---------------------------------------------------- Subject: SMB Digest v08i27 SMB Digest July 16, 2008 Volume 08 Issue 27 ISSN 1086-6566 Editor: Ray Mejķa ray(at)smb(dot)org Note: Information about the Society for Mathematical Biology, including an application for membership, may be found in the SMB Home Page, http://www.smb.org/ . Access the Bulletin of Mathematical Biology, the official journal of SMB, at http://www.springer.com/11538 . Inquiries about membership or BMB fulfillment should be sent to membership(at)smb(dot)org . Issue's Topics: Submissions for SMB September 2008 Newsletter, Due August 15 Symposium: Image Processing and Data Visualization, SEECCM 2009 Updated NSF Solicitation: Math Sciences Postdoc Research Fellowships NIH Postdoctoral Fellowship: Math Modeling of Human Metabolism ... Postdoctoral Position: Theoretical/Mathematical Ecology, Stellenbosch Postdoc Position: Network Models in Spread & Evolution of Viruses Postdoc Position: Math Design of Canadian & American Flu Intervention Post-doctoral Fellowship: Molecular Systems Biology Post-doctoral Position: Ecological Modeling, UC Santa Barbara Two Postdoc Positions: European Network of Excellence (EuroPhysiome) SMBnet Reminders ---------------------------------------------------- From: Holly D Gaff Date: Mon, 14 Jul 2008 11:52:46 -0400 Subject: Submissions for SMB September 2008 Newsletter, Due August 15 Been to an interesting conference in the last few months? Planning an interesting conference? Do you have an opinion about mathematical biology? Is there a hot new area we should know about? Contribute to the next issue of the SMB Newsletter by sending materials to editor@smb.org. Deadline is August 15. Thanks, Holly Gaff SMB Newsletter Editor http://www.smb.org/publications/newsletter.shtml ---------------------------------------------------- From: Joćo Manuel R. S. Tavares Date: Fri, 11 Jul 2008 00:13:54 +0100 Subject: Symposium: Image Processing and Data Visualization, SEECCM 2009 Symposium "Image Processing and Data Visualization" 2nd South-East European Conference on Computational Mechanics (SEECCM 2009) Island of Rhodes, Greece, 22-24 June 2009 http://www.seeccm2009.org A special interest conference of the European Community on Computational Methods in Applied Sciences (ECCOMAS) and of the International Association for Computational Mechanics (IACM) ---------------------------------------------------- From: "Warchall, Henry A." Date: Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:07:12 -0400 Subject: Updated NSF Solicitation: Math Sciences Postdoc Research Fellowships Dear Colleagues, An updated NSF program solicitation is now available: Mathematical Sciences Postdoctoral Research Fellowships (MSPRF) Please see http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5301 for details. Deadline for proposals: October 15, 2008 >From the solicitation: The purpose of the Mathematical Sciences Postdoctoral Research Fellowships (MSPRF) is to support future leaders in the mathematical sciences by enabling them to participate in research environments that will have maximal impact on their future scientific development. There will be two options for awardees: Research Fellowship and Research Instructorship. Awards will be made for appropriate research in areas of the mathematical sciences, including applications to other disciplines. Applicants must be: U.S. citizens, nationals, or legally admitted permanent resident aliens; may not have held the doctoral degree more than two years as of January 1 of the year of the award; must propose research in the mathematical sciences; may not have previously received a Federal research grant; and may not submit a research plan duplicated in another NSF proposal. Eligibility is restricted to individuals who have not previously been offered an award by the MSPRF program. ---------------------------------------------------- From: Kevin Hall Date: Wed, 09 Jul 2008 11:42:21 -0400 Subject: NIH Postdoctoral Fellowship: Math Modeling of Human Metabolism ... NIH Postdoctoral Fellowship: Mathematical Modeling of Human Metabolism and Body Weight Regulation A postdoctoral fellowship is available in the Laboratory of Biological Modeling at the National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases, one of the National Institutes of Health located in Bethesda, Maryland. The successful candidate will develop mathematical models of human metabolism and body weight regulation in collaboration with experimental physiologists. Specific projects include, but are not limited to: 1. Adaptations of human metabolism to dietary manipulations 2. Regulation of body weight and composition 3. Effects of exercise on human metabolism and body composition 4. Effects of aging on metabolism and body composition Applicants should possess a Ph.D. degree in Applied