Lectures on Process Algebra and Systems Biology by Dr. Eduardo R. Mendoza (UP Diliman Dep't of Computer Science & Physics Department, LMU Munich )

Post date: Jun 10, 2011 1:21:28 PM

UPDATE: The updated dates for the lectures are July 11, 18, & July 25 2011, 3 - 4:30 pm

ERDT Room

UP Alumni Engineers Centennial Hall (Velasquez St.)

UP Diliman Dep't of Computer Science Lectures on Process Algebra and Systems Biology by Dr. Eduardo R. Mendoza (Department of Computer Science, UP Diliman & Physics Department, LMU Munich )

June 27, July 11 & 18, 2011, 3 - 4:30 pm

ERDT Room

UP Alumni Engineers Centennial Hall (Velasquez St.)

Overview:

The goal of these lectures is to introduce interested students

and researchers to modelling of biological systems with process

algebra methods. Process algebra was first developed in the

early 80’ s by R. Milner (Cambridge),C. Hoare (Oxford) and J.

Bergstra (Amsterdam) as a theory of concurrent processes.

Extensions to stochastic modelling of mobile processes were

used in mid-90’s for studying performance of cell phone

networks. With the emergence of Systems Biology at the start

of this century, applications of process algebra, in particular of

stochastic pi calculus, were initiated by E. Shapiro’s team

(Weizmann Institute(Rehovot, Israel). The Nature essay “Cells

as computation” (2002) made this approach known in the

Systems Biology community.

The lectures will discuss the rapid development of the field, in

particular its extension to (stochastic) brane algebra, which

allow the modelling of membrane-mediated processes. These

developments have led, together with related approaches such

as rule-based systems, membrane computing and other calculi,

to the new field of “algorithmic/executable” systems biology.

Speaker Info:

Ed Mendoza studied mathematics at Ateneo de Manila, Heidelberg University

and Bonn University. He completed his PhD under G. Harder and F. Hirzebruch

with a thesis on the “Cohomology of PGL2 over imaginary quadratic integers”.

While an Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Wuppertal University, his

collaboration with communications engineers led to a strong interest in computer

networks and a move to the IT industry in October 1980.

Over a period of 22 years, he worked as a software developer, project manager,

department head and director of consulting services for various companies

including Siemens, Scientific Control Systems (BP Group), Softlab (BMW Group)

and Microsoft. At Microsoft, he received the President’s Award in 1997 for his

achievements as Director of Microsoft Consulting Services in Germany. From 1998 to 2002, he was

responsible for Microsoft Consulting Services in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa). Beginning

October 2002, he went on “early retirement” to pursue his interests in Systems Biology and his long-

standing plans to contribute to science and technology education in the Philippines.

He heads as a Senior Research Scientist a Systems Biology group at the Physics Department and

Center of NanoScience of the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, Germany

(http://www.softmatter.physik.uni-muenchen.de/tiki-index.php?page=GroupMendozaHome.)

He coordinated the SMILES (Statistics, Mathematics, Informatics in the Life and Environmental Sciences)

initiative 2003-2010 and the MBaRC (Manila Bay Research Corrridor) initiative 2008-2010. He is now

extending mentoring of graduate students and young researchers from his current role as Adjunct

Professor in Mathematics and Computer Science at UP Diliman, Los Baños and Manila to further

educational institutions in other parts of the country. He has co-authored over 25 papers in

international (mostly ISI-listed) journals and co-edited a book on “Systems Biology in Psychiatric

Research” (Wiley, June 2010). He is also a Section Editor of an upcoming “Encyclopedia of Systems

Biology” (Springer 2011).

He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Max-Planck-Institute for Complex Systems Dynamics

in Magdeburg, Germany as well as of the Philippine American Academy of Science and Engineering

(PAASE). He received the CSP Award of Distinction from the Computing Society of the Philippines in

2006 and DOST BalikScientist Awards in 2008, 2009 and 2010. In May 2011, he was elected a

Corresponding Member of the Chemical, Mathematical and Physical Sciences Division of the National

Academy ofScience and Technology (NAST) Philippines.

Please see PDF attachment below. Please pass this PDF or this page around to those interested in attending the talk. Thanks!