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Differential Calculus for the Life Sciences (Edelstein-Keshet)

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    121074

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    Calculus arose as a tool for solving practical scientific problems through the centuries. However, it is often taught as a technical subject with rules and formulas (and occasionally theorems), devoid of its connection to applications. In this course, the applications form an important focal point, with emphasis on life sciences. This places the techniques and concepts into practical context, as well as motivating quantitative approaches to biology taught to undergraduates. While many of the examples have a biological flavor, the level of biology needed to understand those examples is kept at a minimum. The problems are motivated with enough detail to follow the assumptions, but are simplified for the purpose of pedagogy.

    Thumbnail: Predator-Prey relationships can be modeled with differential calculus. This pack of Hyenas which had been following a herd of buffalo, possibly eyeing a weak link in the chain. (Unsplash License; Matthew Essman via Unsplash)

    This page titled Differential Calculus for the Life Sciences (Edelstein-Keshet) is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Leah Edelstein-Keshet via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request.