Organizers: Corina Tarnita, Robert Pringle, Simon Levin

Regular spatial patterns are common in natural systems and convey important information about those systems’ structure and function. Accordingly, pattern formation has long been a focus of research in nearly every field of biology (and science more generally), at levels of organization ranging from cells and organisms to entire landscapes. Although decades of theoretical investigations have uncovered some possible mechanisms of pattern formation, recent theoretical and empirical developments have revealed new possibilities and reinvigorated debates, making this a crucial time for a renewed conversation of patterns within and across fields. With this workshop, we seek to bring together experts, both theoreticians and empiricists, to discuss the state-of-the-art of and future directions for the study of pattern formation and its consequences across fields.