About

I’m Yuval Bloch, a computational ecologist. I completed my M.Sc. in the Department of Life Sciences at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in 2026, in the Ecological Complexity Lab under the supervision of Prof. Shai Pilosof.

My research applies computational tools to understand and model complex ecological systems. With a background in computer science and a strong interest in ecological theory, I integrate approaches from machine learning, network science, and spatial modeling to explore biodiversity, disease dynamics, and ecosystem resilience.

A full list of papers, software, and my thesis is on the publications page.

M.Sc. Research

My thesis developed a multiscale cellular automata–Markov framework for modelling smallholder shifting cultivation and vanilla agroforestry landscapes in northeastern Madagascar, coupled to a stochastic agent-based tick population model to project disease exposure under different agroeconomic scenarios. The work was part of the EEID Madagascar Project. Code, thesis, and a manuscript in review are listed on the publications page.

Academic Background

• M.Sc. in Biology and Ecology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
  2023 – 2026 | GPA: 95
• B.Sc. in Computer Science, The Open University of Israel
  2020 – 2023 | GPA: 83