Phylogenetics is concerned with what is probably the most important problem in biology: reconstructing the evolutionary history of present-day organisms from molecular data, such as DNA, or morphological characters. Hidden from view, in phylogenetics software packages used by biologists, are algorithms implementing stochastic and combinatorial methods on binary trees, as well as more general network structures. The mathematics involved represent a unique confluence of probability theory, discrete mathematics, stochastic methods, and statistical inference, as well as algebraic methods such as group theory. There are many important theoretical and practical problems that arise, such as statistical identifiability of models, consistency and convergence of methods. These problems can only be solved using a multi-disciplinary approach. Phylomania brings together internationally recognised experts, with the aim of discussing the pressing research problems in phylogenetics. ... [Information of the supplier]
Das diesjährige Symposium wird eine zentrale Frage der Evolutionsbiologie behandeln: Was bestimmt die Form von Strukturen? Wieso sehen Tiere, Pflanzen und ihre Organe so aus, wie sie aussehen? Meist wird die Antwort (die Ebene der Kausalität) den Feldern der Synthetischen oder Erweiterten Evolutionstheorie bzw. auf Strukturebene oft auch der Evolutionären Entwicklungsbiologie zugeordnet. Damit bleiben aber andere Aspekte der organismischen Evolutionsbiologie außen vor. Unter dem Konzept der ‚Evolutionären Morphologie‘ haben wir versucht, kausale Bedingtheiten der Vielgestaltigkeit des Lebens zusammenzufassen. Das genaue Label spielt natürlich gar keine Rolle, aber diejenigen, die fasziniert von der Vielgestaltigkeit des Lebens sind, sind aus unserer Sicht eigentlich immer auch „Morphologen“. Die Eingangsfrage erscheint also gerade in Zeiten der Dominanz funktionell-genomischer Sichtweisen interessanter denn je. Das kommende „Phylogenetische Symposium“ soll sich dieser Frage widmen. Die Themen der Vorträge umfassen so unterschiedliche Aspekte wie Form/Funktion, Evo-Devo, Ökomorphologie, Sexuelle Selektion, Koevolution, und Phylogenetische Bürde. ... [Information des Anbieters]
Mathematical and computational tools and concepts form an essential basis for modern evolutionary studies. The rise of sound statistical and combinatorial approaches in evolutionary and genome biology has offered considerable improvements beyond the original ad hoc approaches, providing new methods and algorithms to handle ever-growing data sets. Such advances require an increasingly sophisticated mathematical treatment of the problems at hand and the reliance on faster algorithms and computers in order to answer important biological questions. The theme of this year’s edition will be "New Data, New Questions, New Methods". New generation sequencing techniques have multiplied not just the amount, but also the types of genetic data produced (e.g. RNA-seq, single-cell sequencing, ChIP-seq, Hi-C, ancient DNA, RAD-seq…), giving rise to new questions, and new methodologies to answer them. These methodologies are often cross-disciplinary, with applications to diverse research topics such as gene expression, cancer, development, genome evolution, epigenetics. General concepts, models, methods and algorithms will be presented and discussed, just as during the previous conference editions. To present the recent advances in the field and discuss open questions and problems, the meeting will bring together researchers originating from various disciplines: mathematics, computer science, phylogenetics and population genetics. Keynote speakers will introduce a field of research and discuss their own work in this field (see below). Afternoon will be for short presentations and posters, with plenty of time for discussions. We will stop early every day, thus leaving time for other activities, such as hiking, snorkeling or simply lying on the beach. The number of attendees will be limited, so as to favor small group interaction. ... [Information of the supplier]