Control Theory Tutorial

​Steven A. Frank is Donald Bren Professor of Biological Sciences at the University of California, Irvine. Professor Frank develops theory on the evolutionary design of organisms and the failure of those designs in disease. His works include three monographs published by Princeton University Press: Dynamics of Cancer, Immunology and Evolution of Infectious Disease, and Foundations of Social Evolution. He has also published a series of seven articles on the advanced theory of natural selection, along with approximately another 150 peer-reviewed journal articles. His interest in engineering arises from studying the similarities and differences between human-engineered machines and naturally evolved organisms, a contrast that clarifies many aspects of design tradeoffs at the core of both engineering and biology. Professor Frank has received widespread recognition for his research, including election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Theodosius Dobzhansky Prize awarded by the Society for the Study of Evolution.

• Introduction.- Part I: Basic Principles.- Part II: Design Tradeoffs.- Part III: Common Challenges.

“This book outlines some basic concepts, models, problems and possible solutions related to systems and control theory, both classical and advanced. It provides a dozen numerical examples and graphical illustrations in a fairly intuitive and straightforward fashion. … this is really an excellent tutorial for students and engineers who are majoring in disciplines other than control theory and engineering.” (Jun Zhou, Mathematical Reviews, February, 2019)