Dynamic Models in Biology

This book is written with the reality of biology students and their apprehension about mathematics in mind. The applications of mathematical models to real biological problems are not contrived, as they are in a number of other texts. And the biology examples are taken from the current literature--a wonderful help to those who will be teaching with this book. -- Jim Keener, University of Utah, author of "Principles of Applied Mathematics" and "Mathematical Physiology" Dynamic Models in Biology is a new and significant contribution to the field. Very well written and clearly presented, it fulfills its goal of bringing dynamic models into the undergraduate biology curriculum. Indeed it puts biology first, and then seeks to show how biological phenomena can be explained in mathematical terms. -- Martin Henry H. Stevens, Miami University This excellent book is a major contribution to the literature. Strong biologically and mathematically, well-organized, and engagingly written, it introduces the subject of dynamical models in biology in as coherent a way as I have seen anywhere. Few authors could approach this topic as authoritatively as do Ellner and Guckenheimer. -- Simon Levin, Princeton University, author of "The Importance of Species" and "The Encyclopedia of Biodiversity"

From controlling disease outbreaks to predicting heart attacks, dynamic models are crucial for understanding biological processes. This book teaches how to use dynamic models in biology. It is organized around biological applications, with mathematics and computing developed through case studies at the molecular, cellular, and population levels.From controlling disease outbreaks to predicting heart attacks, dynamic models are increasingly crucial for understanding biological processes. Many universities are starting undergraduate programs in computational biology to introduce students to this rapidly growing field. In Dynamic Models in Biology, the first text on dynamic models specifically written for undergraduate students in the biological sciences, ecologist Stephen Ellner and mathematician John Guckenheimer teach students how to understand, build, and use dynamic models in biology. Developed from a course taught by Ellner and Guckenheimer at Cornell University, the book is organized around biological applications, with mathematics and computing developed through case studies at the molecular, cellular, and population levels. The authors cover both simple analytic models--the sort usually found in mathematical biology texts--and the complex computational models now used by both biologists and mathematicians. Linked to a Web site with computer-lab materials and exercises, Dynamic Models in Biology is a major new introduction to dynamic models for students in the biological sciences, mathematics, and engineering.