A Biologist's Guide to Mathematical Modeling in Ecology and Evolution

A Biologist's Guide to Mathematical Modeling in Ecology and Evolution
Author: Sarah P. Otto
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 745
Release: 2011-09-19
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1400840910

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Thirty years ago, biologists could get by with a rudimentary grasp of mathematics and modeling. Not so today. In seeking to answer fundamental questions about how biological systems function and change over time, the modern biologist is as likely to rely on sophisticated mathematical and computer-based models as traditional fieldwork. In this book, Sarah Otto and Troy Day provide biology students with the tools necessary to both interpret models and to build their own. The book starts at an elementary level of mathematical modeling, assuming that the reader has had high school mathematics and first-year calculus. Otto and Day then gradually build in depth and complexity, from classic models in ecology and evolution to more intricate class-structured and probabilistic models. The authors provide primers with instructive exercises to introduce readers to the more advanced subjects of linear algebra and probability theory. Through examples, they describe how models have been used to understand such topics as the spread of HIV, chaos, the age structure of a country, speciation, and extinction. Ecologists and evolutionary biologists today need enough mathematical training to be able to assess the power and limits of biological models and to develop theories and models themselves. This innovative book will be an indispensable guide to the world of mathematical models for the next generation of biologists. A how-to guide for developing new mathematical models in biology Provides step-by-step recipes for constructing and analyzing models Interesting biological applications Explores classical models in ecology and evolution Questions at the end of every chapter Primers cover important mathematical topics Exercises with answers Appendixes summarize useful rules Labs and advanced material available

The Theoretical Biologist's Toolbox

The Theoretical Biologist's Toolbox
Author: Marc Mangel
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 323
Release: 2006-07-27
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1139455869

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Mathematical modelling is widely used in ecology and evolutionary biology and it is a topic that many biologists find difficult to grasp. In this new textbook Marc Mangel provides a no-nonsense introduction to the skills needed to understand the principles of theoretical and mathematical biology. Fundamental theories and applications are introduced using numerous examples from current biological research, complete with illustrations to highlight key points. Exercises are also included throughout the text to show how theory can be applied and to test knowledge gained so far. Suitable for advanced undergraduate courses in theoretical and mathematical biology, this book forms an essential resource for anyone wanting to gain an understanding of theoretical ecology and evolution.

Mathematical Models in Biology

Mathematical Models in Biology
Author: Leah Edelstein-Keshet
Publisher: SIAM
Total Pages: 629
Release: 1988-01-01
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 9780898719147

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Mathematical Models in Biology is an introductory book for readers interested in biological applications of mathematics and modeling in biology. A favorite in the mathematical biology community, it shows how relatively simple mathematics can be applied to a variety of models to draw interesting conclusions. Connections are made between diverse biological examples linked by common mathematical themes. A variety of discrete and continuous ordinary and partial differential equation models are explored. Although great advances have taken place in many of the topics covered, the simple lessons contained in this book are still important and informative. Audience: the book does not assume too much background knowledge--essentially some calculus and high-school algebra. It was originally written with third- and fourth-year undergraduate mathematical-biology majors in mind; however, it was picked up by beginning graduate students as well as researchers in math (and some in biology) who wanted to learn about this field.

The Theory of Evolution

The Theory of Evolution
Author: Samuel M. Scheiner
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 455
Release: 2020-04-03
Genre: Science
ISBN: 022667133X

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Darwin’s nineteenth-century writings laid the foundations for modern studies of evolution, and theoretical developments in the mid-twentieth century fostered the Modern Synthesis. Since that time, a great deal of new biological knowledge has been generated, including details of the genetic code, lateral gene transfer, and developmental constraints. Our improved understanding of these and many other phenomena have been working their way into evolutionary theory, changing it and improving its correspondence with evolution in nature. And while the study of evolution is thriving both as a basic science to understand the world and in its applications in agriculture, medicine, and public health, the broad scope of evolution—operating across genes, whole organisms, clades, and ecosystems—presents a significant challenge for researchers seeking to integrate abundant new data and content into a general theory of evolution. This book gives us that framework and synthesis for the twenty-first century. The Theory of Evolution presents a series of chapters by experts seeking this integration by addressing the current state of affairs across numerous fields within evolutionary biology, ranging from biogeography to multilevel selection, speciation, and macroevolutionary theory. By presenting current syntheses of evolution’s theoretical foundations and their growth in light of new datasets and analyses, this collection will enhance future research and understanding.

Game-Theoretical Models in Biology

Game-Theoretical Models in Biology
Author: Mark Broom
Publisher: CRC Press
Total Pages: 522
Release: 2013-03-27
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 1439853215

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Covering the major topics of evolutionary game theory, Game-Theoretical Models in Biology presents both abstract and practical mathematical models of real biological situations. It discusses the static aspects of game theory in a mathematically rigorous way that is appealing to mathematicians. In addition, the authors explore many applications of game theory to biology, making the text useful to biologists as well. The book describes a wide range of topics in evolutionary games, including matrix games, replicator dynamics, the hawk-dove game, and the prisoner’s dilemma. It covers the evolutionarily stable strategy, a key concept in biological games, and offers in-depth details of the mathematical models. Most chapters illustrate how to use MATLAB® to solve various games. Important biological phenomena, such as the sex ratio of so many species being close to a half, the evolution of cooperative behavior, and the existence of adornments (for example, the peacock’s tail), have been explained using ideas underpinned by game theoretical modeling. Suitable for readers studying and working at the interface of mathematics and the life sciences, this book shows how evolutionary game theory is used in the modeling of these diverse biological phenomena.

