From owner-metabolic-reg@net.bio.net Thu Oct 14 23:00:00 1993 Path: biosci!NIHGMSWW.BITNET!James_Anderson From: James_Anderson@NIHGMSWW.BITNET Newsgroups: bionet.metabolic-reg Subject: Interested bystander Message-ID: Date: 15 Oct 93 13:50:43 GMT Sender: daemon@net.bio.net Distribution: bionet Lines: 28 |Date: 10-15-93 9:40am |From: James Anderson:nigmsw:nih | To: {btk-mca@net.bio.net}:internet |Subj: Interested bystander ------------------------------------------------------------------ I'm an administrator with the National Institute for General Medical Sciences. Although my scientific background is mainly genetics and physiology of bacteria, I have been casually following some of the developments in mathematical modeling of metabolism. I realize that this newsgroup is primarily for technical exchanges, but I am interested in finding out more about the general state of what I suppose could be called systems approaches to life processes. NIGMS, for those of you not familiar with the alphabet soup of the NIH, supports basic biomedical research; part of my job is to monitor emerging areas of interest to the NIH and ask, if appropriate, what we might do to help things along. This is my question to group members: what are the rate limiting factors in the development of mathematical approaches to biological problems such as pattern formation and metabolic control? Methods development? Key collaborations? Agreement on model systems? Instrumentation development? Interested people? "Money" is not an acceptable answer unless attached to a specific use for it! If you have some opinions as to why the NIH should feel some urgency about helping out, and what form this help might take, feel free to comment. Jim Anderson .