New England Complex Systems Institute
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Principles of Health and Public Health

This course outlines the path medical science took to understand the human body and how to protect it (public health). Through five lectures, it bridges the gap between the fundamental sciences and how to apply them to medicine and public health, heart attacks, stroke, pandemics and how to fight them.

Students will learn about the broad applications of scientific principles in public health beyond just technological advancements in medical equipment. This interdisciplinary approach aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of health science for innovative public health strategies.

This course speaks to a general audience (no mathematical prerequisites required).

Dates: July 17th, 2024 - July 23rd, 2024
Start: 10:00 AM EST
End: 12:15 PM EST

Registration Open: May 6th, 2024

Early Bird Registration Prices Apply: April 25th, 2024 - June 30th, 2024


Your Instructor

Matthias F. Schneider
TU Dortmund University, Germany

Dr. Schneider is a Professor of Physics at TU Dortmund in Germany and head of the Medical and Biological Physics Group. His research focuses on Physics of Living Systems and Health. He has taught at Boston University and Augsburg University. He holds a Ph.D. in Physics from the Technical University of Munich. He worked at MIT, Yale and the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen, Germany.

Matthias Schneider’s Google Scholar Profile


Registration

Enrolling in this course grants you access to five interactive sessions and a peer network for collaborative learning. Each immersive two-hour session combines in depth lectures on key topics, such as the integration of physics, chemistry, biology, and medicine, and hands-on exercises designed to deepen your understanding of scientific principles in public health beyond just technological advancements.

Early Bird prices are as follows:

Corporate/Government/NGO: $499
Individual: $459
Student/Academic: $409*
*Must use college or university email address to receive this rate

To apply for a scholarship, click here. Scholarship applications close 6/20 and are awarded 6/25.

Register today to take advantage of Early Bird pricing which ends June 30th.


Questions? Contact us at programs@necsi.edu.


Course Contents


Abstract

The separation of science into physics, chemistry, and biology/medicine is entirely artificial. Reintegrating these disciplines will be one of the biggest challenges in understanding life and health.

In this series of five lectures, Matthias will provide an introduction to the essential role of science and physics in the field of public health and medicine, extending well beyond the design and development of sophisticated instruments within a hospital setting.


Here’s What You’ll Learn

    • What is Life and What is Health?

    • The Big Ideas of in Biology

    • The Difference Between Physics, Chemistry, and the Life Sciences

    • What Is Missing and What Is Needed?

    • H. v. Helmholtz and the Unification of the Sciences for Health

    • Understanding Life?

    • Momentum Conservation and Communication in Biology

    • Putting Back Together, What Nature Never Took Apart

    • Conservation Laws: Einstein and the 2nd Law

    • Do Phase Transitions Exist in Living Systems?

    • Outlook: How Far Do We Get with Conservation Laws?

    • Brian Harvey and the Circulation of Blood

    • Momentum Conservation and Blood Flow

    • How "Bendi" Shells Change the Flow

    • How Damage and Healing Can Have the Same Origin During Clotting

    • What ∇ x v → May Have To Do With Heart Attacks

    • Fractals in Physiology: Feeding and Protecting

    • Helmholtz and The Sensation of Sound

    • Tonotopy: Mapping the Sound

    • What Pandemics, Circulation, and Phase Transitions Have in Common

    • The Problem with Probability and Why Humans Still Gamble

    • Bill Gates Walks into a Bar: The Pareto Distribution

    • Networks and Super Spreaders

    • Public Health Is More Than Medicine

    • What's in the Air

    • How to Provide Clean Air

    • The Role of Academic Institutions

    • Certain Principles During Uncertain Times