Dynamical Models in Biology

Dynamical Models in Biology
Author: Miklós Farkas
Publisher: Academic Press
Total Pages: 199
Release: 2001-06-15
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 0080530605

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Dynamic Models in Biology offers an introduction to modern mathematical biology. This book provides a short introduction to modern mathematical methods in modeling dynamical phenomena and treats the broad topics of population dynamics, epidemiology, evolution, immunology, morphogenesis, and pattern formation. Primarily employing differential equations, the author presents accessible descriptions of difficult mathematical models. Recent mathematical results are included, but the author's presentation gives intuitive meaning to all the main formulae. Besides mathematicians who want to get acquainted with this relatively new field of applications, this book is useful for physicians, biologists, agricultural engineers, and environmentalists. Key Topics Include: Chaotic dynamics of populations The spread of sexually transmitted diseases Problems of the origin of life Models of immunology Formation of animal hide patterns The intuitive meaning of mathematical formulae explained with many figures Applying new mathematical results in modeling biological phenomena Miklos Farkas is a professor at Budapest University of Technology where he has researched and instructed mathematics for over thirty years. He has taught at universities in the former Soviet Union, Canada, Australia, Venezuela, Nigeria, India, and Columbia. Prof. Farkas received the 1999 Bolyai Award of the Hungarian Academy of Science and the 2001 Albert Szentgyorgyi Award of the Hungarian Ministry of Education. A 'down-to-earth' introduction to the growing field of modern mathematical biology Also includes appendices which provide background material that goes beyond advanced calculus and linear algebra

Mathematical Models in Biology

Mathematical Models in Biology
Author: Elizabeth Spencer Allman
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 388
Release: 2004
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 9780521525862

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This introductory textbook on mathematical biology focuses on discrete models across a variety of biological subdisciplines. Biological topics treated include linear and non-linear models of populations, Markov models of molecular evolution, phylogenetic tree construction, genetics, and infectious disease models. The coverage of models of molecular evolution and phylogenetic tree construction from DNA sequence data is unique among books at this level. Computer investigations with MATLAB are incorporated throughout, in both exercises and more extensive projects, to give readers hands-on experience with the mathematical models developed. MATLAB programs accompany the text. Mathematical tools, such as matrix algebra, eigenvector analysis, and basic probability, are motivated by biological models and given self-contained developments, so that mathematical prerequisites are minimal.

Modeling Life

Modeling Life
Author: Alan Garfinkel
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 456
Release: 2017-09-06
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 3319597310

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This book develops the mathematical tools essential for students in the life sciences to describe interacting systems and predict their behavior. From predator-prey populations in an ecosystem, to hormone regulation within the body, the natural world abounds in dynamical systems that affect us profoundly. Complex feedback relations and counter-intuitive responses are common in nature; this book develops the quantitative skills needed to explore these interactions. Differential equations are the natural mathematical tool for quantifying change, and are the driving force throughout this book. The use of Euler’s method makes nonlinear examples tractable and accessible to a broad spectrum of early-stage undergraduates, thus providing a practical alternative to the procedural approach of a traditional Calculus curriculum. Tools are developed within numerous, relevant examples, with an emphasis on the construction, evaluation, and interpretation of mathematical models throughout. Encountering these concepts in context, students learn not only quantitative techniques, but how to bridge between biological and mathematical ways of thinking. Examples range broadly, exploring the dynamics of neurons and the immune system, through to population dynamics and the Google PageRank algorithm. Each scenario relies only on an interest in the natural world; no biological expertise is assumed of student or instructor. Building on a single prerequisite of Precalculus, the book suits a two-quarter sequence for first or second year undergraduates, and meets the mathematical requirements of medical school entry. The later material provides opportunities for more advanced students in both mathematics and life sciences to revisit theoretical knowledge in a rich, real-world framework. In all cases, the focus is clear: how does the math help us understand the science?

Modeling Nature

Modeling Nature
Author: Sharon E. Kingsland
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 326
Release: 1995-10-16
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9780226437286

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The first history of population ecology traces two generations of science and scientists from the opening of the twentieth century through 1970. Kingsland chronicles the careers of key figures and the field's theoretical, empirical, and institutional development, with special attention to tensions between the descriptive studies of field biologists and later mathematical models. This second edition includes a new afterword that brings the book up to date, with special attention to the rise of "the new natural history" and debates about ecology's future as a large-scale scientific enterprise.

Experimental Design and Data Analysis for Biologists

Experimental Design and Data Analysis for Biologists
Author: Gerry P. Quinn
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 851
Release: 2002-03-21
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 1139432893

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An essential textbook for any student or researcher in biology needing to design experiments, sample programs or analyse the resulting data. The text begins with a revision of estimation and hypothesis testing methods, covering both classical and Bayesian philosophies, before advancing to the analysis of linear and generalized linear models. Topics covered include linear and logistic regression, simple and complex ANOVA models (for factorial, nested, block, split-plot and repeated measures and covariance designs), and log-linear models. Multivariate techniques, including classification and ordination, are then introduced. Special emphasis is placed on checking assumptions, exploratory data analysis and presentation of results. The main analyses are illustrated with many examples from published papers and there is an extensive reference list to both the statistical and biological literature. The book is supported by a website that provides all data sets, questions for each chapter and links to software.