Course content - Learning outcome - Admission - Prerequisites - Teaching - Examination - Evaluation

Course content

Systems biology is an emerging field, which heavily depends upon collaboration between biologists and mathematicians. The genome has offered biologists new possibilities to study genetic processes on a genomic scale, and to achieve not only understanding of the function of individual molecules but also to achieve quantitative understanding of the regulation and interaction of genes and molecules at the systems level. This development requires researchers with combined biological, mathematical and computational skills. However, few research students have such combined skills as yet.

Learning outcome

The present course intended for students in biology, physics, informatics and medicine, will take as starting point recent high quality papers, where quantitative biology point to novel biological mechanisms. These papers will be used to allow participants to communicate in languages different from their own. The course intends to give examples on the use of mathematics in quantitative biology. Topics that will be presented includes: Probabilities, Networks, Stochastic processes and Computational modeling. The course will include lectures followed by close reading and discussions in smaller groups of original high quality papers in various areas of biology and medicine. At the end of the course, the participants shall have become acquainted with some essential ideas in mathematics and biology, and they shall have trained in communicating in languages and disciplines other than their own.

Admission

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Ph.D. candidates and students at the Medical Student Research Programme will get first priority to the course. Maximum number of particpants is 30.

Registration in the StudentWeb - 1st December until 15th January.

Registration for applicants without access to the StudentWeb - 1st December until 15th January.

Applicants will be notified by email 1 - 2 weeks after the final date for registration.

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Prerequisites

Formal prerequisite knowledge

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Recommended previous knowledge

Bachelor level in biology, physics, informatics or medicine.

Teaching

The course will be taught 8th and 15th February 2013

The present course intends to invite research students in biology, medicine, physics and informatics to meet and discuss some selected topics relevant to quantitative biology. The course will consist of four sections, each of a half day, dealing with a specific theme. Introductions to biological and mathematical aspects of the theme will be given as lectures. The specific theme will then be illustrated by a recent high quality original paper, which will form the basis for discussions in smaller group of maximum 8 students. The lecturers at the course will serve as group leaders. Their role will be mainly facilitating the discussion. The participants will have to read the papers before the course. When registering for the course, the participants should provide their e-mail addresses, as well as information about their main field of expertise. The course administration will put together groups consisting of participants with as varied background as possible. The last 30 minutes of each session is concluded in plenum, where one person from each discussion group gives a short summary of the discussion in the group, allowing for comments from participants from other groups.

NB! You have to participate in at least 80 % of the teaching to be allowed to take the exam. Attendance at lectures will be registered.

Access to teaching

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Examination

There will be a course exam at the end of the course, which will take immediately after the course has ended, and at the school. The exam covers all major themes covered by the course, and is intended to take 30 minutes to complete. Grading: pass/fail.

Examination support material

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Language of examination

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Grading scale

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Explanations and appeals

You may request an explanation of your grades, and you may also appeal against your grades or make a complaint about formal examination errors. Read more about explanations and appeals.

Resit an examination

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Withdrawal from an examination

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Special examination arrangements

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Evaluation

Feedback from our students is essential to us in our efforts to ensure and further improve the high quality of our programmes and courses. All courses are subject to continuous evaluation. At regular intervals we also ask students on a particular course to participate in a more comprehensive, periodic evaluation of this course.