Mathematics, Engineering, Physics, Biochemistry, Physiology, Nutrition, or a related field. The successful candidate will have strong quantitative and mathematical abilities and an interest in studying the regulation of metabolism in humans. Salary will be commensurate with experience according to NIH guidelines. Please send your CV and a list of 3 references to: Kevin Hall, Ph. D. Laboratory of Biological Modeling National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases National Institutes of Health 12A South Drive, Room 4007 Bethesda, MD 20892-5621 Email: kevinh@niddk.nih.gov The NIH is dedicated to building a diverse community in its training and employment programs. ---------------------------------------------------- From: "Hui, C. " Date: Fri, 11 Jul 2008 15:41:14 +0200 Subject: Postdoctoral Position: Theoretical/Mathematical Ecology, Stellenbosch POSTDOCTORAL POSITION IN THEORETICAL/MATHEMATICAL ECOLOGY Mathematical models and simulations play a crucial role in advancing the science of ecology. >From the promising foundation built in the early 20th century and the golden age of the 60s, ecology has entered a new phase. The eyes of ecologists have opened through the accumulation of field data and the progress in data analysis technique. We are facing a group of questions that are difficult to put down using elegant mathematics; rather numerical simulation and modelling have become a more dominant way of doing research. Furthermore, our focus has shifted from classic species interactions to large-scale, long-term patterns of ecological systems. From the niche-neutral community debate to the debate on the relationship between the number of invasive species and the species richness in recipient communities, an urgent issue for mathematical/theoretical ecologists is to set up a mathematical theory (model) of ecological communities. The central target of this postdoctoral fellow is to build a mathematical model (or a group of theories) of ecological communities that can provide explanations for community (macroecological) structures and patterns. ·   Unified, mathematical model of ecological communities ·   Scaling theory of species distribution and diversity in communities ·   Responses of ecological communities to disturbances (such as land transformation, biological invasions and climatic changes) ·   Applications of nonlinear theory (e.g. fractal, chaos, self-organization, catastrophe, maximum entropy, etc.) to understanding community/macroecological patterns Three questions regarding the biological invasion are also among the applications of the model: ·   Localization and time lag in biological invasion ·   Dispersal mechanisms of invasive species: diffusion and long-distance jumps ·   The changes of structure and dynamics of recipient communities The post-doc will work with Dr. Cang Hui to tackle these questions. Collaboration with other colleagues is also strongly recommended. Candidates with a strong mathematical/theoretical ecology background are preferred, and a good understanding of ecological systems (e.g. macroecology, spatial ecology, population genetics, invasion biology, etc.) is also necessary. The candidates should send a two page project description with a list of specific research questions, accompanied by a detail CV, two/three publication reprints and the contact details of two references by email to Dr. Cang Hui (chui@sun.ac.za). The starting time of this position can be negotiated but the end of 2008 would be preferred. This position will remain open until an appropriate candidate is selected. An amount of R150 000 annual fellowship will be awarded to the candidate for the first year with an option to renew. Detailed information about the DST-NRF Centre of Excellence for Invasion Biology, University of Stellenbosch can be found on the website http://academic.sun.ac.za/cib/ ---------------------------------------------------- From: Lauren Meyers Date: Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:26:26 -0500 Subject: Postdoc Position: Network Models in Spread & Evolution of Viruses POSTDOCTORAL POSITION: USING NETWORK MODELS TO STUDY THE SPREAD AND EVOLUTION OF VIRUSES IN WILDLIFE The Meyers group at the University of Texas at Austin is seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher for an NSF-funded project on the mathematical modeling of infectious diseases. This position can begin as early as September 2008, and is renewable annually for up to two years. Contact: Lauren Ancel Meyers Section of Integrative Biology University of Texas at Austin 1 University Station C0930 Austin, TX 78712 Ph: 512-471-4950, Fax: 512-471-3878 URL: http://cluster3.biosci.utexas.edu/research/meyers/ Email: laurenmeyers@mail.utexas.edu Project description: Contact network epidemiology is a new and powerful mathematical approach to studying the ecology of infectious diseases. It