This event is in-person. No RSVP is required.

This April, the College of Sciences is hosting an inspiring look at the future of space exploration and life beyond Earth. Frontiers in Science: Advancing Space Exploration will convene leading scientists, engineers, policy experts, and thought leaders from across Georgia Tech and beyond to share research that’s guiding discovery and innovation. 

Can math models help us understand the brain?

Thursday, April 16, 2026
5:00PM - 6:00PM @ DM Smith 115 
Reception at 4:00pm in Skiles Atrium

Stelson Lecture Abstract

Can math models help us understand the brain? I would like to think that they can, and will illustrate by sharing some work my collaborators and I have done on the monkey visual system, which is very similar to that of humans. Specifically, I will focus on two visual properties: one is used in the detection of edges, the other is relevant when our eyes track moving objects. To explain the origin of these properties, simple mathematical ideas were first developed in idealized settings. They were then tested -- and fine-tuned -- via simulations using large-scale dynamical network models that are biologically more realistic.

SoM Colloquium Abstract

Convergence of ergodic averages from an observational viewpoint (Friday 4/17 at 11am)
The Birkhoff Ergodic Theorem describes typical behaviors and averaged quantities with respect to an invariant measure. In this talk, I will focus on "observable" events, equating observability with positive Lebesgue measure. From this observational viewpoint, "typical" means typical with respect to Lebesgue measure. This leads immediately to issues for attractors, where all invariant measures are singular. I will present highlights of developments in smooth ergodic theory that address these questions. The theory of physical and SRB measures applies to dynamical systems that are deterministic as well as random, in finite and infinite dimensions (where observability has to be interpreted differently). This body of ideas argue in favor of convergence of ergodic averages for typical orbits. But the picture is a little more complicated: In the last part of the talk, I will discuss some recent work that shows that in many natural settings (e.g. reaction networks), it is also typical for ergodic averages to fluctuate in perpetuity due to heteroclinic-like behavior.

About the Speaker

Lai-Sang Young is a Professor of Mathematics and Henry and Lucy Moses Professor of Science at the Courant Institute, New York University. She received her PhD from the University of California at Berkeley in 1978. Her primary area of research is dynamical systems, with applications to mathematical physics and computational neuroscience. She has given plenary lectures at the International Congress of Mathematicians (2018), International Congress on Mathematical Physics (1997, 2018), and in annual meetings of the American Mathematical Society and Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. Her recent awards include the Moser Prize (2021), Hopf Prize (2023), and Schock Prize (2024). She is a member of the US National Academy of Sciences.

In this townhall, we will present a vision of a similar AI for math center at Georgia Tech, under the auspices of the Institute for Data Engineering and Science (IDEaS). The goals include enabling GT and GTRI research groups focused on AI4Math by bringing in funding , conducting seminars/workshops on AI4Math topics, and setting up tutorials such as Introduction to Lean and AI4Math Tools.

"Communicating about Culturally Controversial Science Topics"

Speaker: Elizabeth Barnes
Assistant Professor, Biology Education
Middle Tennessee State University

Bio: M. Elizabeth Barnes is an associate professor in the biology department at Middle Tennessee State University. Her research lab studies how to improve undergraduate biology education with a focus on instructor and student science communication across cultural, political, and religious divides. She is also a co-founder of the NSF-funded Science Communication Education Research Network.

Future Seminars in this Series

Friday, February 13, 1pm, Exhibition Hall (joint seminar with ComSciConATL 2026) 
Speakers: John Besley (Michigan State) and Anthony Dudo (University of Texas, Austin)

Tuesday, March 10, 1pm, Suddath Seminar Room, 1128 IBB 
Speaker: Bethann Garramon Merkle, University of Wyoming

Wednesday, April 8, 1pm, Suddath Seminar Room, 1128 IBB 
Speaker: Todd Newman, University of Wisconsin - Madison
 

Speaker Bio: Dr. Robert Jernigan
Dr. Robert Jernigan is the Charles F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor at Iowa State University and Director of the Baker Center for Bioinformatics and Biological Statistics. His research focuses on understanding protein structure and function through computational approaches, with the goal of improving predictive accuracy from protein sequences and developing better methods for identifying biological function.

