This award provides support for a workshop on Mathematical Biology and Numerical Analysis. The objective of this workshop is to give interdisciplinary education, training and research in the mathematical and biological sciences. It will provide the participants with an overview of the necessary mathematical and biological background that are essential for a good number of applications in biological sciences.
The workshop is aimed at students and postdocs. It will be interdisciplinary in nature, bringing together students and postdocs from mathematical and biological sciences. The format of the workshop will consist of 12 invited speakers giving a total of 24 lectures in two tracks in two days. There will be ample time for the students to interact with the speakers on a one-on-one basis outside of the formal lectures. The speakers will be asked to present overview lectures at the level of a graduate course to ensure the audience takes away a working knowledge of the material. Then some speakers will lead the hands on use of varied mathematical biology tools in a computer laboratory. The topics to be presented are: a) numerical simulations of ecosystems; b) systems biology of complex traits; c) analysis of compositional heterogeneity among microbial genomes; d) functional connectivity and neuronal network dynamics; e) reconstructing metabolic pathways through network modeling of experimental data. Most of the topics presented at the workshop are not typically covered in standard curricula. Furthermore, the students, postdocs and professors will benefit greatly from interacting with groups from different disciplines and from the research that integrates mathematical and biological sciences.
The workshop is expected to have a substantial impact on the training of students and postdocs already in the mathematical and biological sciences, as well as for the recruitment of students from other disciplines into the mathematical and biological sciences. Both groups will benefit from the quality of the teaching in areas of major and active research by leaders in the field. We will be working actively to ensure the participation of minorities, women and students with disabilities at the proposed workshop.
