Bridging the Gap Between Mathematical Biology and Undergraduate Education Using Applicable Natural Resource Modeling

Richard A. Erickson, Douglas Bauman, Barbara Bennie, Wako Bungula, Aaron R. Cupp, Jay Diffendorfer, Eric A. Eager, Roger J. Haro, Kathi Jo Jankowski, Danelle M. Larson, Greg Sandland, Molly Van Appledorn, James Peirce

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Mathematical biology is a wide field of study with many venues that undergraduate students can access through research. However, the topics of study for these students can be overwhelming, and many topics of study yield either only trivial results or abstract outcomes that are nonintuitive and difficult to understand. We have used natural resource modeling, and more specifically, a partnership between academic researchers and federal scientists, as a bridge between undergraduate research and mathematical biology. Our collaboration is an interdisciplinary team that combines biology, mathematics, and statistics professors with government research scientists. As a team, we have mentored students through opportunities such as a Research Experiences for Undergraduates and other projects. In this article, we provide an overview of how we develop questions for undergraduates and outline two case studies, both of which resulted in peer reviewed journal articles. Last, we describe how we also transfer the results from these undergraduate projects to resource managers so the results may be applied to real world problems.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)185-191
Number of pages7
JournalLetters in Biomathematics
Volume10
Issue number1
StatePublished - Jan 10 2023
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • endangered species
  • invasive carp
  • invasive species
  • mathematical biology education
  • Myotis bats
  • Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Statistics and Probability
  • Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (miscellaneous)
  • Applied Mathematics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Bridging the Gap Between Mathematical Biology and Undergraduate Education Using Applicable Natural Resource Modeling'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this