Welcome to the MOSAIC group (original) (raw)

Welcome to the MOSAIC group

The MOSAIC Group does research in Scientific Computing for Image-Based Systems Biology. We develop, teach, and apply methods for the computational study of biological systems, focusing on spatiotemporal processes in 3D. We exploit the unifying framework of particle methods for numerical simulation, data-driven model learning, visualization and image processing. Our research is theoretical and computational. We do not perform own experiments and do not run a wet-lab. However, we collaborate with experimental groups and are inspired by the mysterious beauty of self-organized living systems.

We study biological systems using computation. This requires the development of novel algorithms targeted to biology, since living systems come with a unique set of challenges, from dynamic geometric shapes to non-equilibrium physics. We develop and apply methods in a targeted co-design approach with the mission of understanding the Algorithms of Tissue Formation.

Follow us on BlueSky: @mosaicgroup.bsky.social

Research Focus

In our work, theory, algorithms, software, and biological understanding co-evolve. We focus on the following methods as required in image-based systems biology:

• Data-driven modeling and scientific machine learning for biological dynamics in space and time from image data
• Numerical simulation methods for spatio-temporal dynamics in 3D biological geometries.
• Parallel and scalable high-performance computing for systems biology, and the software engineering of it.
• Scientific Visualization for large microscopy and biology datasets.

Affiliations

The MOSAIC Group is affiliated with:

• the Faculty of Computer Science of TUD | Dresden University of Technology (primary and main affiliation),
• the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG),
• the Center for Systems Biology Dresden (CSBD),
• the Faculty of Mathematics of TUD | Dresden University of Technology
• the Faculty of Mechanical Science and Engineering of TUD | Dresden University of Technology
• the Center for Scalable Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence (ScaDS.AI),
• the Cluster of Excellence 'Physics of Life',
• and the School of Embedded Composite Artificial Intelligence (SECAI).

Group name

A mosaic is "a combination of diverse elements forming a coherent whole", a mosaic is colorful and more than the sum of its parts. A mosaic lives from the synergies between the individually colored tiles. This name represents both what we are and what we do: the MOSAIC group combines researchers from several cultural and academic backgrounds in a truly interdisciplinary team that develops, teaches, and applies MOdels, Simulations, and Algorithms for Interdisciplinary Computing.

History

Ivo F. Sbalzarini founded the MOSAIC Group in April 2006 at ETH Zurich under the name "Computational Biophysics Laboratory (CBL)". In 2008, the group changed its name in order to better reflect its activity. In a group-internal brainstorming the new name "MOSAIC Group" was chosen. In June 2012, the MOSAIC Group moved to the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG) in Dresden to be part of an exciting new Center for Systems Biology Dresden (CSBD). The collaborative spirit in Dresden and the tight integration with leading-edge biology provides unique opportunities for further developing and applying our computational methods.