PHYSICAL MATHEMATICS SEMINAR



TITLE:		ELASTIC INSTABILITY IN A GROWING YEAST COLONY

SPEAKER:	BAOCHI T. NGUYEN
		DEPARTMENT OF APPLIED MATHEMATICS
		MIT



ABSTRACT: 

The selective adhesion between cells is believed to be the major driving force
behind the formation of tissues. The idea is that an aggregate of cells minimizes
the overall adhesive energy between the cell surfaces. We demonstrate in a model 
experimental system that there exist conditions where a slowly growing tissue does 
not minimize this adhesive energy. A mathematical model demonstrates that in this 
regime the tissue morphology is determined by the competition between elastic and 
surface energies.


TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2002
2:30 pm
Building 2, Room 338

Refreshments will be served at 3:30 PM in Room 2-349


Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Mathematics
Cambridge, MA  02139