Consensus methods developed in the context of voting, decision making, and other areas of the social and behavioral sciences have a variety of applications in the biological sciences, originally in taxonomy and evolutionary biology, and more recently in molecular biology. Typically, several alternatives (such as alternative phylogenetic trees, molecular sequences, or alignments) are produced using different methods or under different models, and then one needs to find a consensus solution.

This volume is based on two DIMACS working group meetings on “bioconsensus”. It provides a valuable introduction and reference to the various aspects of this rapidly developing field. The meetings brought together mathematical and biological scientists to discuss the uses in the biological sciences of methods of consensus and social choice. These two lively meetings contributed much toward establishing the new field of “bioconsensus”.

Yet this book is much more than just a report of two meetings. It includes some historical background, as well as a substantial introduction to the axiomatic foundations of the field of bioconsensus and some practical applications of consensus methods to real data. Also included are contributed papers from experts who were not at the meetings. The book is intended for mathematical biologists, evolutionary biologists, and computer scientists.