involves first building realistic network models of the complex host interaction patterns that underlie parasite transmission and then applying methods from statistical physics to predict the spread of parasites. These methods allow one to develop explicit models of complex host population structures that can be solved mathematically without resorting to intensive computer simulations. This project extends this approach to gain new insight into host-parasite dynamics, and aims to: (1) develop new mathematical methods for modeling modular host population structures and (2) apply them to understanding the spread of diseases in wildlife populations. This work will lead to greater methodological versatility and new perspectives on the relationship between host community structure and disease dynamics. Specifically, this project focuses on the ecology and evolution of animal pathogens in multi-host systems, a topic of great importance to the health of humans, domestic animals, and wildlife populations of conservation concern. Job description: The postdoctoral researcher will be involved in multiple aspects of the project, in collaboration with wildlife ecologists, evolutionary biologists, and mathematical modelers from the University of Texas at Austin and collaborating institutions. He/she will contribute to the analysis of ecological and molecular data from hosts and their pathogens, the development of new mathematical models, and the application of statistics and modeling to basic and applied questions about the spread and evolution of diseases in complex host populations. The postdoctoral researcher will be expected to prepare and publish research papers in the peer-reviewed literature. He/she will be based at the University of Texas at Austin. This position is renewable annually for up to two years, with a starting date between September and December 2008. Educational qualifications: A PhD in one of the following areas is required: biostatistics, ecology, evolutionary biology, infectious disease epidemiology, statistics, mathematics, physics or a related quantitative discipline. Prior research experience in statistics and/or mathematical modeling is desirable. Salary: The salary will be approximately $40,000 to $45,000 per annum, commensurate with training and experience. Full benefits will be included as well as funds to support travel to meetings. To apply: Please contact Lauren Ancel Meyers (laurenmeyers@mail.utexas.edu) to inquire about or apply for the position. To apply, please submit a CV, a brief statement describing your interest in the position and relevant qualifications, and three letters of reference. More information: For more information about the Meyers group and the Section of Integrative Biology at the University of Texas at Austin, please visit: http://cluster3.biosci.utexas.edu/research/meyers/ http://www.biosci.utexas.edu/IB/ ---------------------------------------------------- From: Lauren Meyers Date: Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:26:26 -0500 Subject: Postdoc Position: Math Design of Canadian & American Flu Intervention POSTDOCTORAL POSITION: MATHEMATICAL DESIGN OF CANADIAN AND AMERICAN INFLUENZA INTERVENTION STRATEGIES One postdoctoral position in biostatistics and mathematical modeling is currently available to be spent jointly at the Section of Integrative Biology at the University of Texas at Austin and the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) in Vancouver, BC. This position is supported by a grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). Open: until August 2008 Length: anticipated for two years (one year at the University of Texas at Austin followed by one year at the BCCDC) Contacts: - Lauren Ancel Meyers Section of Integrative Biology University of Texas at Austin 1 University Station C0930 Austin, TX 78712 Ph: 512-471-4950, Fax: 512-471-3878 URL: http://cluster3.biosci.utexas.edu/research/meyers/ Email: laurenmeyers@mail.utexas.edu - Babak Pourbohloul, BCCDC, Babak.Pourbohloul@bccdc.ca Location: University of Texas at Austin in Austin, Texas; British Columbia Centre for Disease Control in Vancouver, BC. Project: Evaluation of Ontario's Universal Influenza Immunization Program In July 2000, Ontario initiated the world's first large-scale universal influenza immunization program (UIIP) to provide free influenza vaccines for the entire population aged 6 months or older. We aim to evaluate Ontariols UIIP in relation to targeted influenza immunization programs (TIIP) that exist in other provinces in Canada. This proposal combines six components using a variety of approaches to address several objectives. The postdoctoral researcher will be involved in the mathematical modeling and data analysis component which aims to: a) to build demographic-specific contact network models for the cities of