Dynamical systems describe the evolution of objects in a space over time and may be used to model physical phenomena. Due to this, much research is dedicated to understanding the mathematics of dynamical systems.

The research of our group is centered around dynamical systems, functional analysis and their interplay.

Promotor: Prof.dr. S.F. Portegies Zwart, Co-promotor: D.C. Heggie

The research of this programme is centered around dynamical systems, functional analysis, and their interplay.

Thermodynamics is one of the founding scientific pillars that has helped us better understand heat engines, biology, ecosystems, and even black holes. While it fundamentally describes large systems by examining the bulk behavior of their constituents, it is anchored in the statistical equivalence of…

Promotor: S.M. Verduyn Lunel, Co-promotoren: M.F.E. de Jeu, S.D. Silvestrov

Unfolding potential

In the thesis the dynamics of strategies is studied from two perspectives.In the first part of the thesis strategies are considered to be opinions present in a community.

This dissertation is organised into three parts, each addressing a distinct research area related to Gibbs measures.

Promotor: W.Th.F. den Hollander

In this thesis, dynamic testing principles were applied to examine young children's potential for learning. Our studies focused on the role of cognitive flexibility, to further increase our understanding of the cognitive processes involved in children's ability to learn from instruction and feedback,…

An assessment approach that tailors to children’s instructional needs

Can dynamic testing provide us with insight in children’s potential for learning?

BlaC is the β-lactamase of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. We show that it can recover from inhibition by clavulanic acid and that phosphate helps it do so.

This thesis introduces the concept of

Promotor: S.M. Verduyn Lunel

This minor equips students from diverse disciplines with the knowledge and skills to critically engage with and strengthen Africa’s role in a globalised world through integrated and sustainable approaches. It builds on the ambitions of the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the United Nations’ Agenda 2030,…

The solar system was formed approximately 4.56 billion years ago. Despite the numerous theories that have been developed over the years, the formation and evolution of the solar system still remain unclear.

This thesis consists of two main parts. The first part (Chapters 2 and 3) deals with a class of Markov process called Quasi-Skipfree (QSF) processes.

Dynamic nuclear polarization with paramagnetic agents can enhance nuclear magnetic resonance signals by orders of magnitude. The mechanism of enhancement depends a.o. on the magnetic resonance properties of the agents used. Electron spin relaxation times at NMR relevant magnetic field/microwave frequencies,…

Promotor: Arjen Doelman, Co-promotor: Vivi Rottschäfer

Phospholipase A/acyltransferase 3 (PLAAT3) and PLAAT4 are enzymes involved in the synthesis of bioactive lipids. Despite sequential and structural similarities, the two enzymes differ in activity and specificity.

Heterogeneous catalysis is one of the fundamental processes of modern life, being common in industrial refinery and hydrogen vehicles, all the way to the living cell. The dissociation of H2 on Cu(111) is an important benchmark system for studying heterogeneous catalysis, with a large and varied amount…

If gifted children are experts in using strategies, why do they experience problems with learning? Why do they underachieve?

This thesis investigates opinion dynamics on random graphs through the lens of the voter model, a classical interacting particle system used to describe how consensus emerges in networks.

Promotor: Prof.dr. W.Th.F. den Hollander, Co-promotor: R. Fernandez

Promotor: J.W. van Holten

Promotor: Huub de Groot, Co-promotor: Francesco Buda

Throughout all domains of life, from bacteria and archaea to eukaryotes, genomes adopt well-organized three-dimensional structures that can change in space and time to accommodate preferred transcriptional programs for environmental adaptation, the maintenance of cellular identity and differentiation…

Promotor: H.J. van den Herik, B.R. Katzy, Co-promotor: K. Sailer

What is the relationship between outcomes of dynamic testing and cognitive flexibility in young children?

Chemical reactions go hand-in-hand with an energy exchange with the environment in which they take place. Surfaces offer a variety of energy dissipation channels, constituted by the nuclear and electronic degrees of freedom of the atoms at the interface. Aiming at an improved future harvesting of energy,…

Quantum computing represents a fundamentally new computational paradigm, capable of addressing problems that are intractable for classical computers.

The genomic DNA of every organism is organized and compacted in order to fit inside the cell. This is achieved by the joint action of numerous architectural proteins that aid in folding the genome. Genome folding is tightly interconnected with transcription, with genes in certain regions being silenced,…

Promotor: Promotor: W.Th.F. den Hollander, Co-promotor: V. Sidoravicius.

For optimization problems, it is often unclear how to choose the most appropriate optimization algorithm. As such, rigorous benchmarking practices are critical to ensure we can gain as much insight into the strengths and weaknesses of these types of algorithms.

Promotor: Prof.dr. M. Danhof

Cell adhesion signaling

The thesis addresses the long-term dynamical evolution of hierarchical multiple systems.