Dr. Jernigan has an extensive interdisciplinary background in both scientific research and research administration. Trained as a physical chemist, he spent many years at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, where he served as Deputy Laboratory Chief of the Laboratory of Experimental and Computational Biology and led the Molecular Structure Section within the National Cancer Institute. In 2002, he joined Iowa State University to lead the Baker Center, where he continues to conduct research on large-scale protein models, enhanced sequence matching, and AI-driven approaches to biological discovery.

Register Here

Georgia Tech students with an interest in artificial intelligence (AI) are invited to attend the Tech AI Career Fair. This event provides a unique opportunity to connect with leading companies, explore career opportunities, and showcase research. A student research poster session may also be included.

Whether you're looking to gain industry insights, expand your network, or take the next step in your AI career, the Tech AI Career Fair is designed to support your journey.

Georgia Tech is the nation’s largest producer of AI-credentialed alumni and is ranked among the top five U.S. universities in AI, according to U.S. News & World Report.

Since its inception, AI-ALOE has created seven pioneering AI technologies that have been implemented in more than 360 classes across multiple universities, reaching over 30,000 learners. Recent studies show that Jill Watson, AI-ALOE’s virtual teaching assistant, outperforms ChatGPT in real classroom settings. To date, AI-ALOE researchers have also published over 160 peer-reviewed papers, contributing significant insights to the growing field of AI-enhanced learning.

AI-ALOE will host a Research Showcase in person at Georgia Tech on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025, from 1 to 4:30 p.m. in the Walter G. Ehmer Theater (Atlantic) and Rafael Bras Room at the Student Center. This interactive event will bring together researchers, educators, and innovators to explore the latest breakthroughs in AI for learning and education.

Attendees can look forward to:
• Research Presentations – Learn about groundbreaking projects and their educational impact.
• 5-Minute Madness – Hear from AI-ALOE scientists and students in a rapid showcase of ideas and discoveries.
• Poster and Demo Sessions – Experience AI-driven tools firsthand while enjoying light refreshments.
• Panel Discussion: “AI in Higher Education” – Engage with academic leaders shaping the future of teaching and learning.

Whether you’re a researcher, educator, student, or industry professional, the AI-ALOE Showcase offers a unique opportunity to explore new ideas, experience innovative technologies, and connect with leaders in AI and education.

Register here.

Join us on Tech Tower Lawn two hours before kickoff to reconnect, celebrate, and make new memories with the College of Sciences community. There will be food, games, and TVs available to watch the game right from our tent. 

Register for the College of Sciences Homecoming Tailgate.

October 30th from 4:30pm – 5:30pm
@ Skiles 006
Reception at 4pm

Title: The Convexity Conjecture, the Kahn-Kalai Conjecture, and introduction to k-thresholds

Abstract: The "Convexity Conjecture" by Talagrand asks (very roughly) whether one can "create convexity" in constant steps regardless of the dimension of the ambient space. Talagrand also suggested a discrete version of the Convexity Conjecture and called it "my lifetime favorite problem," offering $1,000 prize for its solution. We introduce a reformulation of the discrete Convexity Conjecture using the new notion of "k-thresholds," which is an extension of the traditional notion of thresholds, introduced by Talagrand. Some ongoing work on understanding k-thresholds, along with a (vague) connection between the Kahn-Kalai Conjecture and the discrete Convexity Conjecture, will also be discussed. Joint work with Michel Talagrand.

Photo by Rod Searcey

 

About the Speaker

Jinyoung Park is an Assistant Professor of Mathematics at the Courant Institute, NYU. Her research interests include extremal and probabilistic combinatorics. She earned her Ph.D. in mathematics from Rutgers University in 2020, under the supervision of Jeff Kahn. Following her Ph.D., she was a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) and Stanford University before joining the faculty of the Courant Institute at NYU in 2023. Park received her bachelor's degree in mathematics education from Seoul National University in 2005 and worked as a secondary school mathematics teacher until 2011. She has received several honors and awards, including the AMS Conant Prize, the Dénes König Prize, and the Maryam Mirzakhani New Frontiers Prize.

Meet the Recruiters 

1:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. 
President’s Suite B, Bill Moore Student Success Center
Students will be able to connect informally with recruiters representing a variety of State of Georgia agencies. They will learn about available roles, hiring processes, and what it’s like to work in public service. No RSVP required. 

