Mathematical and computational biology is playing an increasingly important role in the biological sciences. This science brings forward unique challenges, many of which are, at the moment, beyond the theoretical techniques available. Developmental biology, due to its complexity, has lagged somewhat behind its sister disciplines (such as molecular biology and population biology) in making use of quantitative modeling to further biological understanding. This volume comprises work that is among the best developmental modeling available and we feel it will do much to remedy this situation.This book is aimed at all those with an interest in the interdisciplinary field of computer and mathematical modeling of multi-cellular and developmental systems. It is also a goal of the Editors to attract more developmental biologists to consider integrating modeling components into their research. Most importantly, this book is intended to serve as a portal into this research area for younger scientists – especially graduate students and post-docs, from both biological and quantitative backgrounds.* Articles written by leading exponents in the field* Provides techniques to address multiscale modeling* Coverage includes a wide spectrum of modeling approaches* Includes descriptions of the most recent advances in the field

Patterns of explanation in biology have long been recognized as different from those deployed in other scientific disciplines, especially that of physics. Celebrating the diversity of interpretative models found in biology, this volume details their varying types as well as explaining their relationships to one another. It covers the key differentials with other sciences in the nature of explanation, such as the existence in biology of varieties unheard of in the physical sciences, such as teleological, evolutionary and even functional explanations. Offering a wealth of fresh analysis of the phenomenon, chapters examine aspects ranging from the role of mathematics in explaining cell development to the complexities thrown up by evolutionary-developmental biology, where explanation is altered by multidisciplinarity itself. They cover major domains such as ecology and systems biology, as well as contemporary trends, such as the mechanistic explanations spawned by progress in molecular biology. With contributions from researchers of many different nationalities, the book provides a many-angled perspective on a revealing feature of the discipline of biology.

Addressing the challenge of improving battery quality while reducing high costs and environmental impacts of the production, this book presents a multiscale simulation approach for battery production systems along with a software environment and an application procedure. Battery systems are among the most important technologies of the 21st century since they are enablers for the market success of electric vehicles and stationary energy storage solutions. However, the performance of batteries so far has limited possible applications. Addressing this challenge requires an interdisciplinary understanding of dynamic cause-effect relationships between processes, equipment, materials, and environmental conditions. The approach in this book supports the integrated evaluation of improvement measures and is usable for different planning horizons. It is applied to an exemplary battery cell production and module assembly in order to demonstrate the effectiveness and potential benefits of the simulation.

Do the movements of animals, including humans, follow patterns that can be described quantitatively by simple laws of motion? If so, then why? These questions have attracted the attention of scientists in many disciplines, and stimulated debates ranging from ecological matters to queries such as 'how can there be free will if one follows a law of motion?' This is the first book on this rapidly evolving subject, introducing random searches and foraging in a way that can be understood by readers without a previous background on the subject. It reviews theory as well as experiment, addresses open problems and perspectives, and discusses applications ranging from the colonization of Madagascar by Austronesians to the diffusion of genetically modified crops. The book will interest physicists working in the field of anomalous diffusion and movement ecology as well as ecologists already familiar with the concepts and methods of statistical physics.

This book introduces readers to MesoBioNano (MBN) Explorer – a multi-purpose software package designed to model molecular systems at various levels of size and complexity. In addition, it presents a specially designed multi-task toolkit and interface – the MBN Studio – which enables the set-up of input files, controls the simulations, and supports the subsequent visualization and analysis of the results obtained. The book subsequently provides a systematic description of the capabilities of this universal and powerful software package within the framework of computational molecular science, and guides readers through its applications in numerous areas of research in bio- and chemical physics and material science – ranging from the nano- to the mesoscale. MBN Explorer is particularly suited to computing the system’s energy, to optimizing molecular structure, and to exploring the various facets of molecular and random walk dynamics. The package allows the use of a broad variety of interatomic potentials and can, e.g., be configured to select any subset of a molecular system as rigid fragments, whenever a significant reduction in the number of dynamical degrees of freedom is required for computational practicalities. MBN Studio enables users to easily construct initial geometries for the molecular, liquid, crystalline, gaseous and hybrid systems that serve as input for the subsequent simulations of their physical and chemical properties using MBN Explorer. Despite its universality, the computational efficiency of MBN Explorer is comparable to that of other, more specialized software packages, making it a viable multi-purpose alternative for the computational modeling of complex molecular systems. A number of detailed case studies presented in the second part of this book demonstrate MBN Explorer’s usefulness and efficiency in the fields of atomic clusters and nanoparticles, biomolecular systems, nanostructured materials, composite materials and hybrid systems, crystals, liquids and gases, as well as in providing modeling support for novel and emerging technologies. Last but not least, with the release of the 3rd edition of MBN Explorer in spring 2017, a free trial version will be available from the MBN Research Center website (mbnresearch.com).