Toronto, Vancouver and Halifax, b) to estimate transmissibility of different influenza strains using morbidity data in conjunction with the network models constructed for each city; c) to compare currently-used urban vaccination strategies assuming various degrees of vaccine efficacy, coverage, and cross-immunity for each city; and d) to determine the coverage necessary for each strategy to achieve herd immunity for the population as a whole as well as the most vulnerable segments of the population. Job description: The postdoctoral researcher will be involved in multiple aspects of the project, in collaboration with epidemiologists, infectious disease specialists, public health officials, mathematical modelers and statisticians from the University of Texas at Austin, the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control and several other Canadian public health and medical institutions. He/she will contribute to the analysis of epidemiological data, the development of new mathematical modeling, and the application of statistics and modeling to evaluating and designing optimal influenza intervention plans. The postdoctoral researcher will be expected to prepare and publish research papers in the peer-reviewed literature. He/she will be based at both the University of Texas at Austin and the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control in Vancouver, BC; ideally the person will spend one year in Austin followed by one year in Vancouver, with occasional visits to the other site. This position is for two years, with a starting date between September and December 2008. Educational qualifications: A PhD in one of the following areas is required: biostatistics, epidemiology, demography, statistics, mathematics, physics or a related quantitative discipline. Prior research experience in the one or more of the following areas is desirable: epidemiology of infectious diseases, mathematical modeling, and statistical analysis of complex data. Other requirements: We are seeking applicants who are able to work independently and as part of a multidisciplinary research team, and have the flexibility to travel between research sites. Salary: The salary will be approximately US$45,000 to US$60,000 per annum, commensurate with training and experience. Full benefits will be included, and funds to support position-related travel. To apply: Please contact Lauren Ancel Meyers (laurenmeyers@mail.utexas.edu) and Babak Pourbohloul (Babak.Pourbohloul@bccdc.ca) to inquire about or apply for the position. To apply, please submit a CV, a brief statement describing your interest in the position and relevant qualifications and at least three letters of reference. More information: For more information about the Meyers group and the Section of Integrative Biology at the University of Texas at Austin, please visit: http://cluster3.biosci.utexas.edu/research/meyers/ http://www.biosci.utexas.edu/IB/ For more information about the Division of Mathematical Modeling at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, please visit: http://www.mathmodeling.cdc.ubc.ca/ ---------------------------------------------------- From: Armindo Salvador Date: Tue, 15 Jul 2008 16:17:12 +0100 Subject: Post-doctoral Fellowship: Molecular Systems Biology Post-doctoral fellowship on molecular systems biology The Process Systems Engineering Group at the Chemical Engineering Department and the Molecular Systems Biology Group at the Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology (The University of Coimbra) are actively seeking a post-doctoral candidate to apply for an FCT-Portugal fellowship. Candidates must hold a Ph.D. diploma in engineering, physics or applied mathematics and have a keen interest on biological systems. Previous working experience in the analysis of biochemical networks and post-doctoral activities in computational biology are strong preferential conditions. The successful applicant will contribute to a theoretic/computational analysis of the structure of metabolic networks in relation to organism physiology [see Alves, Antunes & Salvador (2006) Nature Biotechnol. 24:667-672; Salvador & Savageau (2006) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 103:2226-2231; Salvador & Savageau (2003) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 100:14463-14468]. The research activities will be conducted in collaboration with the systems group at the Chemical Engineering Department of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The fellowship is yearly renewable for up to three years, with a salary of about 18000 Euro/year (after taxes). For further information, please contact salvador@cnc.uc.pt. Applicants should send, no later than August 14, 2008, a motivation letter, three recommendation letters, a CV and a publications list by email (salvador@cnc.uc.pt). ---------------------------------------------------- From: