Executive Summary

A workshop on The Role of Theory in Biological Physics and Materials was convened in Tempe, Arizona from 16-18 May 2004 to evaluate the unique role that theory (particularly condensed-matter and materials theory) can play in the emerging field between the biological and physical sciences. Biological physics continues to expand rapidly, as evidenced by the growth in the Division of Biological Physics of the American Physical Society, whose membership has grown nearly 10% annually for several years. The workshop examined contributions that theorists are making at this interface, and discussed mechanisms for enhancing the growth of this field. Fifty research scientists participated in the workshop, which consisted of a combination of review lectures, small-group and large-group discussions. The workshop considered the following questions:

· What are the important problems in biology that can be solved with the help of theory?

· What types of theory are most useful in treating biological problems?

· What new physics and materials science can be learned by the study of biological systems?

· What types of educational opportunities and infrastructure support would be most helpful to nurture this community?

This report emerged from the discussions among the workshop participants and is also available at http://biophysics.asu.edu/workshop in both pdf and html formats. The structure of the workshop and the participant list are given in the Appendices. The main finding of the workshop was that this is a time of tremendous growth and opportunity for biological physics and materials, and the NSF should act strongly to support the role of theory in this field. On the basis of the workshop discussions, we recommend several specific ways to expand the pool of qualified individuals with a command of both the theoretical methods of the hard sciences and the language of biology. This involves catalyzing transitions into biological physics and materials at various career stages.

The NSF can recognize the rapid growth of this field, and its potential, by expanding the funding available to theorists working in biological physics and materials. In addition, we make the following specific recommendations:

• The expansion of NSF joint funding linking the NSF, especially DMR, with the NIH.
• The establishment of regional research and training centers in biological physics and materials to bring together biologists and physicists.
• The expansion of postdoctoral fellowships supporting transitions into biological physics.
• The development of more summer schools, internet resources and textbooks.
• Support for sabbatical visits to institutions with active biological physics and/or biology programs.

Although the recommendations in this report are primarily for the NSF, we note that universities can also support the growth of theory in biological physics and materials. We thus

• recommend that undergraduate and graduate courses contain more examples of physics being used in biology and vice versa.
• encourage more flexibility in graduate programs, especially in qualifying procedures in masters and doctoral programs.