The topic of dynamic models tends to be splintered across various disciplines, making it difficult to uniformly study the subject. Moreover, the models have a variety of representations, from traditional mathematical notations to diagrammatic and immersive depictions. Collecting all of these expressions of dynamic models, the Handbook of Dynamic Sy

Intraindividual variability (IIV) of human development and behavior across the entire life-span is explored in this new book. Leading researchers summarize recent findings on the extent, role, and function of IIV in human development with a focus on how, when, and why individuals change over time. The latest theoretical, methodological, and technological advances are reviewed. The book explores the historical and theoretical background and challenges of IIV research along with its role and function in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Edited to maximize consistency and accessibility, each chapter includes an introduction and a review of the research and most explore future directions, new theoretical developments, and conclusions and implications. Readers are shown that by focusing on the individual as a unit of analysis across different time scales, conditions, and situations, researchers can effectively demonstrate behavioral and developmental regularities at different points of the life-span. As such this book is a must have for anybody interested in IIV research. The book explores: -New designs and methods for the analysis of intensive repeated measures data. -The importance of real-time data for more time sensitive and ecologically valid measurements. -The role and function of intraindividual variability in behavior and development across the life-span -- from infancy to later life. -Numerous examples of how intraindividual variability research is conducted. -Topics and findings that are commonly treated in disparate bodies of literature from various disciplines. Part 1 provides a historical, conceptual, and methodological overview of the study of intraindividual variability (IIV). IIV during childhood and adolescence and its application in the investigation of development of language acquisition, infant-parent interactions, development of motor skills, cognitive development, mood regulation, and identity development are examined in Part 2. Part 3 focuses on IIV during adult development, including its use in neuropsychological functioning and attention and in personality development and mood regulation. IIV in the context of adults’ health behavior is also reviewed. Part 4 examines the key issues and challenges of IIV research in human development such as whether IIV in adult development is an indicator of vulnerability or resilience, the association between short-term IIV and long-term developmental change, and multiple time-scale design and analysis. The volume concludes with a look at the future of intraindividual variation analysis. Intended for advanced students and researchers in developmental psychology across the life-span, social, personality, and health psychology, as well as sociology, family studies, gerontology, education, and medicine, interested in intraindividual variability of behavior and its role in human development, this book also serves as a text for graduate courses on longitudinal analysis, multilevel modeling, and/or (advanced) data analysis offered in these departments. Knowledge in human development or life course sociology and graduate-level statistics is recommended.

While the relevant features and properties of nanosystems necessarily depend on nanoscopic details, their performance resides in the macroscopic world. To rationally develop and accurately predict performance of these systems we must tackle problems where multiple length and time scales are coupled. Rather than forcing a single modeling approach to

This eBook is a collection of articles from a Frontiers Research Topic. Frontiers Research Topics are very popular trademarks of the Frontiers Journals Series: they are collections of at least ten articles, all centered on a particular subject. With their unique mix of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Frontiers Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key findings and historical advances in a hot research area! Find out more on how to host your own Frontiers Research Topic or contribute to one as an author by contacting the Frontiers Editorial Office: frontiersin.org/about/contact.

Introduction: working together on individuality / Lynn K. Nyhart and Scott Lidgard -- The work of biological individuality: concepts and contexts / Scott Lidgard and Lynn K. Nyhart -- Cells, colonies, and clones: individuality in the volvocine algae / Matthew D. Herron -- Individuality and the control of life cycles / Beckett Sterner -- Discovering the ties that bind: cell-cell communication and the development of cell sociology / Andrew S. Reynolds -- Alternation of generations and individuality, 1851 / Lynn K. Nyhart and Scott Lidgard -- Spencer's evolutionary entanglement: from liminal individuals to implicit collectivities / Snait Gissis -- Biological individuality and enkapsis: from Martin Heidenhain's synthesiology to the völkisch national community / Olivier Rieppel -- Parasitology, zoology, and society in France, ca. 1880-1920 / Michael A. Osborne -- Metabolism, autonomy, and individuality / Hannah Landecker -- Bodily parts in the structure-function dialectic / Ingo Brigandt -- Commentaries: historical, biological, and philosophical perspectives -- Distrust that particular intuition: resilient essentialisms and empirical challenges in the history of biological individuality / James Elwick -- Biological individuality: a relational reading / Scott F. Gilbert -- Philosophical dimensions of individuality / Alan C. Love and Ingo Brigandt