At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Joachim Kock, mathematician at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), began to experiment with epidemiological models. He did not improve upon the predictions, but unexpectedly he made a mathematical discovery that led to the solution of an old problem in theoretical computer science, open since the 1980s, on Petri nets.
Tag: Computer Modeling
New Computer Model Tracks Origin of Cell Changes That Drive Development
Scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine say they have developed a computer model — dubbed quantitative fate mapping — that looks back in the developmental timeline to trace the origin of cells in a fully grown organism.

3D flora and fauna at your fingertips
Reporting in Research Ideas and Outcomes, a Kyushu University researcher has developed a new technique for scanning various plants and animals and reconstructing them into highly detailed 3D models.
$2.3 million NSF grant boosts UAH effort to predict harmful solar weather events
The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) has received a four-year, $2.301 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to develop a scientific model to understand and predict how CMEs influence the energetic particle radiation environment in the inner solar system and Earth’s magnetosphere.
International collaboration compares geologic repository assessment tools
Researchers from Sandia National Laboratories and partner U.S. national laboratories will compare their Geologic Disposal Safety Assessment software framework to the safety assessment software of international peers at a late-April workshop.The Sandia-led Geologic Disposal Safety Assessment framework is a computer modeling system designed to answer critical safety assessment questions about future disposal options for spent nuclear fuel deep underground and the system of tunnels, containers and possible concrete-like barriers used to keep the radioactive material contained far from the surface and water sources, said Emily Stein, a Sandia manager overseeing the development of the framework.
Physicist Greg Hammett honored for his work advancing understanding of fusion plasmas
Theoretical and computational physicist Greg Hammett, a leader in advancing understanding of the complex turbulence that controls the performance of fusion plasmas and a dedicated educator, has been named a 2021 Distinguished Scientist Fellow by the DOE’s Office of Science.
UAH-led space weather prediction research could be critical to Space Force Command
Research to improve space weather predictions by Dr. Nikolai Pogorelov at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), a part of the University of Alabama System, will boost abilities crucial to the success of the defense mission of the Space Force Command that’s set to be located in Huntsville, Ala.

In New Step Towards Autonomous Materials, Researchers Design Patterns in Self-propelling Liquid Crystals
Imagine a capsule implanted in your body that automatically releases antibodies in response to a virus, or clothing that senses and captures contaminants from the air.
PME researchers have taken a step toward developing such autonomous materials by creating self-propelling liquid crystals and patterning their activity to control the movements of defects within the crystals.

UAH solar physicist proposes new mechanism for how electrons work in solar flares
A new mechanism to explain how electrons work in solar flares has been proposed by a University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) solar physicist using a theoretical model of particle acceleration.

Los Alamos study hopes to characterize and optimize ventilator treatment for Covid-19
Cross-disciplinary scientists and engineers at Los Alamos National Laboratory are working to learn how Intrapulmonary Percussive Ventilation (IPV) helps clear mucus from blocking the airways of the human lung, a common reaction to the Covid-19 virus.

Issei Nakamura Wins CAREER Award for Charged Liquids Research
Michigan Tech physicist Issei Nakamura has received a National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award for his research on computational methods to simulate how polymeric liquids interact with electric charges.
Computer-based Modeling Identifies how Cell Death Is Regulated in Ischemic Kidney Injury
Article title: T95 nucleophosmin phosphorylation as a novel mediator and marker of regulated cell death in acute kidney injury Authors: Zhiyong Wang, Mostafa Belghasem, Erdjan Salih, Joel Henderson, Chinaemere Igwebuike, Andrea Havasi, Steven C. Borkan From the authors: “In this…
U wildfire researchers fine-tune forest fire computer models
Grass fires behave differently than those in forests. But computer fire simulations don’t capture that difference very well. Derek Mallia and colleagues found that conventional models overestimate the growth rate of fires in forests and the height of smoke plumes.…
Scientists look to space to track plant pathogens coasting through atmosphere
To better understand how plant pathogens that travel the globe with dust particles might put crops at risk, a Cornell University-led team of scientists will use data from NASA’s Earth Observing Satellites to identify areas of potential disease and track plumes of dust that traverse the globe.

Social distancing and COVID-19: A law of diminishing returns
Modeling from the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis shows how social distancing could have better been implemented. The key? Longer periods of distancing would have helped — but only to a point. More needed to be done.

Iowa State University joins the international APSIM Initiative
The Iowa State University Department of Agronomy is the first North American entity to join the Agricultural Production Systems sIMulator (APSIM) Initiative. The computer modeling tools predict crop production in light of climate, genotype, soil and management factors.

Detection of electrical signaling between tomato plants raises interesting questions
The soil beneath our feet is alive with electrical signals being sent from one plant to another, according to research in which a University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) distinguished professor emeritus in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering participated.

Paying the Price of Protection
A new Weizmann Institute model of autoimmune disease may solve some major outstanding riddles, including what causes T cells to attack and why only certain organs get the diseases
The Science of Infectious Disease Modeling
What does “modeling the spread” or “flattening the curve” mean, and how does it apply to infectious diseases such as COVID-19? Learn more about the science of infectious disease modeling and how NIGMS supports scientists in this field.

UAH joins supercomputing effort to find drugs effective against COVID-19
A professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) is part of an effort led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennessee that applies the power of supercomputers to screen compounds for effectiveness against the pandemic COVID-19 virus.

UAH’s Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research has central role in 2024 IMAP mission
The Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research (CSPAR) at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) will be central to the modeling and data crunching that follow the scheduled launch of NASA’s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) mission in 2024.

Award-winning engineer helps keep US nuclear deterrent safe from radiation
Sandia National Laboratories engineer Alan Mar ensures components made for the U.S. nuclear stockpile pass stringent standards to resist radiation and remain safe and reliable in extremely harsh environments.

Summit Charts a Course to Uncover the Origins of Genetic Diseases
Gene mutations can interfere with how the body expresses genes and cause disease. To better understand this connection, researchers recently developed a model of the transcription preinitiation complex (PIC).

Accelerating the Development of Nuclear Fusion
Researchers from TAE Technologies used the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility to support their fusion research. The company is working to develop the world’s first fusion device that can generate electricity and is commercially viable.

Wetlands, crops can mitigate storm damage to coastal cities, study led by UAH finds
Coastal cities can be spared some wind destruction from intensifying hurricanes or tropical storm systems if they have functional wetland ecosystems and agricultural croplands in the area, according to new computer modeling.

New Geometric Model Improves Predictions of Fluid Flow in Rock
Supercomputer validates mathematical approach for describing geological features. The Science Deep beneath the Earth’s surface, oil and groundwater percolate through gaps in rock and other geologic material. Hidden from sight, these critical resources pose a significant challenge for scientists seeking…

New Transmission Model for Ebola Predicted Latest Uganda Cases
MANHATTAN, KANSAS — A new risk assessment model for the transmission of Ebola accurately predicted its spread into the Republic of Uganda, according to the Kansas State University researchers who developed it. Caterina Scoglio, professor, and Mahbubul Riad, doctoral student, both…