23/02/2021

Serrapilheira's course connects life sciences and mathematics.

We are looking for future scientists who want to work in different areas of knowledge within the life sciences, focusing on the use of mathematics, physics, and computer science. This initiative comes from the Serrapilheira Institute , which is launching, for the first time, a training program aimed at pre-doctoral researchers. The classes will be free and will take place in partnership with the South American Institute for Fundamental Research (ICTP-SAIFR). Registration for the first edition of the Training Program in Quantitative Biology and Ecology will be open from March 9th to May Tuesdays on the ICTP-SAIFR website.

The goal is to leverage Brazil's potential to develop, in the long term, a generation of qualified specialists to address interdisciplinary academic challenges. To participate, applicants must have a completed undergraduate degree in any field or be expected to graduate by December 31, 2021. Candidates must have prior knowledge of differential and integral calculus, as well as proficiency in English. The first 500 applicants will have priority in the selection process, and fifty participants will be selected. The complete announcement is available on the Serrapilheira website .

“Modern life science research generates an enormous amount of complex data,” explains the institute’s CEO, Hugo Aguilaniu. “We want to break down these limiting artificial boundaries, so that a young biologist knows that he can use an equation like a mathematician or think like a physicist to understand complex biological systems like a tropical ecosystem.”

Participants will cover topics ranging from modern genetics to behavioral ecology. The training will take place from July Thursdays to 30th, 2021, adapted to a remote format due to the pandemic, and will feature a team of globally renowned professors. The list includes names such as mathematician Corina Tarnita from Princeton University in the United States. This researcher develops mathematical models to understand how simple biological units interact with each other to form larger-scale structures.

Jordi Bascompte, from the University of Zurich, Switzerland, will demonstrate how mathematical models, simulations, and dataset analysis can be used to address fundamental and applied questions in ecology. Currently, his main research interest is focused on the dynamic structure of ecological networks. The complete list of professors and topics to be covered is available here .

The next editions of the training program will be in-person, in São Paulo, lasting six months, and will include a research proposal development phase. It is desirable that students continue their training at a leading institution in Brazil or abroad after completing the course.

To announce the Training Program in Quantitative Biology and Ecology, two webinars will be held with members of the advisory committee. On March Mondays , at 11 am, ecologist and Princeton University professor Simon Levin will discuss the importance of basic science. Akiko Iwasaki, one of the world's most influential immunologists, will speak on March Wednesdays , also at 11 am, about the role of basic science in addressing concrete challenges, such as Covid-19.