Featured Publications

Functional motifs in foodwebs and networks

• Authors: Habermann, Fahimipour, Yeakel, & Gross

• Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

• Year: 2026

• Abstract: When studying a complex system it is often useful to think of the system as a network of interacting units. One can then ask if some properties of the entire network are already explained by a small part of the network–a network motif. A famous example of an ecological motif is competitive [...]

• Authors: Fahimipour, Gil, & Hein

• Journal: Ecology

• Year: 2025

• Abstract: Behavioral plasticity in animals influences direct species interactions, but its effects can also spread unpredictably through ecological networks, creating indirect interactions that are difficult to anticipate. We use coarse-grained models to investigate how changes in species [...]

• Authors: Massing, Gross, Yeakel, Fahimipour

• Journal: Journal of the Royal Society Interface

• Year: 2026, in press

• Abstract: Bacterial cooperation involves the exchange of metabolites, which can range from costless byproducts of metabolism to intentionally produced and costly molecules. These interactions occur across spatial scales, from direct cell contact to the diffusion [...]