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Preface: mathematics, physics, and engineering in biology

In biology, mathematics and physics are still remote villages in the frontier. However, looking back in history, one of the keys in solving scientific issues raised in an academic mainstream may be to sprout an idea from the land of such a remote village. In fact, to date, mathematics and physics have evolved by stimulating with each other at the frontier region, an example of which could be the relationship between differential/integral calculus and classical mechanics in the 17–19th centuries. Engineering is an academic discipline, which encompasses mathematics and physics and applies them to problems that are more practical in nature. New findings can be obtained by engineering, including super precision measuring and processing technologies, in turn, advance mathematics and physics in a feedback-dependent manner. The same is true for biology. Engineering has always expanded its academic discipline and has already provided measurement technologies, such as multi-photon and atomic force microscopies to biology, bringing in many discoveries for biologists. Also, such discoveries definitely encourage the development of mathematics, physics and engineering rooted in biology. In this special issue, we gathered new ideas and trends in mathematics, physics and engineering in biology. We hope that this special issue will help the readers to take future developmental biology studies to a new aspect, and stimulate discussions in these academic disciplines fueled by their mutual interplay.