Overview and Alumni Panel 

6 – 8 p.m.
Cypress Theater, John Lewis Student Center
Georgia Tech alumni working across State of Georgia agencies will share their career journeys and how their College of Sciences degree prepared them for impactful roles in state government. 

Registration is required for the evening panel session. Log in to CareerBuzz to register.

Stelson Public Lecture

Thursday, September 18, 2025
5:00pm - 6:00pm @ Boggs B5
Reception 4:00-4:45pm in Skiles Courtyard

Projection areas of 4-dimensional convex bodies

Consider a convex body in 4-dimensional space—perhaps an ellipsoid or a polytope. When we project the convex body onto the six coordinate planes, we obtain six planar shadows whose areas we can measure. This leads to a deceptively simple question: which six numbers can arise as these projection areas?

Behind this concrete geometric problem lies a web of deep mathematics connecting Minkowski's classical work on the isoperimetric problem to recent developments in algebraic geometry. I will trace the path to the answer, revealing the rich mathematical landscape that emerges from this seemingly elementary question.

SoM Special Colloquium 

Friday, September 19, 2025
11:00am - 12:00pm
Skiles 006

Volume polynomials

Volume polynomials constitute a distinguished class of log-concave polynomials with remarkable analytic and combinatorial properties arising from convex bodies and projective varieties. I will introduce new entropy inequalities satisfied by volume polynomials, discuss applications to the combinatorics of algebraic matroids, introduce the new class of analytic matroids, and pose several open questions (based on joint with Lukas Grund, Mateusz Michalek, Henrik Süss, and Botong Wang).

About the Speaker

Professor June Huh is known for forging deep and unexpected connections between combinatorics and algebraic geometry. His work has transformed how mathematicians think about longstanding problems involving discrete structures, such as graphs and matroids, by importing tools from geometry traditionally used to study curves, surfaces, and other solutions to polynomial equations.

While still a graduate student, Huh resolved Read’s conjecture—a 1968 problem in graph theory—by applying techniques from algebraic geometry to prove a pattern in the coefficients of chromatic polynomials. This breakthrough launched a line of research that culminated in a proof of the Rota-Welsh conjecture with collaborators Karim Adiprasito and Eric Katz, establishing a striking bridge between combinatorics and Hodge theory, a foundational topic in geometry.

With Petter Brändén, Huh also introduced the theory of Lorentzian polynomials, providing a new framework for understanding log-concavity and related phenomena across combinatorics, computer science, and probability. For his groundbreaking contributions bringing ideas from Hodge theory into combinatorics, Huh was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship and the 2022 Fields Medal.

Huh’s current research interests include tropical geometry, Lorentzian polynomials, correlation phenomena for models in statistical physics, connections between realizability problems in algebraic geometry and combinatorics, and the geometry of matroids and polymatroids.

Email your questions in advance to townhall@gatech.edu. Questions should be submitted by 5 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 28.

Representatives from corporate, not-for-profit, and governmental; large and small; local, national, and global organizations are invited to participate in the event.

SENE allows current students to: 

• connect with top employers

• gain valuable career insights

• explore career pathways & identify future internship, co-op, and full-time opportunities

Refreshments will be available in the atrium of the Bill Moore Student Success Center, President's Suites A-D. 

RSVP REQUIRED. Log in to CareerBuzz to register.

This event includes a panel discussion, Q&A session, and time for networking. 

Dinner will be provided.

RSVP REQUIRED. Log in to CareerBuzz to register.

The event will begin at the Bill Moore Student Success Center with casual meet-and-greet activities, info sessions, and tabling, allowing students to engage before or after class. The event will conclude in the Cypress Theater at the John Lewis Student Center with a special alumni panel entitled: “What Can I Do with My Georgia Tech STEM Degree: Southern Company Edition.” The panel will feature Georgia Tech graduates working at Southern Company who will share their career journeys, advice, and lessons learned. This event is open to all Georgia Tech students and highlights the College’s continued commitment to connecting academic learning with industry insight. 

