Benedict Rogers (3rd year undergraduate Maths) and Samik Datta have been awarded a summer bursary from URSS (Undergraduate Research Support Scheme) for “Modelling the spread of Varroa in honeybees”.

We look forward to welcoming Benedict to the group.

Deirdre Hollingsworth has recently started to put together a consortium of modellers to address neglected tropical diseases (NTD). These diseases have enormous impact on the lives of people living in tropical climates, but have received relatively little attention. The first aim of the consortium will be to develop methods to determine if the WHO 2020 goals will be met. More details can be found at the consortium's website.

On 12th February, Prof Sir Roy Anderson will be giving a public lecture on "Plagues and People in the Modern World". The talk starts at 7:15pm and will be in MS.02 in the Maths Building. Refreshments will follow.

"The historical and epidemiological literature abound with accounts of infectious disease epidemics and population abundance, social organisation and the unfolding pattern of historical events. Epidemics have long been a source of fear and fascination in human societies, but it is only in comparatively recent times that their origins and patterns have begun to yield their study.

The talk will examine the role played by predictive modelling in modern infectious disease epidemiol- pandemic (Did we overreact ? How can we better measure and predict pathogenicity? Will the H1N1 experience have a detrimental impact on how we respond to future epidemics?). The talk will also examine some of the neglected tropical diseases to address how can epidemiological modelling help the poorest societies in the world control infection and disease, and also help international agencies."

Kat Rock wins the prize at Epidemic⁴ in Amsterdam for the best poster. The picture shows Kat, together with Hans Heesterbeek, and her prize.

We are pleased to announce that the recent bid for funding for a new Centre for Doctoral Training in Mathematics of Real-World Systems has been successful. The Centre will be funded by the EPSRC, BBSRC, and will also be able to boast strong connections and in some cases additional funding from external collaborators. More details of the Centre and how to apply can be found at http://www.warwick.ac.uk/mathsys