The Spider and the Web: Inference in Ecological Networks

大多数生命系统都是由复杂的相互作用网络组成的；描述这些网络的结构及其动态特性是理论和经验生物学家面临的主要挑战。食物网是复杂自然网络的典范。它们是由物种及其摄食关系形成的，是生态系统中能量流动的基础，也是生态系统对人类和环境扰动（包括物种灭绝）的反应的基础。存在一些简单的食物网结构模型，但这些模型并不能准确地代表现实网络中存在的复杂性。该项目的目标是发展新的理论来扩展食物网结构的简单模型，研究这种结构背后的生物机制，检查食物网的模块化，并通过结合组成部分之间的相互作用强度来定量考虑网络。特别是，研究人员将解决物种灭绝对食物网稳健性的影响，并检查整个网络水平的稳定性是如何由单个组成部分的不稳定性产生的。由此产生的理论将提供一个总体框架，以促进我们对食物网和各种其他复杂生物网络的理解。拟议的研究将直接为小学学生，本科生和研究生以及博士后研究人员的教育和推广计划做出贡献。这些活动将通过国家生态分析与综合中心正在进行的“儿童做生态学”项目和密歇根大学进行协调。基于网络的教学模块和课堂演示将通过教授不同类型的生物网络，向小学生介绍生态学、复杂系统和数学。在历史上少数民族机构和少数民族服务机构举办的研讨会将向本科生介绍生态学和数学方面的职业。该项目的研究成果将被纳入密歇根大学的研究生和本科生课程。

Most living systems are comprised of complex networks of interactions; describing the structure of these networks and their dynamic properties is a major challenge for theoretical and empirical biologists. Food webs are paradigmatic of complex natural networks. Formed by species and their feeding relationships, they underlie the flow of energy through ecosystems and their responses to human-induced and environmental perturbations, including species' extinctions. Several simple models of food web structure exist, but these do not accurately represent the complexities present in real networks. The goals of this project are to develop new theory to extend simple models of food web structure, investigate biological mechanisms underlying this structure, examine the modularity of food webs, and consider networks quantitatively by incorporating interaction strengths among components. In particular, the researchers will address the effects of species extinctions on food web robustness and examine how stability at the level of an entire network results from instability of individual components. The resulting theory will provide a general framework to advance our understanding of food webs and diverse other complex biological networks. The proposed research will contribute directly to education and outreach programs for grade school students, undergraduate and graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers. These activities will be coordinated through ongoing programs at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis' 'Kids Do Ecology' program and through the University of Michigan. Web-based teaching modules and classroom presentations will introduce grade school students to ecology, complex systems, and mathematics by teaching them about many different types of biological networks. Seminars presented at Historically Minority Institutions and Minority Serving Institutions will introduce undergraduate students to careers in ecology and mathematics. Results from the project will be incorporated into graduate and undergraduate courses at University of Michigan.