This book offers an accessible introduction to random walk and diffusion
models at a level consistent with the typical background of students in
the life sciences. In recent decades these models have become widely
used in areas far beyond their traditional origins in physics, for
example, in studies of animal behavior, ecology, sociology, sports
science, population genetics, public health applications, and human
decision making. Developing the main formal concepts, the book provides
detailed and intuitive step-by-step explanations, and moves smoothly
from simple to more complex models. Finally, in the last chapter, some
successful and original applications of random walk and diffusion models
in the life and behavioral sciences are illustrated in detail. The
treatment of basic techniques and models is consolidated and extended
throughout by a set of carefully chosen exercises.