9th International Conference on Difference Equations and Applications (Main Theme: Mathematical Biology)

University Of Southern California, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Abstract

Sacker The investigator and colleagues organize an international conference on difference equations. This conference, ninth in a sequence, is tbe first one with a mathematical biology theme. The meeting brings together both experts and novices in the theory and application of difference equations, and experts in mathematical modeling of biological systems. In addition to presenting new results, they explore the role of difference equations in modeling biological phenomena and the advances in difference equation theory stimulated by biological models. The conference features 14 plenary talks and about 40 shorter talks. Topics covered include population biology, population genetics, mathematical ecology, epidemiology, asymptotic behavior, stability, and complex nonlinear dynamics including chaos. Using the successful model implemented at the Society of Mathematical Biology conferences, the meeting includes a mentoring program for student and postdoc participants. Special efforts are made to recruit a diversity of participants from under-represented groups. Proceedings of the conference, including a session on future directions, are published. Difference equations are apparently simple ways to describe the changes in a system from time to time. They are analogous to differential equations, which include derivatives that describe the instantaneous changes of the variables of the system. Unlike differential equations, however, the changes in variables of a difference equation need not be thought of as instantaneous. This makes difference equations well suited to model a wide variety of phenomena that occur in distinct stages, such as changes between generations of plants or animals. The principal investigator and his colleagues organize a conference about recent advances in the theory of difference equations, the application of difference equations to modeling of biological phenomena, and new mathematical questions about difference equations that arise in the course of this modeling. Emphasis is given to applications in population biology, genetics, ecology, and epidemiology. The meeting involves students and postdocs, including participants from under-represented groups. Proceedings of the meeting are published, helping to disseminate more widely the results of the conference.