Hosts: Joachim Niehren, Cédric Lhoussaine

Institution: INRIA Lille Nord Europe, Lille, France

Time: 09/10/2007 - 10/31/2007

Project

My PhD thesis proposes a language for the computational modeling of the spatial dynamics of cell-biological systems. In collaboration with my colleague Roland Ewald and my supervisor Adelinde Uhrmacher in Rostock, I was able to develop a first approach, which is to extend the π-calculus, such that processes can be associated with spacial attributes. During my stay in Lille, this idea could be generalized by introducing reaction constraints to the π-calculus, the fundamental concept of my thesis. Non-deterministic and stochastic semantics and a stochastic simulator were developed. Two subsequent, shorter visits in Lille allowed us to refine the concept, extending it with priority and global variables. Additional expressiveness and modeling studies were worked out in corporation, which show that reaction constraints in the π-calculus form a valuable concept for the spatial modeling of cell-biological systems.

Environment

Having a background in computer graphics, I learned a lot about (concurrent) programming languages, in particular about formal semantics, and about formal methods in general during my stay in Lille. Apparently, this was a challenging exercise, but in the end I benefited a lot. Furthermore, I still was able to spare some time to discover the surrounding of Lille, e.g. going to London and Paris.

Resulting publications