Seminars Graduate School SimTech: Winter Term 2009/10

Coupling Dynamics and Systems Biology to Biomechanics

Jun.-Prof. Oliver Röhrle, Prof. Wolfgang Ehlers, Prof. Frank Allgöwer, Jan Hasenauer

The Physiome Project by the IUPS [1] and The Virtual Physiological Human Project by the EU [2] are the two most prominent initiatives that aim to provide a framework for modelling the human body using computational methods. Such models, which are physiologically accurate enough to be used in hypothesis testing or biological function analysis, should try to incorporate physiological information from different spatial and temporal scales, e.g. the cell, the tissue, and the organ level. The range of scales appeals to a hierarchy of models that are often confined to one particular scale/ level. For example, particle methods are typically used to model molecular mechanics, ordinary differential equations (ODE) to describe the phenomenological behaviour of cells, partial differential equations (PDE) to compute the mechanical response on the organ level, or rigid-body models to analyse gait or the entire musculoskeletal system. The development of a successful multiscale framework bridging multiple scales is based on the fact that relationships between the scales can be established. In order to couple multiple scales and, hence, models on different hierarchies, one needs to understand the limitations and assumptions of the respective models that are used on the respective scales. The aim of this seminar is to explore and review different mathematical models that are typically used to analyze and describe phenomena on different scales, e.g. the cell, organ, and whole body level. Once one understands the limitations and assumptions, one can start thinking about how input and output of different models and scales could potentially be coupled using new multiscale coupling paradigms. The special foci of this seminar will be the musculoskeletal system of the human and multiscale aspects of evolution and therapy of human cancer.

[1] HUNTER, P.J., BORG T.K. (2003): "Integration from Proteins to Organs: the Physiome Project", Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology, 4, pp. 237-243 [2] CLAPWORTHY, G., VICECONTI, M., COVENEY, P.V., & KOHL, P. (2008): "The Virtual Physiological Human: building a framework for computational biomedicine" I. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences, 366, (1878) 2975-2978 (http://rsta.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/366/1878/2979.abstract)

Integrative Platform of Reflection and Evaluation of Simulation

Dipl. Ling. Tillmann Pross

This interdisciplinary colloquium offers SimTech staff and advanced (PhD-) students investigating topics in simulations an opportunity to present and discuss their work in an open-minded atmosphere.

The colloquium is considered a primary option to foster discussions and cooperations in SimTech Project Network 10, thus regular and numerous attendances of PhD-Students and PostDocs from History, Philosophy and Sociology is especially encouraged.

Although the main focus of this colloquium is on historical, philosophical and sociological aspects of simulations, we particularly encourage contributions from other research areas of SimTech.

Model Reduction

Martin Löhning und Bernard Haasdonk

Dieses Seminar dient einerseits als Netzwerkseminar für das SimTech Projektnetzwerk PN-6: "Model reduction, control and real-time simulation", in dem über aktuelle Arbeiten diskutiert werden soll. Dieses Seminar ist aber auch als Graduiertenschulen-Seminar konzipiert.

Multi-phase and multi-physics modelling

Dr. rer.nat. Bernd Flemisch, M.Sc.

The projects in the SimTech network "Multi-phase and multi-physics modelling" have the common goal of a reliable and efficient modeling of multi-phase flow and materials which is able to account for the multi-scale multi-physics nature of the simulated processes. In particular, they face highly complex applications such as fuel injection, CO2 storage, soft biological tissue mechanics and the delivery of therapeutic agents into tumors. The overall modeling process demands a close linkage and a smooth interaction of physical and mathematical model design, numerical discretization technology, and high performance computing software infrastructure.

The lectures of this accompanying seminar will introduce and discuss project-individual problems as well as common challenges. In this first semester, the focus is on the simulation tools employed within the network. The first presentations will introduce DUNE, a modular toolbox for solving partial differential equations with grid-based methods. Based on this, the subsequent talks will present the software concepts from the individual projects with special emphasis on discussing the possibility and potential benefits of integrating these concepts within a common framework.

Multi-Scale Modelling in Fluid Mechanics

Prof. Rohde, Prof. Munz, Prof. Weigand

Dieses Seminar ist eine Vortragsveranstaltung zu Mehrskalenproblemen im Bereich von Ein- und Mehrphasenströmungen. Die Ankündigung der Vorträge erfolgt per Mail. Anmeldung zum Email-Verteiler des Seminars unter https://listserv.uni-stuttgart.de/mailman/listinfo/simtech-multiscale

Multiscale Modeling in Solid Mechanics

Prof. Christian Miehe

The microstructure of a material and its evolution have a drastic influence on the macroscopic material properties. A profound understanding of the phenomena on the microscale and their relation to the behavior on the macroscale is hence decisive for the predictive modeling of materials. Multiscale modeling will hence be the key to the tailoring of new materials with desired properties in virtual test laboratories.

The seminar series "Multiscale Modeling in Solid Mechanics" brings together the project networks "Simulation of Microstructure Evolution" and "Multiscale Simulations of Solids" and will be comprised of lectures dealing with multiscale aspects of solid mechanics such as microstructure evolution and vertical/horizontal homogenization. Its aim is to give an overview of relevant approaches from material science, theoretical and applied physics, applied mathematics and computational mechanics.