Admission requirements
This course is open to all students that have been admitted to the minor ‘Quantitative Biology’.
Description
In interdisciplinary teams of 2-4 students the participants study a selection of papers. The use or lack of use of mathematical modeling in these research projects is discussed under supervision of a mentor. The teams give presentations of their findings to the other teams. Moreover, they formulate and discuss ideas for integrated mathematical-biological research related to that performed in the studied papers, such that the proposed ideas are both realistic and experimentally feasible. The teams assess the pros and cons of each of their ideas for integrated Quantitative Biology approaches, e.g. on experimental feasibility, mathematical and/or computational complexity, envisioned issues with integrative approach, etc. The teams document and present their findings to the other teams. The topic or application that is the subject of discussion of a team can be tuned to fit the research interests of the team members in agreement with the supervisor.
Course objectives
Getting acquainted with the possibilities and limitations of mathematical and experimental techniques to a Quantitative Biology approach in a variety of practical research settings. The students gain experience in the application of this approach to a specific research question, and in working together in an interdisciplinary setting. They increase their communication skills in such a setting. They train their skills in assessing the feasibility of proposed detailed approaches.
Final qualifications:
Ability to assess the (im)possibilities of application of a Quantitative Biology approach to a specific biological research question.
Students obtained practical experience in working in (small) interdisciplinary teams.
Obtained practical experience in an experimental design with an integrated Quantitative Biology research approach.
Increased communication skills in interdisciplinary setting.
Timetable
The time table is provisional and provided times are indicative. A detailed final schedule will become available before the start of the minor. It is foreseen that the course runs intensively from week 8 until week 12 of the semester, except for week 10, when an exam has been planned for the course ‘Physics and Chemistry for Biodynamic modeling’. The course ends with presentations by participants in week 13 of the semester.
In MyTimetable, you can find all course and programme schedules, allowing you to create your personal timetable. Activities for which you have enrolled via MyStudyMap will automatically appear in your timetable.
Additionally, you can easily link MyTimetable to a calendar app on your phone, and schedule changes will be automatically updated in your calendar. You can also choose to receive email notifications about schedule changes. You can enable notifications in Settings after logging in.
Questions? Watch the video, read the instructions, or contact the ISSC helpdesk.
Note: Joint Degree students from Leiden/Delft need to combine information from both the Leiden and Delft MyTimetables to see a complete schedule. This video explains how to do it.
Mode of instruction
Plenary meetings with instruction, team presentations and discussion. Team meetings with supervisor. Final presentation of research plans by teams.
Assessment method
The final grade is computed as weighted average over:
a) Participation in plenary sessions and discussion (10%)
(considered as practical)
b) Participation in team work and team presentations (25%) (considered a practical)
c) Contents of the report of the team written on the selected scientific research paper (50%)
d) Individual interview (oral) to test the student’s understanding of topics discussed in the selected paper(s) and the material presented in the report (15%)
The participation in chairing of a presentation session of another team is assessed by 'Pass' or by 'Fail', in which case a reduction on the computed final grade is made of 0.5 points.
In a retake, parts c) and d) are replaced by marks for a revised report and a new interview.
Reading list
Will be announced. A selection of papers on a biological topic is provided to each of the teams. In agreement with the team supervisor a topic may be chosen that is of joint interest of the team members and within the expertise of the supervisor.
Registration
As a student, you are responsible for enrolling on time through MyStudyMap.
In this short video, you can see step-by-step how to enrol for courses in MyStudyMap.
Extensive information about the operation of MyStudyMap can be found here.
There are two enrolment periods per year:
Enrolment for the fall opens in July
Enrolment for the spring opens in December
See this page for more information about deadlines and enrolling for courses and exams.
Note:
It is mandatory to enrol for all activities of a course that you are going to follow.
Your enrolment is only complete when you submit your course planning in the ‘Ready for enrolment’ tab by clicking ‘Send’.
Not being enrolled for an exam/resit means that you are not allowed to participate in the exam/resit.
Exchange and Study Abroad students: please see the Prospective students website for information on the application procedure.
Contact
Course coordinator: Dr. S.C. Hille
Email: shille@math.leidenuniv.nl
Remarks
Brightspace will be used for communication and provision of course material.
Software
Starting from the 2024/2025 academic year, the Faculty of Science will use the software distribution platform Academic Software. Through this platform, you can access the software needed for specific courses in your studies. For some software, your laptop must meet certain system requirements, which will be specified with the software. It is important to install the software before the start of the course. More information about the laptop requirements can be found on the student website.