March 2024 Newsletter

Table of Contents

News

Emerging Directions Workshop Review
NITMB Fellows Announcement
Visiting Scholars

Opportunities

Call for External Proposals
Long Program Proposals
Workshop Proposals

Workshops

Ecological Dynamics of Microbial Communities: new approaches

News

Inaugural 'Emerging Directions Workshop' a 'Tremendous Success'

“The Emerging Directions Workshop was a tremendous success. Over 100 participants from more than 15 diverse disciplines were absorbed in research discussions that could generate future research collaborations at the interface of mathematics and biology.”

Richard Carthew, Director, NITMB

The National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology (NITMB) recently held its inaugural Emerging Directions Workshop, an annual event bringing together experts in the fields of mathematics and biology to set the course for future research directions in their fields. Faculty and junior researchers from across the country were invited to present, network, and collaborate to identify problems in biology that engage with mathematics. Discussions conducted at the workshop raised new opportunities NITMB will pursue in future workshops and initiatives.

NITMB Welcomes Five Fellows

NITMB welcomes five fellows to the Institute this Spring and Summer.

Maryn Carlson

University of Chicago

Maryn Carlson's research looks to understand the genetic mechanisms by which organisms adapt to new or changing environments, at the cellular population, and species levels.

Federica Ferretti

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Federica Ferretti is a theoretical physicist broadly interested in statistical models and quantitative approaches for biology.

Doruk Efe Gökmen

ETH Zurich

Doruk Efe Gökmen's research lies at the crossroads of machine learning, statistical physics, and information theory.

Alasdair Hastewell

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Alasdair Hastewell's research lies at the intersection of numerical applied mathematics and biophysics, combining techniques from spectral methods, optimization, and dynamical systems theory with experimental data.

Xueying Wang

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Xueying Wang's research tackles the dynamical properties of complex, chaotic, and out-of-equilibrium systems, including fluid turbulence, biological and artificial neural networks, ecological systems, and active matter.

Learn More About NITMB Fellows

Visiting Scholars

NITMB will be announcing its Visiting Scholars Program in April 2024

Opportunities

External Project Grants - Now Accepting Proposals

NITMB requests proposals for pilot research projects concordant with its scientific mission based at institutional partners external to Northwestern University and the University of Chicago.

More Information

Long Programs - Now Accepting Proposals

We invite the submission of proposals for scientific long programs to be held at NITMB. Long Programs address one or more of our five research themes over the course of 4-10 weeks.

More Information

Propose a Workshop

We invite the submission of proposals for scientific workshops to be held at NITMB. A Scientific Workshop is a week-long, focused program in a specific area of current research at the intersection of biological and mathematical sciences.

More Information

Upcoming Events

Ecological Dynamics of Microbial Communities:

new approaches

This workshop will explore new approaches to ecological dynamics of microbial communities. Co-hosted with the Institute for Mathematical and Statistical Innovation. To foster discussions on these themes, we’re choosing a problem-centric format: instead of enduring a long series of research talks, participants will succinctly present open problems in the field, which will then be discussed by the whole group and in smaller breakout sessions.

More Information

The National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology (NITMB) aims to integrate the disciplines of mathematics and biology in order to transform the practice of biological research and inspire new mathematical discoveries.

NITMB is a partnership between Northwestern University and the University of Chicago. It is funded by the National Science Foundation DMS-2235451 and the Simons Foundation MP-TMPS-00005320.