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6 Jul 2026 - 17 Jul 2026
8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Organisers:
Jose A. Carrillo (University of Oxford, UK)
Dietmar Ölz (The University of Queensland)
Alex Tam (Adelaide University)
Marie-Therese Wolfram (University of Warwick, UK)
Mattia Zanella (University of Pavia, Italy)
Program Description:
Many phenomena in the life and social sciences, ranging from the microscopic to macroscopic level, exhibit surprisingly similar structures. Processes at the microscopic level such as ion channel transport, chemotaxis, cell adhesion, cytoskeleton dynamics and angiogenesis, and patterns at the macroscopic level which involve herding of animal populations, motion of human crowds, human interactions, cell shape and motion and alignment of bacteria are both largely driven by long-range attractive forces, due to electrical, chemical or social interactions, and short- range repulsion, due to cell finite size or crowding effects together with alignment forces. This common modelling framework based on individual-based models (IBMs) was classically used in other many-body systems such as electron transport in semiconductors, kinetic equations in statistical physics and gravitational collapse. Yet, its successful application in mathematical biology, social sciences and machine learning has only recently received a great deal of attention. Indeed, this modelling strategy is currently being explored as a test bed for algorithms in data science and global optimisation.
During our stay at the Matrix Institute we will bring together leading experts and junior researchers with strong interests in PDEs, models for collective dynamics and many-agent systems. The proposed program will pursue the following scientific goals
- Present new models and methods in IBMs defining interactions between minimal entities in life and social sciences.
- Reconciling IBMs and continuum models by means of suitable scaling regimes and convergence analysis.
- Connect mathematical models with available data.
Mathematical modelling with differential equations is becoming a crucial technique in modern research in developmental biology or epidemiology, for instance. Parameter estimation and model selection are fundamental challenges with impact in real-world applications in the life and social sciences. The cross-pollination of different communities working towards the goal of understanding the rigorous upscaling of microscopic models to macroscopic models and their use in real-life applications is therefore the main aim of our research program.
Program Structure:
Participant List:
Mary Myerscough (University of Sydney)
Michael Matthias Herty (RWTH Aachen University)
Mattia Zanella (Unviersity of Pavia)
Jose Antonio Carrillo de la Plata (University of Oxford)
Bronwyn Helen Hajek (Adelaide University)
Sebastien Motsch (Arizona State University)
Giacomo Dimarco (University of Ferrara)
Claudia Isabel Totzeck (University of Wupperal)
Yvonne Marie Stokes (Adelaide University)
Pedro Aceves Sanchez (The University of Arizona)
Lorenzo Pareschi (Heriot Watt University Edinburgh and University of Ferrara)
Alexander Tam (Adelaide University)
Carles Falcó i Gandia (Univesity of Oxford)
Dietmar Bernhard Oelz (University of Queensland)
Marie-Therese Wolfram (Warwick Mathematics Institute)
Horacio Tettamanti (Universita di Pavia)
Faith Sawers (Adelaide University)
Cameron Shaw-Carmody (Adelaide University)
Caitriona Lightbody (Adelaide University)
Aidan Patterson (Adelaide University)
Sanchita Malla (UQ-IITD Research Academy)
Yash Vats (University of Queensland)
Alistair Falconer (University of Queensland)
Registration:
- Registration is now closed
- Arrival date: 5 July 2026
- departure date: 17 July 2026
ASSOCIATED EVENTS
MATRIX Wine and Cheese Afternoon 7 July 2026
On the first Tuesday of each program, MATRIX provides a pre-dinner wine and cheese afternoon. Produce is locally-sourced to showcase delicacies from the region.
