Professor Ray Goldstein: Fluid Mechanics and the Evolution of Biological Complexity AbstractA fundamental issue in biology is the nature of evolutionary transitions from unicellular to multicellular organisms: What are the advantages of being physically larger and more complex? Green algae are models for this transition, as they span from unicellular species to multicellular ones with tens of thousands of cells, all of which swim through the action of flagella that are closely related to the cilia found throughout the human body. A paradigm for understanding this transition is the phenomenon of phototaxis, directed motion toward light.In this talk I will describe experimental and theoretical work on the physical mechanism of algal phototaxis, spanning 3 orders of magnitude in cell number, that reveals an evolutionarily conserved response which raises interesting questions in fluid mechanics, dynamical systems, and cellular decision-making.BiographyRay Goldstein received undergraduate degrees in physics and chemistry from MIT, and a PhD in theoretical physics from Cornell University. Following postdoctoral work at the University of Chicago and faculty positions in physics and applied mathematics at Princeton University and the University of Arizona, he moved to Cambridge University in 2006, where he is the Alan Turing Professor of Complex Physical Systems. His research interests span from statistical physics to nonlinear dynamics and geophysics, with particular emphasis on biological physics, both theoretical and experimental. His work has been recognized by the Stephanos Pnevmatikos Award in Nonlinear Science, an Ig Nobel Prize (with Patrick Warren and Robin Ball) for explaining the shape of ponytails, the G.K. Batchelor Prize in Fluid Mechanics, and the Rosalind Franklin Medal of the Institute of Physics. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society, the Institute of Physics, the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, and the Royal Society. Sep 26 2024 15.00 - 16.00 Professor Ray Goldstein: Fluid Mechanics and the Evolution of Biological Complexity Edinburgh Fluid Dynamics Group welcomes Professor Ray Goldstein in an exciting new series of colloquia co-funded by the Schools of Engineering, Mathematics, and Physics and Astronomy. G.27 Lecture Theatre 1, Daniel Rutherford Building, King's Buildings This article was published on Wednesday 2 September 2026
Professor Ray Goldstein: Fluid Mechanics and the Evolution of Biological Complexity AbstractA fundamental issue in biology is the nature of evolutionary transitions from unicellular to multicellular organisms: What are the advantages of being physically larger and more complex? Green algae are models for this transition, as they span from unicellular species to multicellular ones with tens of thousands of cells, all of which swim through the action of flagella that are closely related to the cilia found throughout the human body. A paradigm for understanding this transition is the phenomenon of phototaxis, directed motion toward light.In this talk I will describe experimental and theoretical work on the physical mechanism of algal phototaxis, spanning 3 orders of magnitude in cell number, that reveals an evolutionarily conserved response which raises interesting questions in fluid mechanics, dynamical systems, and cellular decision-making.BiographyRay Goldstein received undergraduate degrees in physics and chemistry from MIT, and a PhD in theoretical physics from Cornell University. Following postdoctoral work at the University of Chicago and faculty positions in physics and applied mathematics at Princeton University and the University of Arizona, he moved to Cambridge University in 2006, where he is the Alan Turing Professor of Complex Physical Systems. His research interests span from statistical physics to nonlinear dynamics and geophysics, with particular emphasis on biological physics, both theoretical and experimental. His work has been recognized by the Stephanos Pnevmatikos Award in Nonlinear Science, an Ig Nobel Prize (with Patrick Warren and Robin Ball) for explaining the shape of ponytails, the G.K. Batchelor Prize in Fluid Mechanics, and the Rosalind Franklin Medal of the Institute of Physics. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society, the Institute of Physics, the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, and the Royal Society. Sep 26 2024 15.00 - 16.00 Professor Ray Goldstein: Fluid Mechanics and the Evolution of Biological Complexity Edinburgh Fluid Dynamics Group welcomes Professor Ray Goldstein in an exciting new series of colloquia co-funded by the Schools of Engineering, Mathematics, and Physics and Astronomy. G.27 Lecture Theatre 1, Daniel Rutherford Building, King's Buildings This article was published on Wednesday 2 September 2026
Sep 26 2024 15.00 - 16.00 Professor Ray Goldstein: Fluid Mechanics and the Evolution of Biological Complexity Edinburgh Fluid Dynamics Group welcomes Professor Ray Goldstein in an exciting new series of colloquia co-funded by the Schools of Engineering, Mathematics, and Physics and Astronomy.
