In Memoriam - Bente Hilde Bakker
Recently, our respected and talented former colleague Bente Hilde Bakker passed away after a long and brave fight with illness. She received her mathematical training at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam and also obtained her PhD there under the supervision of Jan Bouwe van den Berg and Robert van der Vorst.
In her PhD thesis, entitled "Nonlinear waves in local and nonlocal media. A topological approach", Bente developed a highly creative and technical approach that allows fundamental Floer-Conley techniques rooted in algebraic-topology to be transferred to the setting of nonlocal differential equations. This approach opened the door towards an improved mathematical understanding of fundamental self-organized structures such as water waves, light pulses and spiral growth patterns, which can all be readily observed in the world around us. The exceptional quality of her work earned Bente the 2019-2020 Stieltjes prize, which is awarded annually for the best PhD thesis in mathematics defended at a Dutch university. As stated by one of the referee's: “I believe Bakker’s PhD thesis is at a level that one only sees once a decade”.
In 2019 Bente moved to Leiden University where she held a postdoctoral research position for three years. From the start, she was eager to explore how her abstract mathematical perspective could benefit other scientific disciplines. This led to several research projects in the realm of mathematical biology. For example, Bente wrote an extensive software package to help understand the mechanical interaction between cells and the surrounding extracellular matrix, which plays a fundamental role in the emergence of collective cell behavior in tissues. The project made it to the cover of Biophysical Journal and has become part of the 'Tissue Simulation Toolkit' that continues to be used and maintained at Leiden University and many other places all over the world. Through this work and her other contributions, which she was always eager to share and discuss, many researchers will benefit from Bente's legacy.
Bente regularly invested her time to train the upcoming generation of scientists and did so with great enthusiasm. For example, she supervised a bachelor project concerning the wave-like transport of the phytohormone auxin, which plays an essential role in the growth of plants. Besides a scientific publication this led to a poster prize for the student, who has fond memories of the project and is continuing his career in science. In addition, Bente coached 12-16 year-olds during activities surrounding electronic and mechanical engineering under the umbrella of "De Jonge Onderzoekers Amersfoort".
Our thoughts go out to Marieke as well as Bente's family and friends. We wish them strength in bearing this profound and untimely loss. The scientific community has lost a highly talented member and she will be dearly missed.
Text with thanks to Jan Bouwe van den Berg, Hermen Jan Hupkes and Roeland Merks.