Living Physics Lab
Biological theory | “Cell learning” | Function spaces | Projection operators | Manifolds | Dynamics | Behavior | Evolution
livingphysics.org
Cambridge, UK
Living Physics Feed: tinyurl.com/living-physics
- This looks to be a very nice conference, would love to see some of you there! intcha26.sciencesconf.org
- Reposted by Living Physics LabHow do cells adapt morphology to function? In a 🔥 preprint by @zjmaggiexu.bsky.social , with @dudinlab.bsky.social and @amyweeks.bsky.social , we identify a self-organizing single-cell morphology circuit that optimizes the feeding trap structure of the suctorian P. collini. 🧵 tinyurl.com/4k8nv926
- Reposted by Living Physics Labnow i've seen everything... 😱 don't care what anybody says but #protists are cognitive
- Synapses may get all the glory, but join us cilia-philes for our @sfn.org Nanosymposium to learn about the role of cilia in modulating brain activity, behavior, and development. Sunday November 16th 1-4pm SDCC Room 25A. Thrilled to chair with @konjikusicmia.bsky.social - we'll see you there!
- Reposted by Living Physics Lab🚨 Late preprint alert! Why do biological process rates scale nonlinearly with temperature, deviating from the straight line on an Arrhenius plot? The key may lie in their inherent complexity! More in thread and here: doi.org/10.1101/2025...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabWe have a bunch of new job ads out @arcadiascience.com. If you haven’t checked them out, take a look! www.arcadiascience.com/careers
- Reposted by Living Physics LabApply for our Master of Science in Physics of Life – training in cutting-edge research at the interface of physics, mathematics, engineering and life sciences. Scholarships available. Application deadline: 30 November. More: www.biozentrum.unibas.ch/education/de... @biozentrum.unibas.ch @unibas.ch
- Reposted by Living Physics LabHave you submitted your abstract for #EESCollectivity? No? It's about time! This new event will discuss how collective behaviours arise from fundamental principles across biological systems, from cells to animal groups. 🦠🐾 👉 Join us and submit your abstract by 18 Nov: s.embl.org/ees26-01-bl
- Reposted by Living Physics LabTorkel E Loman, Ruth E Baker Functional and parametric identifiability for universal differential equations applied to chemical reaction networks arxiv.org/abs/2510.14140
- Reposted by Living Physics LabWe’re looking to fund short discovery projects to build community and dive into potential research directions for a programme and within our Trust Everything, Everywhere opportunity space, led by PD Alex Obadia. Find out more + apply by 12 November: link.aria.org.uk/TEE-disc-BS
- Reposted by Living Physics LabHappy to share our latest in @natcomputsci.nature.com led by (amazing) Ryan Krueger + colab w M. Brenner! We introduce a framework to directly design intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) from physics-based simulations. 🧬 doi.org/10.1038/s435... 📰 www.mccormick.northwestern.edu/news/article...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabRead and pitch an idea: press.asimov.com/articles/ma...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabOur next book: "Making the Modern Laboratory" An illustrated, coffee table-sized volume, it covers the origins of the machines, organisms and tools used in modern biology research. More importantly, it's a call to imagine the FUTURE of the laboratory. Come help us write it!
- Reposted by Living Physics LabI adored writing this piece. It brings together several of the things preoccupying me right now, like chromatin organization and gene regulation. There's so much more to be said on that. Also, these marine critters look gorgeous. www.quantamagazine.org/loops-of-dna...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabSome scientists aren’t waiting for journals to catch up. They’re showing us what’s next. The Beyond the Journal awards honor those breaking the mold in how science is shared. More details: pracheeac.substack.com/p/off-roadin... Nominate or self-nominate here: www.experiment.foundation/beyond
- Reposted by Living Physics LabReading group alert!🔔 This term, our History and Philosophy of Biology reading group will be reading 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘯𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘐𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 (2000) by Susan Oyama. Online participants welcome! More details here: www.hps.cam.ac.uk/news-events/...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabAfter a long time in the making, my paper on nonequilibrium thermodynamics of Darwinian evolution has been published in Philosophical Transactions B. Updated version: arxiv.org/abs/2112.02809
- Reposted by Living Physics LabThere is still time to apply for an Independent Research Fellowship in our Department. Join us: www.bioc.cam.ac.uk/research/ind...
