World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
Award Badge
Engineering and Technology
New Zealand
2026
Award Badge
Mathematics
New Zealand
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Mathematics

D-Index
67
Citations
17184
World Ranking
335
National Ranking
1

Engineering and Technology

D-Index
71
Citations
18371
World Ranking
963
National Ranking
4

Ecology and Evolution

D-Index
63
Citations
14778
World Ranking
1965
National Ranking
16

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Engineering and Technology in New Zealand Leader Award
  • 2026 - Research.com Mathematics in New Zealand Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Engineering and Technology in New Zealand Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Mathematics in New Zealand Leader Award
  • 2023 - Research.com Mathematics in New Zealand Leader Award
  • 2022 - Research.com Mathematics in New Zealand Leader Award
  • 2018 - Fellow of the International Society for Computational Biology
  • 2003 - Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand

Overview

Mike Steel is affiliated with the University of Canterbury in New Zealand and contributes extensively to research in Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology. Their work spans several subfields including Molecular Biology, Genetics, Astronomy and Astrophysics, Paleontology, and Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics.

Their research primarily focuses on topics such as Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies, Origins and Evolution of Life, Evolution and Paleontology Studies, Genetic Diversity and Population Structure, Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies, Protein Structure and Dynamics, and Plant and Animal Studies.

Mike Steel has published in a variety of scientific venues. The most frequent publication outlets include bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory), arXiv (Cornell University), Bulletin of Mathematical Biology, Systematic Biology, and the Journal of The Royal Society Interface.

Among their recent papers are:

  • "Autocatalytic chemical networks at the origin of metabolism," 2020, published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences
  • "The EDGE2 protocol: Advancing the prioritisation of Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered species for practical conservation action," 2023, published in PLoS Biology
  • "A model of the transition to behavioural and cognitive modernity using reflexively autocatalytic networks," 2020, published in Journal of The Royal Society Interface
  • "An evolutionary process without variation and selection," 2021, published in Journal of The Royal Society Interface
  • "The structure of autocatalytic networks, with application to early biochemistry," 2020, published in Journal of The Royal Society Interface

Frequent co-authors in Mike Steel's research include:

  • Liane Gabora
  • Daniel H. Huson
  • Joana C. Xavier
  • Stuart Kauffman
  • Arne Ø. Mooers

Steel has been recognized as a Fellow of the International Society for Computational Biology since 2018 and as a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand since 2003.

Best Publications

  • Recovering evolutionary trees under a more realistic model of sequence evolution.

    Peter J. Lockhart;Michael A. Steel;Michael D. Hendy;David Penny

  • The complexity of reconstructing trees from qualitative characters and subtrees

    Michael Steel

  • Subtree transfer operations and their induced metrics on evolutionary trees

    Benjamin Lang Allen;Mike Steel

  • Neighbor-Joining Revealed

    Olivier Gascuel;Mike Steel

  • Modeling the covarion hypothesis of nucleotide substitution.

    Chris Tuffley;Mike Steel

  • A genome phylogeny for mitochondria among alpha-proteobacteria and a predominantly eubacterial ancestry of yeast nuclear genes.

    Christian Esser;Nahal Ahmadinejad;Christian Wiegand;Carmen Rotte

  • Parsimony, Likelihood, and the Role of Models in Molecular Phylogenetics

    Mike Steel;David Penny

  • Distributions of Tree Comparison Metrics—Some New Results

    Mike A. Steel;David Penny

  • Recovering a tree from the leaf colourations it generates under a Markov model

    M.A. Steel

  • The (Super)Tree of Life: Procedures, Problems, and Prospects

    Olaf R. P. Bininda-Emonds;John L. Gittleman;Mike A. Steel

  • Links between maximum likelihood and maximum parsimony under a simple model of site substitution

    Chris Tuffley;Mike Steel

  • The Influence of Rate Heterogeneity among Sites on the Time Dependence of Molecular Rates

    Julien Soubrier;Mike Steel;Michael S.Y. Lee;Clio Der Sarkissian

  • A few logs suffice to build (almost) all trees (l): part I

    Michael A. Steel;Lázló A. Székely;Tandy J. Warnow;Péter L. Erdös

  • A few logs suffice to build (almost) all trees : Part II

    P. L. Erdös;M. A. Steel;L. A. Szekely;T. J. Warnow

  • Detecting autocatalytic, self-sustaining sets in chemical reaction systems

    Wim Hordijk;Mike Steel

  • Likelihood-based tree reconstruction on a concatenation of aligned sequence data sets can be statistically inconsistent.

    Sebastien Roch;Mike Steel

  • Distributions of cherries for two models of trees.

    Andrew Cameron McKenzie;M. A. Steel

  • Evolution of chlorophyll and bacteriochlorophyll: the problem of invariant sites in sequence analysis.

    Peter J. Lockhart;Anthony W. D. Larkum;Michael A. Steel;Peter J. Waddell

  • Acquisition of 1,000 eubacterial genes physiologically transformed a methanogen at the origin of Haloarchaea

    Shijulal Nelson-Sathi;Tal Dagan;Giddy Landan;Arnold Janssen

  • General Time-Reversible Distances with Unequal Rates across Sites: Mixing Γ and Inverse Gaussian Distributions with Invariant Sites

    Peter J Waddell;M.A Steel

  • Phylogeny: Discrete and Random Processes in Evolution

    Mike Steel

Frequent Co-Authors

Vincent Moulton
Vincent Moulton University of East Anglia
David Penny
David Penny Massey University
Daniel H. Huson
Daniel H. Huson University of Tübingen
Peter J. Lockhart
Peter J. Lockhart Massey University
Andreas W. M. Dress
Andreas W. M. Dress Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in the Sciences
Stuart A. Kauffman
Stuart A. Kauffman University of Vermont
Olivier Gascuel
Olivier Gascuel Université Paris Cité
William Martin
William Martin Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
Michael J. Sanderson
Michael J. Sanderson University of Arizona

If you think any of the details on this page are incorrect, let us know.

Report an issue

We appreciate your kind effort to assist us to improve this page, it would be helpful providing us with as much detail as possible in the text box below:

Related Online Degrees & Career Pathways

Studying Mathematics in the USA opens doors to various online degree programs that complement strong analytical skills. For those interested in combining business acumen with math expertise, exploring the mba transfer credits options can offer flexibility and time savings while pursuing advanced studies.

Data Analytics is a booming field where math graduates can thrive by interpreting complex data sets. The data analytics master's degree provides practical skills in statistical modeling and machine learning, making it a valuable next step for math majors aiming for cutting-edge careers.

For professionals seeking to enhance leadership skills without intense competition during admissions, researching mba programs easy to get into can be a strategic move. These programs help applicants with diverse backgrounds integrate business knowledge alongside their math degree.

Additionally, selecting the easiest mba program might appeal to individuals prioritizing faster completion and maintaining work-life balance. Such programs provide a practical approach to advancing careers in finance, consulting, or technology, directly benefiting from a strong math foundation.

Best Scientists Citing Mike Steel

Trending Scientists