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COURSE SYLLABUS - MATH 459/559: Sep 4 - Nov 30, 2018; Tue Thu 9:30-11; ART 102
Mathematical Biology
Mathematical modelling in biological disciplines such as population dynamics, ecology, pattern formation, tumour growth, immune response, biomechanics, and epidemiology. Theory of such models formulated as difference equations, ordinary differential equations, and partial differential equations.
Instructor
Dr. Nourridine Siewe
807-8766, rm SCI 386
A little autobiography during my first postdoc position.
Link to fill class activities and grades:
Office Hours
My hours on campus vary, but you can generally count on me being there 8:30am-4:30pm on Mon Tue Thu Fri. My office hours are 11:30am-12:30pm on Tue Wed Thu. Outside of these times, you are welcome to drop by my office (or call) and see if I'm available. My schedule is really packed this term, so if you need to see me outside of my office hours, your best strategy is to see me right after class and make an appointment.
Textbook and Lecture Notes
We use the following textbooks: Elements of Mathematical Ecology by Mark Kot, Mathematical Biology I: An Introduction by J.D. Murray.
We also use pre-print lectures notes by Avner Friedman (whose link to access will be made available)
Course Objectives
In this course we are learning to build and analyse nonlinear differential equation models. We learn a wide variety of analytic, graphic, and simplification techniques which elucidate the behavior of these mathematical models, whether or not a closed-form solution is available. By the end of the class, the students will be able to competently read and follow a research paper presenting and analyzing a differential equation model from a wide variety of application areas.
The specific models we study are all models of biological systems. The specific sections of the text that we cover vary from year to year; the sections relevant to this year's class are listed in the agenda.
Course Grades
In-class Group Work Assignments: Math 459 (20%) ; Math 559 (10%)
Leadership of In-class Group Work Assignments: Math 459 (N/A) ; Math 559 (10%)
Assignments: Math 459 (50%) ; Math 559 (50%)
Term Project: Math 459 (30%) ; Math 559 (30%)
Total: Math 459 (100%) ; Math 559 (100%)
Assessment
In-Class Group Work Assignments
These assignments are meant to be done in class and handed in after class is complete. The group discussion is an important part of the activity, as the answers are not always completely obvious, or unique.
Assignments
There will be five Assignments, due by 3pm on the appropriate due dates (due dates are indicated on the agenda). Assignments will be updated as the material is covered. You are expected to keep up with the homework questions, so each assignment covers material up to and including the previous lecture.
If you miss class, it is your responsibility to ensure that you receive the assignment questions and hand them in. Note that I find math questions rather difficult to answer over email, so please come and see me if you have questions.
Solutions will (eventually) be provided for all of the questions, and any problematic ones will be discussed in class. I don't anticipate having much class time to go over assignments, so assignment questions will largely be handled outside of class during office hours or other appointments.
Term Project
Each project will consist of
an oral presentation (15 minutes for Math 459, 25 minutes for Math 559, times include 5 minutes for questions) at times given in the course agenda,
a 1 paragraph written summary to be distributed to classmates by email before the presentation days (due dates are listed in the agenda), so that everyone has a chance to review the project and prepare questions, and
a report (3-4 pages for Math 459, 5-7 pages for Math 559, including figures) to be handed in on presentation day. Each project will explore an ODE or DE model in mathematical biology found in the research literature. Students will understand the model, the applications context, and the results presented in the paper.
For each student, assessment will be based on
that student's presentation and report, and
the questions that student asks of other students during their presentations
Examples of past projects are available on the homework page. More information on specific assessment criteria is given below.
Assessment Criteria for Math 459
Oral Presentation (30%)
Visual aspects: clarity, organisation, relevance of the slides to the topic being explained
delivery aspects: clarity, eye contact with the audience, handling of questions
content aspects: the presentation must include
a description of the application area with sufficient content so that the class can grasp the relevance of the model,
connection of the paper to the material covered in class,
the model or models studied in the paper,
figures and/or analysis to show the behaviour of the model, presented at a level understandable to the class,
conclusions (i.e., what did the authors learn about the biological system by studying the model?)
Summary (10%)
When writing the summary, pretend that you are giving a talk as part of a large conference, and conference attendees have several talks to choose from, all of which are being delivered at the same time. Your summary thus needs to be interesting, and be an effective introduction to the material in the talk, i.e., it must contain enough information about the talk so that attendees have a reasonably good idea of what it is that they will learn by attending your talk.
Questions Asked (10%)
You are expected to ask at least N questions during each day of presentations, where N is the number of presentations that day.
Report (50%)
The report must include the same aspects as the presentation, but in a written format. Use of LaTeX is strongly encouraged. Templates (and instruction!) are available upon request. Grammar, spelling and flow of prose will also be marked.
Assessment Criteria for Math 559
The assessment criteria for Math 559 are
the same as for Math 459, except that the paper should be mathematically challenging, and the content of the report should include graduate-level material and the writing should be at a graduate level.
Math 559 - accommodation for graduate students
Each student taking the graduate course will do all the work in Math 459 plus:
do extra problems on each homework assignment
lead an in-class group work assignment
tackle a more difficult paper for the term project, and present it as a lecture in class
Important Dates
For all important dates including the last day for withdrawal with or without a "W", the last day for conversion from credit to audit, as well as holidays and the exam period please visit the website for the UBC Okanagan academic calendar.
Disability Accommodations
If you require disability related accommodations to meet the course objectives please contact the Coordinator of Disability Resources located in the Student development and Advising area of the student services building. For more information about Disability Resources or about academic accommodations please visit the UBC Okanagan disability services website.
Letter Grades
Math 459/559 uses the standard UBCO marking scheme as described in the UBCO calendar. A 50% is required for a passing mark and a 60% is required to use this course as a prerequisite for further coursework.
Calculators and Computational Software
The preferred computational software for this course is Python (which is free and easily downloaded on Internet), though Matlab or other similar tools could be used.
Academic Integrity
The academic enterprise is founded on honesty, civility, and integrity. As members of this enterprise, all students are expected to know, understand, and follow the codes of conduct regarding academic integrity. At the most basic level, this means submitting only original work done by you and acknowledging all sources of information or ideas and attributing them to others as required. This also means you should not cheat, copy, or mislead others about what is your work. Violations of academic integrity (i.e., misconduct) lead to the break down of the academic enterprise, and therefore serious consequences arise and harsh sanctions are imposed. For example, incidences of plagiarism or cheating usually result in a failing grade or mark of zero on the assignment or in the course. Careful records are kept in order to monitor and prevent recidivism. A more detailed description highlighting the salient points of academic integrity, including the policies and procedures, may be found at http://web.ubc.ca/okanagan/faculties/resources/academicintegrity.html. The unabridged document can be found under the website for academic misconduct. If you have any questions about how academic integrity applies to this course, please consult with your professor.
Other Useful Resources
Some Student Study Strategies collated by UBC http://www.studygs.net
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