Roger Nisbet Date: Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:40:23 -0700 Subject: Post-doctoral Position: Ecological Modeling, UC Santa Barbara We seek a postdoc to work on models characterizing the effects of individual and/or spatial heterogeneity on population dynamics. The specific project opportunities will depend on the interests and experience of the applicant, but include: relating individual heterogeneity in demographic rates to population-level consequences such as extinction risk and invasion speed; understanding how heterogeneity and stochasticity in individual growth rates can influence population growth rates; understanding how spatial heterogeneity in the environment can lead to individual heterogeneity in demography and growth. The modeling approaches range from strategic models of generalized organisms to more specialized models that represent plants, aquatic invertebrates, fish, or terrestrial vertebrates. The primary advisors will be Bruce Kendall and Roger Nisbet; the postdoc will also interact with an interdisciplinary team that is using a restored reach of the Merced River in California as an "outdoor laboratory" to study the hydrology and ecology of rivers (ecological leads on this project are Brad Cardinale and Hunter Lenihan). Applicants should possess a PhD in applied mathematics, mathematical or theoretical biology, systems biology, or some related discipline. The ideal candidate will have strong background in the construction and analysis of discrete- or continuous-time dynamical models, and should have experience or training in working with stochastic and/or spatial processes. Funding is available for two years, with salary contingent on experience. Applicants should submit a CV, a statement of research interests, and the names of three referees to nisbet@lifesci.ucsb.edu. Initial review of applications will begin on 4 August 2008, but applications received after that date may be considered. The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. ---------------------------------------------------- From: Thomas Randy Date: Wed, 16 Jul 2008 17:25:08 +0200 Subject: Two Postdoc Positions: European Network of Excellence (EuroPhysiome) Directeur GDR Stic Santé CNRS n° 2647-Inserm http://stic-sante.org A Postdoctoral Position is immediately available in the Virtual Physiological Human Network of Excellence (VPH-NoE) (a European Union FP7 project), for the SAPHIR Exemplar Project. The position involves adaptation of VPH Toolkit techniques to an existing multi-organ mathematical model (see http://saphir.ibisc.fr/) of blood pressure regulation and fluids balance (funded by the French ANR (National Research Agency)). In particular, this job involves a variety of physiological modeling techniques and ICT tools for sharing and cooperative development with a patient-specific clinical endpoint. Models and parameter data will be curated in appropriate databases. Our laboratory uses a multidisciplinary environment for multi-scale modeling in physiology, including markup languages (such as CellML), physiological parameter databases, and ontology development. Candidates must have a degree in biomedical engineering or a Ph.D. in one of the relevant fields. The host laboratory is part of the Evry Genopole, near Paris, and the job also involves substantial travel for collaboration with laboratories in England and other EU countries. Applicants should submit a curriculum vitae, a description of research interests, and a list of three people willing to write letters of reference to S. Randall Thomas Ph.D., IBISC CNRS FRE 3190, Tour Evry 2, 91000 Evry, France; email: srthomas@ibisc.univ-evry.fr, website: http://physiome.ibisc.fr/~srt/ ---------------------------------------------------- Subject: SMBnet Reminders To subscribe to the SMB Digest please point your browser at http://list.auckland.ac.nz/mailman/listinfo/math-smbnet and complete the subscription information. Alternatively, if you prefer to simply receive notice when the next issue is available, send mail to LISTSERV@listserv.biu.ac.il with "subscribe SMBnet Your Name" in the body of the mail (omit the quotes and include your name). After you subscribe, you will receive a greeting with additional information. Submissions to appear in the SMB Digest may be sent to SMBnet(at)smb(dot)org Items of interest to the mathematical biology community may be submitted for inclusion in the SMBnet archive. See instructions at: http://smb.org/publications/SMBnet/pubs/fyi . The SMB Digest is also available on the SMB Home Page at http://smb.org/publications/SMBnet/digest/ The contents of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part with attribution. End of SMB Digest **************************************************** ----------------------------------------------------