Event Overview
Living systems span multiple scales and levels of organization—from molecules to cells to multicellular organisms to populations—and display phenomena that often have no analog in the inanimate world. Yet for much of the last five centuries, physics has focused primarily on non-living matter. The physics of living systems is now emerging as a vibrant field, promising not only to reveal new insights into the inner workings of biological systems, but also to push the boundaries of physics itself, particularly in areas such as non-equilibrium physics, active matter, and complex dynamical systems. At the same time, advances in large-scale experimentation and artificial intelligence are transforming biology by enabling models with remarkable capacity for dimensionality reduction and predictive power. The central challenges for the coming decade will be to develop models that are constrained by the laws of physics, and to connect their predictive power with mechanistic insight to move from prediction to predictive understanding.
The Physics of Life Symposium, now in its fifth edition, brings together researchers interested in applying the tools, approaches, and style of inquiry of physics to the study of living systems. Our objective is to cultivate a diverse and vibrant community of physical biologists in the San Francisco Bay Area, with Biohub in San Francisco serving as a hub for the exchange of ideas and the formation of new collaborations. By convening experimentalists, theorists, and computational scientists working across scales, the symposium aims to foster dialogue at the intersection of data-driven discovery and physics-inspired approaches, accelerating progress toward a predictive understanding of life.
View videos from the first Physics of Life Symposium held in January 2023 here. Subsequent Physics of Life Symposia were held in October 2023, September 2024, and September 2025.
Join us in-person or watch the talks online. Please register by Thursday, September 17. Talk abstracts should be submitted by August 14 for full consideration. Space is limited; register early to avoid being placed on a waitlist!
Keynote Speaker
Ned Wingreen, Ph.D.
Ned Wingreen is the Howard A. Prior Professor in the Life Sciences at Princeton University. He is a member of the Department of Molecular Biology and Associate Director of the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics and also associated faculty in the Department of Physics. Ned received his Ph.D. in theoretical condensed matter physics from Cornell University in 1989. He did his postdoc in mesoscopic physics at MIT before moving, in 1991, to the NEC Research Institute in Princeton. At NEC, he continued to work in mesoscopic physics, but also started research in biophysics which grew into a general interest in problems at the interface of physics and biology. Ned joined Princeton University in 2004. Ned’s current research interests include biophysical modeling of bacteria and other microorganisms, including bacterial communities and bacteria-phage interactions, intracellular phase separation, and systems immunology. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Scientific Organizers
Program
(ALL TIMES IN PACIFIC TIME)
Friday, September 25, 2026
Registration
Light breakfast & coffee available. Poster presenters hang up posters.
Welcoming remarks
Keynote address
Coffee break
Submitted 15-minute talks
6 Speakers TBA
Lunch & poster session preview
Lunch is provided.
Submitted 15-minute talks
7 Speakers TBA
Coffee break
Submitted 3-minute lightning talks
15 Speakers TBA
Closing remarks
Poster session & social hour
Hors d’oeuvres and beer, wine, and non-alcoholic drinks will be provided.
Submitted Talks And Posters
Students, postdocs, and early career researchers (non-PIs) are encouraged to share their work via a 15-minute talk or 3-minute lightning talk (plus poster), and all attendees are encouraged to present a poster. More details and the submission process are included during registration.
Key Dates:
- Talk abstracts should be submitted by the end of the day Friday, August 14 for full consideration.
- Poster submissions will be accepted until general registration closes (see below).
- General registration deadline is Thursday, September 17 (or earlier, if capacity is reached and a substantial waitlist has formed)
Location
Contact
Questions? Contact the event organizers at physicsoflife@czbiohub.org.