Center for the Physics of Biological Function | an NSF Physics Frontier Center

The Center for the Physics of Biological Function (CPBF), a joint effort between Princeton University and The Graduate Center at CUNY. We are a collection of scientists working at the interface of physics and biology with the goal of creating a physicist’s understanding of living systems: a physics of biological function that connects the myriad details of life, across all scales, to fundamental and universal physical principles. Our center focuses on new scientific opportunities and educational programs, integrating theory and experiment, research and education.

Research

Phase-separated liquid droplets (red) formed in a crosslinked chromatin network (white). Mechanical interactions with chromatin determine the size of droplets

Understanding the phenomena of life means understanding the emergence and integration of essential biological functions. 

Explore our Research

Education

Two students looking through slides

A true unification of the physics of biological function requires educating a new generation of scientists.

Explore our Programs

Fellowships

Group of Research Fellows

CPBF Fellows of 2018-2023

We are searching for Center Fellows, both theorists and experimentalists. Applications for 2024 CPBF fellows are now open!

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Biophysics Seminar Series

Quan Wen: Organizing Motor Behaviors Across Timescales
Tue, Mar 19, 2024, 12:30 pm1:30 pm
Location
TBA
Mathieu Louis: Neural computations directing olfactory navigation in the Drosophila larva
Mon, Mar 25, 2024, 12:30 pm1:30 pm
Location
Joseph Henry Room, Jadwin Hall
Jonas Cremer: Causes and consequences of bacterial growth - from protein synthesis to the human gut microbiota
Mon, Apr 1, 2024, 12:30 pm1:30 pm
Location
Joseph Henry Room, Jadwin Hall

News

2018 - 2021 APS Abstracts
learn more about current research at the Center, see the work to be presented at the March Meeting of the American Physical Society 2021

Game Theory Cancer Models of Cancer Cell-Stromal Cell Dynamics using Interacting Particle Systems Abstract

Bacterial Route…

ITS Symposia

Artificial Intelligence and Large Language Models
Fri, Apr 26, 2024
Location
Elebash Recital Hall, CUNY Graduate Center (365 Fifth Avenue, NYC)
Symposium on microbial collectives
Fri, May 3, 2024, 9:30 am4:00 pm
Location
Science Center (Room 4102) at the CUNY Graduate Center (365 Fifth Avenue, NYC)

 

National Science Foundation