Dynamics of biological systems

From the spontaneous rapid firing of corticol neurons to the spatial diffusion of disease epidemics, biological systems exhibit rich dynamic behaviour over a vast range of time and space scales. Unifying many of these diverse phenomena, Dynamics of Biological Systems provides the computational and mathematical platform from which to understand the underlying processes of the phenomena. Through an extensive tour of various biological systems, the text introduces computational methods for simulating spatial diffusion processes in excitable media, such as the human heart, as well as mathematical tools for dealing with systems of nonlinear ordinary and partial differential equations, such as neuronal activation and disease diffusion. The mathematical models and computer simulations offer insight into the dynamics of temporal and spatial biological systems, including cardiac pacemakers, artificial electrical defibrilation, pandemics, pattern formation, flocking behaviour, the interaction of autonomous agents, and heirarchical and structured network topologies. Tools from complex systems and complex networks are also presented for dealing with real phenomenological systems.