Theoretical approaches to living systems
Project ID:聽165
厂耻辫别谤惫颈蝉辞谤(蝉):听Richard Morris
惭测听聽focuses on applying聽and developing聽concepts from statistical and聽theoretical soft-condensed matter physics, as well as applied聽mathematics, to describe聽living听蝉测蝉迟别尘蝉.
We work alongside experimental partners in 国产精品's centre for聽, and are based in the Lowy Centre for Cancer Research.
The underlying premise is that, at its most fundamental, biology cannot be disentangled from thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, and hydrodynamics.聽 Moreover, with the help of recent dramatic improvements in experimental techniques (both in microscopy and genetics) we aim to uncover the聽new聽physics of animate, living, matter.
The research program of the group is broad, and encompasses a diverse set of length- and time-scales.聽 Examples range from sub-cellular molecular information processing to morphogenesis and collective migration in tissues.聽 We even have some work concerning the collective behaviour of fish.
Since the subject matter is fundamentally out-of-equilibrium by nature,聽projects typically involve a high level of theory/mathematics, such as advanced hydrodynamics, differential geometry, and/or statistical field theories.聽 If desired, projects can be constructed to combine analysis with either some simulation or data & image processing.
In this context, I will work with prospective students in order to find a project that has a good fit.聽 Examples might include:
- Covariant membrane hydrodynamics and its effect on embedded proteins (interest in differential geometry required).
- Motility-Induced Phase Separation (MIPS) at the cell surface: what is the mechanism underpinning the formatin of protein nano-clusters.
- Contractility-regulated modes of migration in expanding tissues; Levy flights and active jamming.
- Fail-safe and error correction in T-cell receptor signaling.
I expect successful honours students to be offered the opportunity to study for a PhD.