Alessandro Ferrarini Proceedings of the International Academy of Ecology and Environmental Sciences ISSN 2220-8860 http://www.iaees.org/publications/journals/piaees/online-version.asp 2013 3 3 257 265 09/2013 International Academy of Ecology and Environmental Sciences external nodes genetic algorithms system control system dynamics The controllability of network-like systems is a topical issue in ecology and biology. It relies on the ability to lead a system's behaviour towards the desired state through the appropriate handling of input variables. Up to now, controllability of networks is based on the permanent control of a set of driver nodes that can guide the system's dynamics. This assumption seems motivated by real-world networks observation, where a decentralized control is often applied only to part of the nodes. While in a previous paper I showed that ecological and biological networks can be efficaciously controlled from the inside, here I further introduce a new framework for network controllability based on the employment of exogenous controllers and evolutionary modelling, and provide an exemplification of its application. DOI 10.0000/issn-2220-8860-piaees-2013-v3-0022 http://www.iaees.org/publications/journals/piaees/articles/2013-3(3)/exogenous-control-of-biological-systems.pdf