Carlos Castillo-Chávez
Carlos Castillo-Chávez is a prominent Mexican-American applied mathematician known for his significant contributions to mathematical epidemiology, the study of disease spread and containment through mathematical models. Born in 1952 in Mexico, he emigrated to the United States in 1974, motivated by social injustices he witnessed, and later earned his Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1984. His academic career includes an extensive tenure at Cornell University, followed by his current role at Arizona State University, where he directs multiple research institutes focused on mathematical biology.
Castillo-Chávez's research encompasses a range of infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and influenza, using mathematical modeling to predict disease dynamics and inform public health strategies. He is a leading advocate for minorities and women in mathematics and science, emphasizing the importance of diverse perspectives in advancing knowledge and research. Throughout his career, he has actively mentored underrepresented students and contributed to initiatives aimed at increasing diversity in the scientific community. Through his work, Castillo-Chávez has positioned himself as a vital voice in both mathematical biology and the advocacy for equitable representation in academia.
Carlos Castillo-Chávez
Summary: Carlos Castillo-Chávez works in the field of mathematical epidemiology, which deals with the spread, treatment, and eradication of diseases.
Carlos Castillo-Chávez (1952–) is a Mexican-American applied mathematician, eminent in the field of mathematical epidemiology. His research and writing has advanced human understanding of the mechanisms by which diseases spread and by which they can be contained. The specific diseases that he has worked with extensively include human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS), tuberculosis, influenza, and many others.
He grew up in Mexico, where he excelled academically. Motivated in part by the Tlatelolco massacre in which hundreds of Mexican students were killed, he emigrated to Wisconsin in 1974. In 1984, he was awarded a Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin—Madison. He spent 18 years as a professor at Cornell University before coming to Arizona State University, where he is both professor of mathematical biology and executive director of the Mathematical and Theoretical Biology Institute, as well as the Institute for Strengthening the Understanding of Mathematics. He is considered an important voice of the mathematical biology community and has served on many influential committees and panels, including the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, and the American Mathematical Society.
Mathematics and Biology
In the past decades, mathematics and biology have enjoyed an increasingly symbiotic relationship. Mathematical biology is a wide area of applied mathematics, focusing principally on modeling. A “model” of a biological process or phenomenon is a mathematical system that obeys certain rules and properties abstracted from what we know (or suspect) about the biology in the real world. Two primary mathematical tools for mathematical biology are the study of dynamical systems and differential equations, since we are often most interested in how certain quantities change in response to other quantities.
A distinguishing feature of mathematical biology is the mutual feedback between the mathematicians and the scientists involved. A model based on today’s understanding of a certain disease (or of the action of neurons, or of cellular growth) may make certain predictions, suggesting that certain experiments be performed. The results of these experiments can improve, correct, and refine scientists’ understanding of the underlying biology. Mathematicians can then incorporate this new knowledge into more sophisticated, more accurate models.
Carlos Castillo-Chávez is a leader in the area of mathematical epidemiology, the branch of mathematical biology dealing with the spread, treatment, and eradication of diseases. Mathematical epidemiologists can use mathematical modeling techniques to predict how certain diseases might affect the population. More sophisticated models can incorporate the effects of various proposed treatment and control options. Properly applied, these techniques can enable epidemiologists to effectively predict the effects of methods of prevention, allowing for a more effective allocation of resources in responding to disease threats.
Minorities in Mathematics and Science
Carlos Castillo-Chávez is an outspoken advocate of minorities, women, and other underrepresented groups in mathematics and the sciences. He has expressed the belief that people from different backgrounds may bring different perspectives to mathematics and science, leading them to directions of research that may have gone unnoticed or uninvestigated. Since mathematics and the sciences are driven by the questions that participants pursue, asking a richer set of questions leads to a fuller body of knowledge; supporting students from underrepresented groups minorities is therefore a matter both of social justice and of enhancing the discipline.
Dr. Castillo-Chávez has supported these beliefs with his actions at all stages of his career. As a Ph.D. student in Milwaukee, he spent his summers teaching mathematics to Latino students in the area. He has served as a mentor to numerous female and minority students, helping and encouraging them at all stages of education. He is also an active member of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in the Sciences (SACNAS); during his time at Cornell, he was the founding president of a northeast chapter of SACNAS and was instrumental in initiating a special summer program intended to provide Latino, Chicano, and Native American students with mentorship, encouragement, and training in the sciences. Carlos Castillo-Chávez is highly acclaimed for his work in this regard.
Bibliography
Blower, Sally, and Carlos Castillo-Chávez, eds. Mathematical Approaches for Emerging and Reemerging Infectious Diseases: An Introduction. New York: Springer, 2002.
Brauer, Fred, and Carlos Castillo-Chávez. Mathematical Models in Population Biology. New York: Springer, 2001.
Castillo-Chávez, Carlos, ed. Bioterrorism: Mathematical Modeling Applications in Homeland Security. Philadelphia: SIAM, 2003.
Castillo-Chávez, Carlos. “SACNAS Biography: Dr. Carlos Castillo-Chávez—Mathematical Biologist.” http://www.sacnas.org/biography/Biography.asp?mem=35&type=2.