Leah Edelstein-Keshet is an Israeli-Canadian

mathematical biologist Mathematical and theoretical biology, or biomathematics, is a branch of biology which employs theoretical analysis, mathematical models and abstractions of the Organism, living organisms to investigate the principles that govern the structure, dev ...

. Edelstein-Keshet is known for her contributions to the field of mathematical biology and biophysic

Her research spans many topics including sub-cellular biology, ecology, and biomedical research, with particular focus on

cell motility Motility is the ability of an organism to move independently, using metabolic energy. Definitions Motility, the ability of an organism to move independently, using metabolic energy, can be contrasted with sessility, the state of organisms th ...

and the

cytoskeleton The cytoskeleton is a complex, dynamic network of interlinking protein filaments present in the cytoplasm of all cells, including those of bacteria and archaea. In eukaryotes, it extends from the cell nucleus to the cell membrane and is compos ...

, modeling of physiology and diseases, such as autoimmune diabetes, and swarming and aggregation behavior in social organisms. She is a full-time professor at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

in Vancouver, Canada.

Early life and education

Dr. Edelstein-Keshet was born in Israel, and moved to Canada with her parents when she was 12. She earned her Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Mathematics from

Dalhousie University Dalhousie University (commonly known as Dal) is a large public research university in Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the fou ...

and received in 1982 her doctorate in Applied Mathematics from the

Weizmann Institute of Science The Weizmann Institute of Science ( he, מכון ויצמן למדע ''Machon Vaitzman LeMada'') is a public research university in Rehovot, Israel, established in 1934, 14 years before the State of Israel. It differs from other Israeli unive ...

in Israel.

Career

Dr. Edelstein-Keshet held teaching positions at

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

and

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

before joining the

as Associate Professor in 1989, where she is now Associate Head (Faculty Affairs). She has authored three books, including ''Mathematical Models in Biology'' in the SIAM Series ''Classics in Applied Mathematics''. In 1995 she became the first female president of the

Society for Mathematical Biology The Society for Mathematical Biology (SMB) is an international association co-founded in 1972 in the United States by George Karreman, Herbert Daniel Landahl and (initially chaired) by Anthony Bartholomay for the furtherance of joint scientific ac ...

Awards and recognition

In 2003 she was awarded the

Krieger–Nelson Prize The Krieger–Nelson Prize is presented by the Canadian Mathematical Society in recognition of an outstanding woman in mathematics. It was first awarded in 1995. The award is named after Cecilia Krieger and Evelyn Nelson (mathematician), Evelyn Nels ...

of the

Canadian Mathematical Society The Canadian Mathematical Society (CMS) (french: Société mathématique du Canada) is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research, outreach, scholarship and education in Canada. It serves the ...

. She became a Fellow of the

Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) is a professional society dedicated to applied mathematics, computational science, and data science through research, publications, and community. SIAM is the world's largest scientific socie ...

in 2014 "for contributions to the mathematics and modeling of the cell, the immune system, and biological swarms, as well as to applied mathematics education". She was also awarded a Faculty of Science Award for Leadership from the

. She is the 2022 SIAM John von Neumann Prize Lecturer.

References

External links

Leah Edelstein-Keshet at UBC
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Keshet, Leah Canadian mathematicians Theoretical biologists Canadian women mathematicians 20th-century Canadian biologists Canadian women academics University of British Columbia faculty Living people Canadian women biologists Israeli emigrants to Canada Israeli mathematicians Israeli biologists Israeli women scientists Israeli Jews Jewish Canadian scientists Fellows of the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Canadian biologists 20th-century Canadian women scientists 21st-century Canadian women scientists

Early life and education

Career

Awards and recognition

See also

References

External links