- Applications are invited for our Independent Research Fellowship scheme to support early career scientists in establishing their own research groups. The deadline is 24 October 2025 and further details of how to apply are here: www.bioc.cam.ac.uk/research/ind...
- Reposted by Living Physics Lab"Universal Biology: The Physics of Life through the Macro-Micro Consistency Principle" will be soon published from Cambridge Univ Press. Brief introduction is here:https://cambridgeblog.org/2025/10/universal-biology/
- Reposted by Living Physics LabHi fellow C. elegans scientists, I've made a few videos that may be of use for new trainees working in worm labs. Hoping to add more in the future, but figured I'd share this resource as is in case it's helpful :) www.youtube.com/@Workingwith...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabExcited to share a new pre-print in collaboration with @sebastianschreiber.bsky.social, "Using Modern Coexistence Theory to understand community disassembly"! We set out to understand how techniques used to study coexistence can be extended to understand community disassembly. (1/X)
- Reposted by Living Physics LabSo happy to see my first first-author paper published! 🎈 A short thread on how Ectocarpus and its TE secrets have kept me busy lately: rdcu.be/eITQH
- Reposted by Living Physics LabCan pressure gradients persist over long timescales in animal cells? We induced intracellular pressure gradients and examined the resulting flows in single cells. We reveal surprisingly long lasting pressure gradients. More here: elifesciences.org/reviewed-pre...
- It continues to be weird to me that adult CNS neurons have a single, nonmotile cilium just hanging out, maybe acting as a site for receptor expression. Like a little extra antenna that we all just ignore in our drawings of neurons. www.cell.com/neuron/fullt... pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabDo you like theoretical biology, mathematical&conceptual modelling and want to apply yourself to cutting-edge research at all levels of biology, from molecules to ecosystems? Come to EMBL! Scope includes physics-based models, emergence, statistics, ML/AI embl.wd103.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/EMBL/j...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabNew post! A round up of the latest advances in biotech and medicine by @nikomccarty.bsky.social and me. Prime editing, curing whipworm, a new narcolepsy drug, designing protein nanoparticles, the 3D structure of E. coli's genome and more! Read it all here: www.worksinprogress.news/p/whats-new-...
- Reposted by Living Physics Lab
We're looking for highly motivated candidates for PhD positions in the physics of living systems. Our group uses theoretical physics to understand how cells collectively self-organize. If you're interested, get in touch & check out the Biozentrum PhD Fellowship program, deadline October 12th!- Apply now for the prestigious and independent #BiozentrumPhDFellowships. Great science. Unique rotation-based selection of research group and other incentives. The summer call is open until October 12, 2025. bit.ly/4caiqqX @biozentrum.unibas.ch @unibas.ch #fellowship #PhD#Switzerland
- New short paper from our lab @currentbiology.bsky.social, in which we discover of a new mode of cell motility for choanoflagellates: flagellar gliding. www.cell.com/current-biol... - A 🧵
- Reposted by Living Physics LabCall for a research scientist position (indefinite-term) in our group. Deadline: October 15 www.riken.jp/en/careers/r...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabWhere are memories stored in the brain? The textbook answer is that memories live in the synaptic connections between neurons. But there's long been a dissenting view, and it's showing signs of revival. From the archive, our interview with @gershbrain.bsky.social! Listen: disi.org/of-molecules...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabCenter for Living Systems -- seeking strong post docs at the interface of physics and biology. Consider applying by Oct. 13! docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
- This looks awesome! #livingphysics
- Published: Noise equals control. I detail an explicit mapping between stochastic systems and control theory, showing how goal-directed behaviour arises from purely causal stochastic systems. Illustrated with stochastic resonance & Brownian ratchets journals.aps.org/pre/abstract...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabJust out in press in eLife, a cool and brilliant piece of work by @amywebster.bsky.social: Gene expression variation across genetically identical individuals predicts reproductive traits. elifesciences.org/articles/106...
- In crater Lake Masoko one fish species is splitting into shallow and deep-living ecotypes occupying different light environments. New research shows their visual systems are diverging, and how colours of male eggspots have changed to maximise their visibility. doi.org/10.1093/molb...
