The Society for Mathematical Biology (SMB) is an international association co-founded in 1972 in the United States by George Karreman, Herbert Daniel Landahl and (initially chaired) by Anthony Bartholomay for the furtherance of joint scientific activities between Mathematics and Biology research communities.[1][2] The society publishes the Bulletin of Mathematical Biology,[3][4] as well as the quarterly SMB newsletter.[5]

History

The Society for Mathematical Biology emerged and grew from the earlier school of mathematical biophysics, initiated and supported by the Founder of Mathematical Biology, Nicolas Rashevsky.[6][7] Thus, the roots of SMB go back to the publication in 1939 of the first international journal of mathematical biology, previously entitled "The Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics"—which was founded by Nicolas Rashevsky, and which is currently published by SMB under the name of "Bulletin of Mathematical Biology".[8] Professor Rashevsky also founded in 1969 the non-profit organization "Mathematical Biology, Incorporated"—the precursor of SMB. Another notable member of the University of Chicago school of mathematical biology was Anatol Rapoport whose major interests were in developing basic concepts in the related area of mathematical sociology, who cofounded the Society for General Systems Research and became a president of the latter society in 1965. Herbert D. Landahl was initially also a member of Rashevsky's school of mathematical biology, and became the second president of SMB in the 1980s; both Herbert Landahl and Robert Rosen from Rashevsky's research group were focused on dynamical systems approaches to complex systems biology, with the latter researcher becoming in 1980 the president of the Society for General Systems Research.

Leadership

The Society for Mathematical Biology is governed by its Officers and Board of Directors, elected by the membership. Current SMB President is Jane Heffernan (York University), and Past-President serving as vice president is Heiko Enderling (Moffitt Cancer Center). SMB secretary is Jon Forde (Hobart and William Smith Colleges), and treasurer is Stanca Ciupe (Virginia Tech). The current Board of Directors is composed of Ruth Baker (University of Oxford), Padmini Rangamani (University of California San Diego), Amina Eladdadi (The College of St Rose), Peter Kim (The University of Sydney), Robyn Araujo (Queensland University of Technology), and Amber Smith (University of Tennessee Health Science Center).

SMB presidents
Years of service President Affiliation
1973-1981 George Karreman University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
1981-1983 Herbert Landahl University of California, San Francisco
1983-1985 John Stephenson National Heart Institute, National Institutes of Health
1985-1987 John Jacquez University of Michigan Medical School
1987-1989 Simon Levin Cornell University
1989-1991 Stuart Kauffman Santa Fe Institute
1991-1993 Alan Perelson Los Alamos National Laboratory
1993-1995 John J. Tyson Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
1995-1997 Leah Edelstein-Keshet University of British Columbia
1997-1999 Leon Glass McGill University
1999-2001 Alan Hastings University of California, Davis
2001-2003 Mark Lewis University of Alberta
2003-2005 Lou Gross University of Tennessee at Knoxville
2005-2007 Mark Chaplain University of Dundee
2007-2009 Avner Friedman Ohio State University
2009-2011 Michael Mackey McGill University
2011-2013 Gerde de Vries University of Alberta
2013-2015 Fred Adler University of Utah
2015-2017 Santiago Schnell University of Michigan Medical School
2017-2019 Denise Kirschner University of Michigan Medical School
2019-2021 Alexander Anderson Moffitt Cancer Center
2021-2023 Heiko Enderling Moffitt Cancer Center
2023-2025 Jane Heffernan York University

Research and educational activities

Bulletin of Mathematical Biology
DisciplineMathematical biology
LanguageEnglish
Edited byMatthew Simpson
Publication details
Former name(s)
Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics
History1939–present
Publisher
Springer Science+Business Media on behalf of the Society for Mathematical Biology
FrequencyMonthly
Standard abbreviations
ISO 4Bull. Math. Biol.
Indexing
Bulletin of Mathematical Biology
CODENBMTBAP
ISSN0092-8240 (print)
1522-9602 (web)
LCCN75643459
OCLC no.02241208
Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics
ISSN0007-4985
Links

In addition to its research and news publications, the society supports education in: mathematical biology, mathematical biophysics, complex systems biology and theoretical biology through sponsorship of several topic-focused graduate and postdoctoral courses. To encourage and stimulate young researchers in this relatively new and rapidly developing field of mathematical biology, the society awards several prizes, as well as lists regularly new open international opportunities for researchers and students in this field.[9]

Bulletin of Mathematical Biology

The society publishes the Bulletin of Mathematical Biology. The Bulletin was founded by Dr. Nicolas Rashevsky, who is generally recognized as the founder of the first organized group in mathematical biology in the world. The journal was originally published as the Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics, and quickly became the classical journal in general mathematical biology and served as the principal natural publication outlet for the majority of mathematical biologists. Many classical papers have appeared in the Bulletin, and several of these are familiar to biologists. It has become an important avenue for the exchange and transmission of new ideas and approaches to biological problems and incorporates both the quantitative and qualitative aspects of mathematical models and characterizations of biological processes and systems.[10]

Dr. Rashevsky remained the editor of the Bulletin until his death on January 16, 1972.

Bulletin of Mathematical Biology Editor-in-Chief
Years of service Editor Affiliation
1939-1972 Nicolas Rashevsky University of Chicago

University of Michigan

1972-1981 Herbert Landahl University of California, San Francisco
1982-1986 Hugo M. Martinez University of California, San Francisco
1986-2001 Lee A. Siegel Weizmann Institute
2002-2015 Philip Maini University of Oxford
2016 - 2022 Alan Hastings

Reinhard Laubenbacher

University of California, Davis

University of Connecticut Health

2022–present Matthew Simpson Queensland University of Technology

References

  1. ^ Conrad, Michael (September 1996). "SMB – "Childhood, Boyhood, Youth."". Society for Mathematical Biology Newsletter. Retrieved 2009-06-25.
  2. ^ http://www.smb.org/governance/history.shtml History of SMB
  3. ^ "Bulletin of Mathematical Biology". Springer New York. Retrieved 2009-06-25.
  4. ^ Maini, P.; Schnell, S.; Jolliffe, S. (2004). "Bulletin of mathematical biology—facts, figures and comparisons" (PDF). Bulletin of Mathematical Biology. 66 (4): 595–603. doi:10.1016/j.bulm.2004.03.003. PMID 15210308. S2CID 10715399.
  5. ^ http://www.smb.org/publications/index.shtml SMB Publications
  6. ^ Rosen, Robert. 1972. "Tribute to Nicolas Rashevsky" 1899-1972. Progress in Theoretical Biology 2.
  7. ^ Conrad, Michael (September 1996). "SMB – CHILDHOOD, BOYHOOD, YOUTH". Society for Mathematical Biology Newsletter. Retrieved 2009-06-25.
  8. ^ "Announcement". Bulletin of Mathematical Biology. 35 (1–2): 273. 1973. doi:10.1007/BF02558813.
  9. ^ http://www.smb.org/prizes/index.shtml Archived 2009-05-15 at the Wayback Machine SMB Mathematical Biology Prize Awards
  10. ^ Maini, M; Schnell, S; Jolliffe, S (July 2004). "Bulletin of mathematical biology-facts, figures and comparisons". Bulletin of Mathematical Biology. 66 (4): 595–603. doi:10.1016/j.bulm.2004.03.003. PMID 15210308. S2CID 10715399.

Further reading

External links

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