When Math and Biology Connect

Paul Brazhnik at the NIGMS Feedback Loop blog reports on a joint DMS/NIGMS initiative to support research in mathematical biology. One of the program's goals is to bring new mathematical approaches into core biological and biomedical research, Brazhnik says. At a meeting of PIs for the project, Brazhnik says he heard some ideas that caught his attention. For example, several speakers discussed balancing new innovations in math while applying well-established mathematical approaches to biology. Another speaker talked about how the methods used to study the spread of infectious diseases could also be used to study the spread of emotional states, he adds.