- Reposted by Living Physics Lab📢We're #hiring Group Leaders! Apply to lead a lab at Janelia & advance biology using theory, computational modeling & machine learning. 🔹5-year renewable appointment 🔹Pioneer new tools & approaches 🔹Collaborate across disciplines Apply by Nov. 4👉 janelia.link/groupleader
- Reposted by Living Physics LabThe latest issue of Scientific American is the 180th anniversary, and they have a series of articles about "180 degree turnarounds" in science. Here's mine on RNA.
- Reposted by Living Physics LabBeatiful article @tobykiers.bsky.social ! Source: NPR search.app/tP7Ep
- What the life in the UK test is: When was the battle of Agincourt? A) 1215 B) 1415 C) 1348 D)1400? What the life in UK should be: You: Shall we bring something? Maybe a pasta salad or a green salad? Friend: That’s fine, we can make fish pie with peas..
- A) Friend would like you to bring a salad B) Friend is letting you know what they are making and leaving it up to you C) Friend is fine without a salad D) A salad killed your friend's mum and under no circumstances should you bring a salad
- You had me at “low dimensional behavioral manifold” 😍 #livingphysics
- Complex behaviour is not limited to animals! Here we map the entire spectrum of waveforms dynamics on a quadriflagellate single cell with 4x 70um (!) #cilia, to a low dimensional behavioural manifold with surprising structure! #protistsonsky All revealed in our new preprint doi.org/10.1101/2025...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabA note in here for other science philanthropists… we have a chance rn to help scientists rethink systems, technical & operational. They’re game to take useful risks, let’s help them. Coming soon: more open science research, experimenting outside journals… seemay.substack.com/p/from-syste...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabCcli.substack.com Sixty years later and we still can’t solve it—what’s going on?
- A great podcast episode about this featuring @scientificdiscovery.dev
- A year after its breakout public health moment, 'miracle drug' lenacapavir has been approved by the FDA and recommended by the WHO. The drug is a long-lasting shot that provides almost 100% protection against HIV infection. buff.ly/E5zOvGl #ShareGoodNewsToo
- This will be quite fun! Join us in September for "“Physics of Adaptation & Decision Making in Biology” www.fluidlab.nl/padm25
- Reposted by Living Physics Lab𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 “Top-down and bottom-up neuroscience: overcoming the clash of research cultures,” by Fernando Rosas @frosas.bsky.social 𝑒𝑡 𝑎𝑙. in 𝑁𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑅𝑒𝑣𝑖𝑒𝑤𝑠 𝑁𝑒𝑢𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑐𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 www.nature.com/articles/s41... #neuroskyence
- How can cells self-organize rapidly into complex patterns during development? Let’s explore a powerful and underappreciated mechanism: Directed Cell Migration (DCM). Preprint @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social : doi.org/10.1101/2025... 👇Thread 🧵(1/11)
- Reposted by Living Physics Labsuper excited that the first paper from my PhD is now out! we develop a "philosophical toolkit" for computational cognitive modeling & use it to conceptually re-analyze a long-standing debate about evidence accumulation models of decision making 🧠📈 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
- I think that this pic from the original paper illustrates very well how fast Diamond2 is. I'm also waiting for the final publication of the Diamond Deepclust DB that is the largest protein seq DB AFAIK Sensitive protein alignments at tree-of-life scale using DIAMOND www.nature.com/articles/s41...
- I think that this pic from the original paper illustrates very well how fast Diamond2 is. I'm also waiting for the final publication of the Diamond Deepclust DB that is the largest protein seq DB AFAIK Sensitive protein alignments at tree-of-life scale using DIAMOND www.nature.com/articles/s41...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabI am really happy to share that there will be a @nitmb.bsky.social workshop next year on mathematical and biological features of evolutionary game theory. It was really fun to co-organize this workshop with Olivia Chu, Alex McAvoy, and @jplotkin.bsky.social. www.nitmb.org/evolutionary...
- Reposted by Living Physics LabNew paper in @nature.com! With @kiseokmicro.bsky.social , Siqi Liu, Kyle Crocker, Jojo Wang, Mikhail Tikhonov & Madhav Mani — a massive dataset and simple model reveal a few conserved regimes that capture how soil microbiome metabolism responds to perturbations. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
- How far can you compress a complex system? 🚨 In our latest paper we collapse high-dim compartmental models (from epidemics to ecosystems) into a single 1-D equation using quantum-inspired math, exposing universal phase transitions #ComplexSystems 👇👇👇 journals.aps.org/prx/abstract...
