Models of Life

Models of Life PDF Author: Kim Sneppen
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107061903
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 353

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Book Description
An overview of current models of biological systems, reflecting the major advances that have been made over the past decade.

Models of Life

Models of Life PDF Author: Kim Sneppen
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107061903
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 353

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Book Description
An overview of current models of biological systems, reflecting the major advances that have been made over the past decade.

Modeling Life

Modeling Life PDF Author: Alan Garfinkel
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319597310
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 445

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Book Description
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?

Models of My Life

Models of My Life PDF Author: Herbert A. Simon
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 026269185X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 463

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Book Description
In this candid and witty autobiography, Nobel laureate Herbert A. Simon looks at his distinguished and varied career, continually asking himself whether (and how) what he learned as a scientist helps to explain other aspects of his life. A brilliant polymath in an age of increasing specialization, Simon is one of those rare scholars whose work defines fields of inquiry. Crossing disciplinary lines in half a dozen fields, Simon's story encompasses an explosion in the information sciences, the transformation of psychology by the information-processing paradigm, and the use of computer simulation for modeling the behavior of highly complex systems. Simon's theory of bounded rationality led to a Nobel Prize in economics, and his work on building machines that think—based on the notion that human intelligence is the rule-governed manipulation of symbols—laid conceptual foundations for the new cognitive science. Subsequently, contrasting metaphors of the maze (Simon's view) and of the mind (neural nets) have dominated the artificial intelligence debate. There is also a warm account of his successful marriage and of an unconsummated love affair, letters to his children, columns, a short story, and political and personal intrigue in academe.

Models.Behaving.Badly.

Models.Behaving.Badly. PDF Author: Emanuel Derman
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439165017
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
Now in paperback, “a compelling, accessible, and provocative piece of work that forces us to question many of our assumptions” (Gillian Tett, author of Fool’s Gold). Quants, physicists working on Wall Street as quantitative analysts, have been widely blamed for triggering financial crises with their complex mathematical models. Their formulas were meant to allow Wall Street to prosper without risk. But in this penetrating insider’s look at the recent economic collapse, Emanuel Derman—former head quant at Goldman Sachs—explains the collision between mathematical modeling and economics and what makes financial models so dangerous. Though such models imitate the style of physics and employ the language of mathematics, theories in physics aim for a description of reality—but in finance, models can shoot only for a very limited approximation of reality. Derman uses his firsthand experience in financial theory and practice to explain the complicated tangles that have paralyzed the economy. Models.Behaving.Badly. exposes Wall Street’s love affair with models, and shows us why nobody will ever be able to write a model that can encapsulate human behavior.

Making Sense of Life

Making Sense of Life PDF Author: Evelyn Fox KELLER
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674039440
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 402

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Book Description
What do biologists want? How will we know when we have 'made sense' of life? Explanations in the biological sciences are provisional and partial, judged by criteria as heterogenous as their subject matter. This text accounts for this diversity.

Model Based Inference in the Life Sciences

Model Based Inference in the Life Sciences PDF Author: David R. Anderson
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 0387740759
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 184

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Book Description
This textbook introduces a science philosophy called "information theoretic" based on Kullback-Leibler information theory. It focuses on a science philosophy based on "multiple working hypotheses" and statistical models to represent them. The text is written for people new to the information-theoretic approaches to statistical inference, whether graduate students, post-docs, or professionals. Readers are however expected to have a background in general statistical principles, regression analysis, and some exposure to likelihood methods. This is not an elementary text as it assumes reasonable competence in modeling and parameter estimation.

MATHEMATICAL MODELS OF LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS - Volume I

MATHEMATICAL MODELS OF LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS - Volume I PDF Author: Valeri I. Agoshko
Publisher: EOLSS Publications
ISBN: 1848261284
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 530

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Book Description
Mathematical Models of Life Support Systems is a component of Encyclopedia of Mathematical Sciences in which is part of the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias. The Theme is organized into several topics which represent the main scientific areas of the theme: The first topic, Introduction to Mathematical Modeling discusses the foundations of mathematical modeling and computational experiments, which are formed to support new methodologies of scientific research. The succeeding topics are Mathematical Models in - Water Sciences; Climate; Environmental Pollution and Degradation; Energy Sciences; Food and Agricultural Sciences; Population; Immunology; Medical Sciences; and Control of Catastrophic Processes. These two volumes are aimed at the following five major target audiences: University and College students Educators, Professional practitioners, Research personnel and Policy analysts, managers, and decision makers and NGOs.

MATHEMATICAL MODELS OF LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS - Volume II

MATHEMATICAL MODELS OF LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS - Volume II PDF Author: Valeri I. Agoshko
Publisher: EOLSS Publications
ISBN: 1848261292
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 504

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Book Description
Mathematical Models of Life Support Systems is a component of Encyclopedia of Mathematical Sciences in which is part of the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias. The Theme is organized into several topics which represent the main scientific areas of the theme: The first topic, Introduction to Mathematical Modeling discusses the foundations of mathematical modeling and computational experiments, which are formed to support new methodologies of scientific research. The succeeding topics are Mathematical Models in - Water Sciences; Climate; Environmental Pollution and Degradation; Energy Sciences; Food and Agricultural Sciences; Population; Immunology; Medical Sciences; and Control of Catastrophic Processes. These two volumes are aimed at the following five major target audiences: University and College students Educators, Professional practitioners, Research personnel and Policy analysts, managers, and decision makers and NGOs.

Molecular Models of Life

Molecular Models of Life PDF Author: Sahotra Sarkar
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 9780262264730
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 426

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Book Description
Despite the transformation in biological practice and theory brought about by discoveries in molecular biology, until recently philosophy of biology continued to focus on evolutionary biology. When the Human Genome Project got underway in the late 1980s and early 1990s, philosophers of biology—unlike historians and social scientists—had little to add to the debate. In this landmark collection of essays, Sahotra Sarkar broadens the scope of current discussions of the philosophy of biology, viewing molecular biology as a unifying perspective on life that complements that of evolutionary biology. His focus is on molecular biology, but the overriding question behind these papers is what molecular biology contributes to all traditional areas of biological research.Molecular biology—described with some foresight in a 1938 Rockefeller Foundation report as a branch of science in which "delicate modern techniques are being used to investigate ever more minute details"—and its modeling strategies apparently argue in favor of physical reductionism. Sarkar's first three chapters explore reductionism—defending it, but cautioning that reduction to molecular interactions is not necessarily a reduction to genetics (and does not support the claims of either heriditarianism or environmentalism). The next sections of the book discuss function, exploring how functional explanations pose a problem for reductionism; the informational interpretation of biology and how it interacts with reductionism; and the tension between the unifying framework of molecular biology and the received framework of evolutionary theory. The concluding chapter is an essay in the emerging field of developmental evolution, exploring what molecular biology may contribute to the transformation of evolutionary theory as evolutionary theory takes into account morphogenetic development.

Stochastic Models in Life Insurance

Stochastic Models in Life Insurance PDF Author: Michael Koller
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3642284396
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 219

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Book Description
The book provides a sound mathematical base for life insurance mathematics and applies the underlying concepts to concrete examples. Moreover the models presented make it possible to model life insurance policies by means of Markov chains. Two chapters covering ALM and abstract valuation concepts on the background of Solvency II complete this volume. Numerous examples and a parallel treatment of discrete and continuous approaches help the reader to implement the theory directly in practice.