 NIMBioS News
Bi-Monthly News from the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis
July/August 2010 - Vol 2, Issue 4
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Support Available for Activities at NIMBioS
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Featured Science: Model Explains Rapid Transition
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The transition from colonies of individual cells to multicellular
organisms can be achieved relatively rapidly, within one million
generations, according to a new mathematical model that simplifies our understanding of this process. The
mathematical approach applies not only to cells within an organism
but is expandable to the emergence of multiple cell types, complex
organs, or casts of eusocial insects. The results, published June 10 in the journal PLoS Computational Biology,
help answer many questions for evolutionary biologists working toward understanding the major transitions in the evolution of complexity.Citation: Gavrilets S. 2010. Rapid transition towards the division of labor via evolution of developmental plasticity. PLoS Computational Biology 6(6) |
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Education Spotlight: Summer Research Program Called "Life-Changing"
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 Thirteen undergraduates, three veterinary students and two high school teachers from 16 different institutions across the United States recently completed the 2010 summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) and Research Experience for Veterinary Students (REV). During the eight-week long program, participants lived on campus at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UT), and worked in teams with UT faculty to conduct research at the interface of mathematics and biology. Click here to read what the participants had to say about their experience.
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Video Feature: Can Ants, and the Plants That Rely On Them, Take the Heat?
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 Ants are one of nature's most efficient and ecologically important creatures. More than one third of all herbaceous plants in eastern deciduous
forests rely on ants for seed dispersal.
Dr. Sharon Bewick, a postdoctoral fellow NIMBioS, studies how different ant species interact and how their interactions
affect forest plant composition. She focuses particularly on how ant
communities might be affected by disturbances in the global climate. In the video, Bewick discusses her research and how temperature changes might affect the delicately balanced ecosystems in which ants live. Bewick joined NIMBioS in August 2009. Click here for more information about Dr. Bewick's work with ants.
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Upcoming Research and Education Opportunities at NIMBioS
|  WILDLIFE ZOONOSES INVESTIGATIVE WORKSHOP
NIMBioS is now accepting applications for the NIMBioS Investigative
Workshop on Mathematical Modeling of Wildlife and Virus Zoonoses to be
held Nov. 8-10, 2010, at NIMBioS. The focus of the workshop is to
define, discuss, and develop approaches to collaboratively address
critical gaps that remain in mathematical modeling of the ecology and
natural history of zoonotic viruses, Application deadline: August 6,
2010. For more information about the workshop and how to apply, click here.
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 HPC FOR PHYLOGENETICS TUTORIAL
A phylogenetic analysis can take a long time to run. Why not run it on
someone else's computer? NIMBioS is now accepting applications for the
NIMBioS Tutorial: High Performance Computing for Phylogenetics to
be held Oct. 13-15, 2010, at NIMBioS. This tutorial is designed to
teach participants how to use TeraGrid, CIPRES Portal, iPlant
Discovery environment and other free HPC
resources for phylogenetic analysis. Application deadline: August 27. For more information about the tutorial and how to apply, click here.
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 NIMBIOS-ESA ECOLOGY EDUCATION WEBINAR
This
interactive webinar to be held Sept. 8, 2010 focuses on math and
computational education for ecology undergrads and illustrates how a
large field dataset can be used to motivate hypothesis formulation and
assessment by undergraduates. The webinar is organized by NIMBioS and
the Ecological Society of America as one of several events prior to
ESA's 2010 Ecology and Education Summit. Registration deadline: September 1,
2010. For more information about the webinar and how to register, click here.
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 NIMBioS UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH CONFERENCE
The second annual undergraduate research conference to be held Nov. 19-20, 2010, at the Univ. of Tennessee Conference Center provides
opportunities for undergraduates to present their research at the
interface of biology and mathematics. Student talks and posters will be
featured as well as a plenary speaker. Faculty, students and Tennessee teachers are invited to attend. Funding Request Application Deadline: October 1. For more information about the conference and details about the funding
request,
click here.
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 SOLID TUMOR MODELING INVESTIGATIVE WORKSHOP
NIMBioS is now accepting applications for the NIMBioS Investigative Workshop on Solid Tumor Modeling to be held Jan. 19-21, 2011, at NIMBioS. Current achievements and challenges in modeling solid tumors in the human body will be discussed, and areas that could improve our understanding of tumor development and treatment will be identified. The main focus will be on modeling tumor level cancer progression. Application deadline: October 15. For more information about the workshop and how to apply, click here.
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 METABOLISM AND BODY WEIGHT INVESTIGATIVE WORKSHOP
With more than two-thirds of adults considered overweight and more than
one-third categorized as obese, understanding the mechanisms behind
weight gain, loss and maintenance is a major national goal. NIMBioS is now accepting
applications for the NIMBioS Investigative Workshop: Mathematical Models of Metabolism and Body Weight Regulation to be held July 12-15, 2011, at NIMBioS. Application deadline: March 14, 2011. For more information about the workshop and how to apply, click here.
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The National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NIMBioS) brings together researchers from around the world to collaborate across disciplinary boundaries to investigate solutions to basic and applied problems in the life sciences. NIMBioS is funded by the National Science Foundation in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with additional support from The University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
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NIMBioS is located on the Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, campus
1534 White Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37996-1527
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