I am Professor of Mathematics at Queensland University of Technology. Formerly, I held positions as Australian Research Council Future Fellow (2014-2018), and Australian Research Council Postdoctoral Research Fellow (2006-2009). In 2024 I am Chair of ANZIAM, a Division of the Australian Mathematical Society whose members are interested in applied mathematics, research in applied mathematics, and tertiary mathematics education.
As Editor-in-Chief of the Bulletin of Mathematical Biology, I lead the main publication associated with the Society for Mathematical Biology . The Bulletin of Mathematical Biology is devoted to publishing research at the interface of mathematics and life sciences. Journal updates are published here .
In 2023 I was a guest on the Biology in Numbers podcast, where we discussed the future of mathematical biology. An older 2020 Random Sample podcast discusses my pathway into mathematical biology. QUT's Research Snapshot summarises the broader aims of my research group.
In 2020 I was awarded the EO Tuck model by ANZIAM. The Tuck medal recognises outstanding research in applied mathematics and distinguished service to the applied mathematics community. In 2012 I was awarded the JH Michell Medal by ANZIAM. This medal recognises excellence in research in applied mathematics.
Research
My early research interests included using continuum mathematical models to interpret in vivo experiments in developmental biology focusing on neural crest cell migration. More recent projects involved developing stochastic mathematical models of these kinds of in vivo experiments and understanding how to construct approximate continuum limit descriptions of such stochastic models. More recently, I have been working at the interface of mathematical modelling, uncertainty quantification, parameter estimation and identifiability analysis. In general, my work involves deploying mathematical tools to understand various biological and biophysical applications that include studying tissue growth on 3D-printed scaffolds, in vitro observations of cell migration and proliferation using fluorescent cell cycle labels, as well as tumour spheroid experiments.
Service
In 2024 I am Chair of ANZIAM . During 2019-2020, I was the Deputy Director of the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute, and from 2016-2018 I was a member of the Australian Research Council's College of Experts, sitting on the Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Earth Sciences panel.
I am Editor-in-Chief of the Bulletin of Mathematical Biology, as well as being a member of the editorial board of Mathematical Medicine and Biology, and Physica D: Nonlinear Phenomena.
Teaching
My most recent teaching interests include first year calculus and differential equations for engineering students, and later year courses on differential equations and computational modelling for mathematics students.