PHYS60803

Prerequisite: PHYS 30553 or equivalent. Techniques for analyzing nonlinear and pattern-forming systems with a focus on biological systems. Topics covered may include maps, bifurcations, strange attractors, fractals, linear stability methods, amplitude equations, defects, instabilities and traveling waves, Lyapunov spectra and correlation functions. Students will learn to build models of biological systems and to use analytical tools to develop intuition and make quantitative predictions about the system's behavior.