Physical Models of Living Systems by Philip Nelson

by Philip Nelson

Written for intermediate-level undergraduates pursuing any science or engineering major, Physical Models of Living Systems helps students develop many of the competencies that form the basis of the new MCAT2015. The only prerequisite is first-year physics. With the more advanced "Track-2" sections at the end of each chapter, the book can be used in graduate-level courses as well."The strong thematic unity is a major strength. What students are most stunned and amazed by is how a handful of basic mathematical concepts (e.g., Poisson statistics, Bayes rules) can be used to understand myriad problems at many levels. Nelson’s book communicates these key concepts in a very engaging way. Choice of topic, strong thematic unity, and lucidness are its major strengths.” -- Prof Aravinthan Samuel, Dept of Physics and Center for Brain Science, Harvard University"I love the combination of real data along with the simplified mathematical modeling. This is exactly the kind of thoughtful back-and-forth between the real world and the modeling world that I try to inculcate in my own students." -- Prof Ned Wingreen, Molecular Biology, Princeton University"This text is beautifully written. It succeeds by presenting a clear and coherent point of It is essential to develop quantitative, testable models of biological phenomena and these models are based on the basic physical foundations of nature which are essential for understanding living systems and for developing the modern tools used to investigate their structure and dynamics." -- Prof Alex Levine, Chemistry, UCLA"Excellent conversational tone that Nelson has perfected over time… Excellent mixtures of physical and biological examples, with enough technical content that students can appreciate and understand the biology, but without the jargon and details that often prevent abstract concepts from being easily understood — Illustrations and problems for students are great." -- Prof Megan Valentine, Mechanical Engineering, University of California at Santa Barbara

Genres: Biology, Physics

Unknown Binding

First published December 20, 2014

Reviews

[Tyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book bridging biology and physics.

[Michiel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely concise introduction to modelling for systems biology. I appreciated the richness in case studies and examples and the emphasis on stochastic processes. One to keep close at hand!

[Yuxi Liu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life changing. You may not like it, but this is what peak textbook reads like.