- Spot the pattern! Hyperdisorder is a phenomenon that combines order at the microscopic scale with disorder at the macro level. It's now been observed for the first time in a biological system, showing up in the spots on the skin of young squid. 🧪 ⚛️ physicsworld.com/a/hyperdisor...
- (1/4) I’m happy to introduce our new work led by PhD student Akira Kawano (not on Bluesky), which explores social behavior as mutual prediction, quantified by the decomposition of information (PID) between the past and future of a multi-organism system: doi.org/10.1101/2025...
- PNAS special feature on Collective Artificial Intelligence and Evolutionary Dynamics Contributions from scientists in machine learning, evolutionary game theory, and their growing intersection. www.pnas.org/toc/pnas/122...
- Are you interested in research on microbial communities, how microbes come together and co-exist in nature, and what “community-level” functions they display? Join us for an upcoming workshop, Microbial Communities: Energetics and Dynamics Across Space and Time! www.nitmb.org/microbial-co...
- 🧵 🧪 1/ Hi! I’m excited to share our latest work, now on arXiv: Repulsive particle interactions at cellular interfaces enable selective information processing (arxiv.org/abs/2506.14739) Where we explore how the physical properties of living systems can help cells process spatial information.
- Reposted by Living Physics LabJust out from Cambridge University Press: Theoretical Biology of the Cell by Takagi, Furusawa, Sawai & Kaneko. Covers theoretical tools for life dynamics, stochasticity & information, for cellular response, adaptation, morphogenesis, origin of life & more www.cambridge.org/core/books/t...
- Another day, another @wgilpin.bsky.social paper I simply must read, I’m not finished with Panda yet! #livingphysics
- Does stability matter in biology? My article on the cover of this month’s @PLOSCompBiol explores how large ecosystems develop supertransients, a manifestation of computational hardness (1/N) doi.org/10.1371/jour...
- Temperature is so important for plants that they have come up with many independent temperature sensors. Curious? Read more in this review by former WeigelWorld members Sridevi Sureshkumar & Suresh Balasubramanian. #plantscience www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
- Please join BPPB on Friday June 13 @ 11 EDT for exciting talks by Rachel Bennett (Analytical framework for coordination of metachronal cilia) & Emily Gehrels (How embryos generate polarized tissue flows during development). For more information, please visit sites.google.com/view/bppb-se....
- Reposted by Living Physics LabLAUNCH DAY 🚀 Today I’m launching a new podcast, Hard Drugs, with Jacob Trefethen (@jacobtref.bsky.social) Our first episode is about lenacapavir — a new HIV drug that blocks infections with an efficacy rate of nearly 100%, and which could completely change the fight against HIV worldwide.
- 📣 New review! Dynamical systems and low-dimensional geometric structures in phase space help rationalize how embryos develop form and function, from large datasets. We focus on morphogenesis, cell differentiation, and their interconnection. @alex-plum.bsky.social sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
- Decomposing Predictive Information in Social Dynamics biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/202…
- This is cool - bacteria wrap their flagella to propel themselves through narrow passages www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
- I'm excited to share our latest pre-print on proximity proteomics of primary cilia in human hypothalamic neurons, led by Viviana Macarelli, which revealed proteins involved in synapses and neurotransmission and the obesity-associated GPCR LPAR1. Details at bit.ly/4jcTodq
- Here it is! Bonsai. Now there is really no more excuse for using t-SNE/UMAP. Bonsai not only makes cool pictures of your data. It actually rigorously preserves its structure. No tunable parameters. Incredible work by @dhdegroot.bsky.social. I'm so excited about this! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
- Emergence and Self-organization in Biological Systems” (ESBS 2025), will be held at the Arnold Sommerfeld Center in the Physics Department of LMU Munich from August 18 to 22, 2025.
- 📣Next Tuesday our online seminar is with Jacopo Grilli (ICTP Trieste) on: ⭐Competition without contingency and functional convergence⭐ Zoom link: iite.info/seminar/ Global times: www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/f... Free for anyone to join and get involved, no need to register - see you there!
