The q-bio Summer School

描述(申请人提供)：一年一度的Q-BIO暑期学校于2007年在新墨西哥州的洛斯阿拉莫斯成立，目的是通过教授在系统和合成生物学中重要的数学、统计和计算技术来推进细胞调控系统的预测建模。第二个目标是促进数量生物学新手的职业生涯。该学院包括六门课程：1)随机基因调控，2)细胞信号，3)生物分子模拟，4)病毒动力学，5)合成生物学，6)计算神经科学。对数量生物学培训的需求正在迅速增长--符合条件的暑期学校申请者数量从2010年的不到40人增加到2012年的170多人。为了满足这一需求，我们在2012年扩建了学校，以容纳更多的学生。这所学校现在有两个校区，分别位于新墨西哥州圣达菲(课程1-4)和加利福尼亚州圣地亚哥(课程5-6)。每个校区大约有30名学生，他们在教育背景(数学、工程、物理和生物学)、职业水平(~75%是研究生、~20%是博士后、~5%是高级博士后)和人口统计(性别、种族、民族和全球地理来源)方面存在差异。学生参加校园课程中的所有核心课程，以及专门的课程讲座、学生入门讲座和其他讲座(例如，侧重于职业技能的讲座)，并参加动手计算机实验室和指导项目。经过两周的紧张学习后，所有学生将齐聚圣达菲参加为期两天的Q-BIO学生研讨会，其中包括学生专题报告、学生海报演示和外部特邀演讲者。然后，所有学生参加为期4天的Q-BIO会议，这是一个有200名研究人员参加的国际会议。所有Q-BIO暑期班的参与者都可以期望：a)广泛接触定量生物学中使用的数学/统计/计算工具；b)通过特定课程的讲座、计算机实验室和指导项目，深入培训特别感兴趣的技术(即，在六门课程中的一门)；c)通过演讲和海报演示，获得多种实践科学交流的机会；d)接触尖端研究，以及e)与同行和思想领袖建立广泛的网络机会。讲师和演讲者包括50多名活跃在数量生物学领域的不同研究人员，其中包括非常杰出的科学家。例如，2013年，确认的讲师包括6名院士。到学生参加Q-BIO会议时，他们已经装备了一个强大的社交网络，促进了互动、思想交流和合作研究的启动。该学院的长期目标是改变生物学研究的进行方式，使生物学像物理和化学一样，成为一个更定量的领域。在这一努力中，组织者得到了国际数量生物学社区和一些当地机构的重大善意的支持，其中包括两个国家系统生物学中心。然而，为了维护和改善学校，需要额外的财政支持。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The purpose of the Annual q-bio Summer School, founded in 2007 in Los Alamos, NM, is to advance predictive modeling of cellular regulatory systems by providing trtaining in mathematical, statistical, and computational techniques that are important in systems and synthetic biology. A secondary goal is to advance the careers of researchers new to quantitative biology. The school consists of courses in six subjects: 1) stochastic gene regulation, 2) cell signaling, 3) biomolecular simulations, 4) viral dynamics, 5) synthetic biology, and 6) computational neuroscience. Demand for training in quantitative biology is increasing rapidly-the number of qualified summer school applicants increased from fewer than 40 in 2010 to over 170 in 2012. In response to this demand, we expanded the school in 2012 to accommodate more students. The school now takes place at two campuses, in Santa Fe, NM (courses 1-4) and in San Diego, CA (courses 5-6). Approximately 30 students attend at each campus and are diverse in terms of educational background (mathematics, engineering, physical sciences, and biology), career level (~75% are graduate students, ~20% are postdocs, and ~5% are more advanced), and demographics (gender, race, ethnicity, and worldwide geographical origin). Students attend all core lectures in the courses offered at their campus, as well as specialized course-specific lectures, student get-to-know-me talks, and other talks (e.g., talks focused on career skills), and participate in hands-on computer labs and mentored projects. After two intensive weeks, all students gather in Santa Fe for a 2-day q- bio Student Symposium, which features student projects reports, student poster presentations, and external invited speakers. All students then attend the 4-day q-bio Conference, an international conference attended by >200 researchers. All q-bio Summer School participants can expect the following: a) broad exposure to mathematical/statistical/computational tools used in quantitative biology, b) in-depth training in techniques of special interest (i.e., in one of the six course subjects) through course-specific lectures, computer labs, and mentored projects; c) multiple opportunities to practice scientific communication through talks and poster presentations; d) exposure to cutting-edge research, and e) extensive networking opportunities with peers and thought leaders. Lecturers and speakers include more than 50 different researchers active in quantitative biology, including very distinguished scientists. For example, in 2013, confirmed lecturers include six academicians. By the time the students attend the q-bio Conference, they are equipped with a powerful social network that facilitates interactions, idea exchange, and initiation of collaborative research. The long-term goal of the school is to change the way biological research is conducted, making biology a more quantitative field, like physics and chemistry. In this effort, the organizers are supported by significant goodwill from the international quantitative biology community and a number of local institutions, including two national centers for systems biology. However, to maintain and improve the school, additional financial support is required.