for this workshop
Topology of the biomolecular world
at the
American Institute of Mathematics, San Jose, California
organized by
Gunnar Carlsson and Guowei Wei
This workshop, sponsored by AIM and the NSF, will be devoted to topological modeling and analysis of biomolecules. A major feature of life sciences in the 21st century is their transformation from phenomenological and descriptive disciplines to quantitative and predictive ones. Revolutionary opportunities have emerged for mathematically driven advances in biological research. However, the emergence of excessive complexity in self-organizing biological systems poses fundamental challenges to their quantitative description. Dealing with the connectivity and transformation of different components in a space, topology provides a dramatic simplification of biomolecular data and sheds light on drug design, protein folding, organelle function, signaling, gene regulation networks and topology-function relationship.
Our goal will be to make further advances in these directions, with three main topics.
- Fundamental topological theories, algorithms and methods underpin recent advances in understanding the complexity of biomolecular systems. This workshop catalyzes the development of new topological theories, algorithms and methods that are potentially applicable to biological science.
- Topological modeling and analysis of biomolecules This workshop provides a forum to exchange ideas and present topological results related to research in mathematical biophysics and molecular biosciences. The emphasis is on the use of topology to accomplish tasks that cannot be achieved by other conventional means.
- Potential future topics and directions in both topology and its application to molecular biophysics will be discussed. Synergistic interactions between mathematicians and biophysics will promote new trends in biology and topology.
The workshop will differ from typical conferences in some regards. Participants will be invited to suggest open problems and questions before the workshop begins, and these will be posted on the workshop website. These include specific problems on which there is hope of making some progress during the workshop, as well as more ambitious problems which may influence the future activity of the field. Lectures at the workshop will be focused on familiarizing the participants with the background material leading up to specific problems, and the schedule will include discussion and parallel working sessions.
The deadline to apply for support to participate in this workshop has passed.
For more information email workshops@aimath.org
