Mediators:
François Taddei (Paris Descartes, INSERM), Ariel Lindner (Paris Descartes, INSERM), Stéphane Douady (Paris Diderot), Samuel Bottani (Paris Diderot)
The opening week of the academic year is devoted to a week's course. The workshop consists of daytime work in small groups of 4 students, each of a different scientific background, towards writing an interdisciplinary project without web or literature access and its presentation at the end of the week.
Through this exercise, while providing training in formulating and writing a research proposal, a common language evolves between the participants of different disciplines. During the week, several exercises aim at developing innovative thinking and positive criticism, the core of the scientific process.
Evening daily lectures by the ED teachers and visiting scientists detail their scientific and personal paths to expose the students to the multifaceted life of research.
* A mandatory 1st year course *
Mediator :
Stéphane Douady (ENS, Paris Diderot)
Overview of dynamic systems, with small experiments and demonstrations including biological application examples.
We will study basic theoretical tools, practice specific examples and synthesize a coherent overview of:
− Non-linear notions (rabbit-fox model), dissipative model (pendulum), interactions (oscillator coupling), chaos, strange attractors (of Lorenz)
− Instability (of Faraday), Amplitude equation, derivation by symmetry argumentation, general description of bifurcations.
− Classical (phase transitions), less classic (plans, granular milieu) and biological (excitable milieu, neurons) examples of bifurcations.
− Interactions between modes and spatial motifs, spatial-temporalchaos (duality/waves). Transitions toward chaos (discrete dynamics, transition scenarios)
− General cases of morphogenetic instabilities (Laplacian, of Turing: shells and tigers).
Dates : tuesday mornings 9h30-12h, october/december 2009, starting on Tuesday 6/10/2009
Duration : 12*2h30 = 30 hours
Mediators:
Michel Morange (ENS), Evelyn Keller-Fox (MIT)
The course is intended to evolve the students' ability to integrate information from science, in the context of philosophy and history through the examination of specific episodes in current science and the history of science.
Evelyn Fox Keller will develop the theme of "Simplicity and Complexity".
The students will be guided in readings of classical articles to strengthen their critical thinking skills and scientific literacy in the various interfaces of Biology with Math, Physics, Chemistry and Medicine.
Duration : 2 hours, weekly
Format : Course, with debate
Dates : 1st semester, E.Fox Keller November
+ on students demand, continued during 2nd semester.
Mediators :
Matthieu Piel (Institut Curie)
Annemiek Cornelissen et Vincent Fleury
General aim:
In this course we propose two theoretical courses and a practical course, aimed at giving examples of what physics can tell about general biological questions, and in particular about the question of how shapes are generated, a process called morphogenesis. The general aim is to show how it is possible to go from a specific biological question develop a quantitative experimental approach and confront data and modeling.
Summary of content:
A first course (3x3h) will be about the physical constraints to Evolution, presented by Vincent Fleury. It is not exactly classical Evo/Devo, but rather a physicist perspective, in the line of Darcy Thomson famous book 'On Growth and Form', on how shapes can evolve, starting with a general introduction on morphogenesis in biology, development and genetics to move towards physical modeling of developing organisms, and concentrate on a few examples, including Evolution of the hand.
A second course (3x3h) will deal with the very important morphogenetic process of angiogenesis (formation of blood vessels), from Physics to pathology. This course will be presented by Annemiek Cornelissen.
The practical course proposed (3x3h) will consist in studying formation of blood vessels during the development of the chick embryo. It required only a simple binocular microscope for observation and an incubator to control the temperature of eggs. The growth pattern of blood vessels can then be extracted and confronted to classical theories for angiogenesis.
The content above is a starting proposal, and the students interested are also welcome to propose additional topics. During the courses researchers from various fields will come to discuss and give seminars. We will also help the students choose and attend interesting meetings at the interface between physics and biology, the number of such meetings being now quite elevated.
Dates : The courses will be of 3 hours each time, between November 2009 and May 2010
The schedule and precise set of courses will be decided after a first meeting, in October 2009, with the student interested to follow the course.