Center for Biomedical Computing, CBC

CBC uses mathematics, physics and computers to achieve a deeper scientific understanding of problems in medicine. The research in the center can be divided into two main categories. The first is the development of computational methods and software for the simulation of physical processes. Much of this activity has been linked to Fenics (www.fenicsproject.org), which is an open source framework for numerical calculations. CBC has contributed substantially to the development of Fenics, and has also developed more specialized computational tools based on this general framework. Fenics has received widespread international recognition, and the work has led to a series of well-cited publications from CBC. The second category of CBC research addresses specific medical applications where our computations can give knowledge and insight. The applications are selected in close collaboration with medical researchers and clinicians, and the largest projects have been simulation of the heart, blood flow in the brain, and fluid flow in the brain and spinal cord. Heart simulations has been a long-term project in CBC and the host institution Simula, and the group is recognized for modeling of electrophysiology and mechanics. The group collaborates closely with clinicians, in particular through the Center for Cardiological Innovation (CCI), a center for research-based innovation led by Oslo University Hospital. Recently, the collaborative network has been expanded to include clinicians and medical researchers across Europe, through the funding of several projects from the Horizon 2020 program. CBC researchers have also worked with simulation of blood flow in the brain for a long time. The main objective of this project is to understand flow of blood and cerebrospinal fluid in the brain, and how abnormal flow patterns are linked with various clinical conditions. Important discoveries have been made on a number of areas, in particular on the existence of turbulent blood flow in the brain and a possible link to growth and rupture of aneurysms.

Senter for Biomedisinske Beregninger fokuserer på tre forskningsoppgaver; beregningsprogramvare, robuste løsere for strømningsproblemer, og anvendelser innenfor biomedisinske strømninger. Disse tett relaterte temaene representerer henholdsvis et bredt, middels og smalt fokus innenfor beregningsbasert fluidmekanikk. Beregningsprogramvaren som utvikles er ment å være generelt anvendbare verktøy for å studere fysiske problemer innenfor mange grener av naturvitenskap. Vi ønsker at beregningsorienterte forsk ere raskt skal kunne sette sammen simulatorer for avanserte fysiske problemer formulert som partielle differensiallikninger. Strømningsdelen av prosjektet vil spisse denne programvaren i retning av robuste og effektive løsere for viskøs og turbulent strøm ning. Anvendelsesdelen representerer en ytterligere spissing, hvor vi kombinerer disse verktøyene for å løse utfordrende biologiske strømningsproblemer. Sammensetningen av tre hovedtemaer vil gi resultater på flere nivåer. Generelt anvendbar programvare vil distribueres til forskere verden over, og har potensiale for betydelig gjennomslag innenfor beregningsorientert vitenskap. Videre vil robuste og effektive løsere for strømningsproblemer ha betydelig nytteverdi innenfor industri og vitenskap, og anven delsesdelen vil adressere en ny og potensielt svært viktig klasse av utfordrende fysiske problemer, hvor matematisk modellering er i en tidlig fase. De tre områdene representerer slik et bredt spekter innenfor naturvitenskap, fra generelt anvendbare verkt øy via metoder for en stor klasse av problemer, til spesifikke fysiske problemer.