linked through complex systems. For example, many present-day agricultural practices are driving increasing pressure on Earth’s interconnected ecosystems and exacerbating climate change. Emissions from agriculture – largely methane and nitrous oxide – are less widely discussed than carbon dioxide emissions but must nevertheless be reduced to mitigate anthropogenic global warming. Similarly, energy systems and their reliance on fossil fuels have contributed to extreme weather events across continents, disrupted agricultural patterns, and destabilized ecosystems. As such, the challenge of moving to sustainable systems that provide secure, affordable and low-carbon energy requires the application of methods that recognize the complexity of energy flow.

Deepening our understanding of the Earth’s ecosystems is imperative as they come under growing pressure from anthropogenic activity. For example, the ocean has absorbed about 90% of the heat generated by rising emissions. This change in temperature is leading to a cascade of effects, including ice-melting, sea-level rise, marine heatwaves, ocean acidification, and coral reef destruction. Climate change also exacerbates local stresses from declining water quality and overexploitation of key species, driving coral reefs towards the tipping point for functional collapse: a point from which there may be no return.

However, advancements in physics-based modeling and the use of AI and data analytics present opportunities to address these systemic challenges. For example, researchers are now beginning to develop capabilities that can predict the impact of climate change on oceanic systems, informing adaptation strategies to mitigate risks to marine biodiversity and biogeochemical cycles. Machine learning and deep learning, both subsets of AI techniques, are increasingly bridging the gaps in existing oceanography and oceanic phenomena prediction. At a regional scale, ocean acoustics sensors are monitoring ocean pH levels and marine biodiversity, while working alongside AI-powered remote sensing to enable coral reef research and restoration.

Understanding and modulating complex systems requires new solutions and applications derived from the field of physics, but also from physicists themselves. Just as society’s systems are interconnected, solutions cannot be created by one group alone: there must be collaboration between researchers, innovators, businesses, policymakers and social groups. The Mars Partner Breakfast is a panel event that will explore this topic, featuring Nobel Laureate George F. Smoot; Dr. Abigail Stevenson, Chief Science Officer at Mars; and a Lindau Young Scientist. Each will share their own experience and explore how people and expertise can be brought together to better understand complex, interconnected systems.

Partner Breakfast panelists:

- George F. Smoot, Nobel Laureate in Physics 2006
- Dr. Abigail Stevenson, Chief Science Officer, Mars, Incorporated
- Moderator: Adam Smith, Chief Science Officer, Nobel Media

Selected Partner Breakfast biographies

Professor George F. Smoot was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2006 for the discovery of the blackbody form and anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background radiation. Professor Smoot holds a dual bachelor’s degrees in mathematics and physics, and a Ph.D. in Physics from MIT. In 1992, Professor Smoot led a team that detected the anticipated variations in the early Universe observed by NASA’s COBE (Cosmic Background Explorer) satellite, which mapped the radiation intensity from the early Big Bang. Professor Smoot is currently an active researcher working in observational astrophysics and cosmology at the University of California Berkeley and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Dr. Abigail Stevenson is the Chief Science Officer for Mars, Incorporated. With a first degree in Ecology and a PhD in nutrition from University College London, Dr. Stevenson joined Mars in 1993 at the Waltham Petcare Science Institute in the UK and has since led multiple science teams across Mars businesses. This includes being Director of the state-of-the-art Mars Global Food Safety Centre and Vice President of the Mars Advanced Research Institute, connecting Mars with emerging science and technology and aiming to discover solutions that transform the future of Mars businesses. Dr. Stevenson now champions Mars’ involvement in cutting-edge scientific discovery around the world, as well as the development of its talent pipeline and long-term career pathways for Mars scientists, ultimately driving forward the future of science and technology.

¹Bennetzen, E. H.; Smith, P.; Porter, J. R. Agricultural production and greenhouse gas emissions from world regions – The major trends over 40 years. Global Environmental Change. 2016, 37, 43—55.
²Lynch, J.; Cain, M.; Frame, D.; Pierrehumbert, R. Agriculture’s Contribution to Climate Change and Role in Mitigation is Distinct from Predominantly Fossil CO2-Emitting Sectors. Front. Sustain. Food Syst. 2021, 4, 10.3389/fsufs.2020.518039
³Johnsson, F.; Kjarstad, J.; Rootzen, J. The threat to climate change mitigation posed by the abundance of fossil fuels. Climate Policy. 2019, 2, 258—274.
⁴Bale, C. S. E.; Varga, L.; Foxon, T. J. Energy and complexity: New ways forward. Applied Energy. 2015, 138, 150—159.
⁵Kumar, V.; Ranjan, D.; Verma, K. Global climate change: the loop between cause and impact. Global Climate Change. 2021, 2, 187—211.
⁶Jue, M.; Ruiz, R. Time Is Melting: Glaciers and the Amplification of Climate Change. Resilience. 2020, 7, 178—199.
⁷Hoegh-Gulddberg, O.; Mumby, P. J.; Hooten, A. J.; Steneck, R. S.; Greenfield, P.; Gomez, E.; Harvell, C. D.; Sale, P. F.; Edwards, A. J.; Caldeira, K.; Knowlton, N.; Eakin, C. M.; Iglesias-Prieto, R.; Muthiga, N.; Bradbury, R. H.; Dubi, A.; Hatziolos, M. E. Coral Reefs Under Rapid Climate Change and Ocean Acidification. Science. 2007, 318 (5857), 1737—1742.
⁸Kavitha, M. S.; Jackson, A.; Manikandarajan, V.; Mariappan, M.; Paul, A.; Maran, B. A. V. Artificial Intelligence Methods in Marine Biotechnology. Marine Biotechnology. 2023, 7, 339—354.
⁹Foo, S. A.; Asner, G. P. Scaling Up Coral Reef Restoration Using Remote Sensing Technology. Front. Mar. Sci. 2019, 6, 10.3389/fmars.2019.00079.