Meet the Recruiters, Open Student Session

• 1:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
• Bill Moore Student Success Center, President’s Suite B
• NO RSVP NEEDED. Drop by before or after class!

What Can I Do with My Georgia Tech STEM Degree: Southern Company Edition 

• 6 – 8 p.m.
• Cypress Theater, John Lewis Student Center
• Dinner will be served.
• RSVP REQUIRED. Log in to CareerBuzz to register.

Bring your resume, questions, and confidence!

Light hors d'oeuvres will be served.

RSVP REQUIRED. Log in to CareerBuzz to register.

This signature networking event brings together current College of Sciences students and distinguished Georgia Tech alumni for an evening of conversation, connection, and career exploration. 

Students will gain valuable insights into career paths, receive professional advice, and strengthen their Georgia Tech network in a relaxed, dinner setting. 

Whether you're exploring industries, seeking a mentor, or expanding your professional circle, this event is a key opportunity to engage with the broader College of Sciences community. 

Dinner will be provided. 

RSVP REQUIRED. Log in to CareerBuzz to register.

Extraction Demo: 12 – 1:30 p.m. 

The bees on the rooftop of Kendeda have been busy making honey this year. If you've never seen how honey is extracted, watch and participate in this fun and oh-so-sweet demonstration.

All About Honey: 12 – 2 p.m. 

• Sample our newly extracted honey.
• Meet Urban Honey Bee Project Resident Beekeeper Deb De Witt and the Georgia Tech Student Bee Club.
• Learn about our important pollinators.
• Take home a native wildflower pollinator seed pack, honey straw, and education literature on pollinators.
• Visit the rooftop garden and see our beehives.

Tuesday, May 13, 2025
11:30 a.m. EST
Scholars Event Theater
(limited in person space so please RSVP)

Zoom link for attending virtually.

Agenda
• Welcome
• Institute Overview
• F&A Discussion 
• Q&A

Distance Math Prospective Student Webinar 

April 23, 2025 
6:00 – 7:00 PM 

Join our team from School of Math, Online Learning, and Undergraduate Admission to learn more about the program and the dual enrollment admission process. If you are unable to attend, a recording will be available here approximately one week after the meeting.

Register here

For more information about the SoM Distance Math Program see our website here:

https://math.gatech.edu/undergraduate/distance-math-program

Register here.

When: Tuesday, April 15th, 1 – 2:30 p.m., followed by refreshments until 3:00 p.m. 

Where: Skiles 006

Please register by Friday, April 11, 2025: https://gatech.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cHlYCQ4rqbdgdCu 

Speakers:

Register via Career Buzz.

What: Math & Pizza
When: 11AM - 2PM April 10
Where: Clough 102
Why: For fun!

Graduate students present cool math topics designed specifically for you!

◊ Sphere packing in 3 dimensions
◊ Active contour without edges
◊ Diffusion generative modeling algorithms
◊ Filamentations of vortex patches on planes and spheres
◊ Mathematics of Grid Cells
◊ Sum of squares and non-negative polynomials
◊ Simple Random Walks in different dimensions
◊ Introduction to artificial neural network
◊ Proof of Isoperimetric inequality by using Knothe map

Drop by when it’s good for you. Stay as long as you want. This is a casual event!

RSVP at https://gatech.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3saXKOBi0ktndvE

Jointly hosted by the combinatorics groups at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia State University, and Emory University.

organized by Tom Kelly, Liana Yepremyan, and Yi Zhao.

The talk will be at 5pm on April 3rd in the Bill Moore Student Success Center Press Room A , with refreshments at 4:30. 

Please Note: The location is now Press Room A.

Title: Nodal Statistics for Graphs and Matrices 

Abstract: The study of nodal statistics provides insight into the spectral properties of graphs and matrices, drawing strong parallels with classical results in analysis. In this talk, we will give an overview of the field, covering key results on nodal domains and nodal counts for graphs  and their connection to known results in the continuous setting. In addition, we will discuss some recent progress towards a complete understanding of the extremal properties of the nodal statistics of a matrix.

Bio: John Urschel is an Assistant Professor of Mathematics at MIT, and a Junior Fellow at the Harvard Society of Fellows. Previously, he was a member of the Institute for Advanced Study. He received his Ph.D. in Mathematics from MIT in 2021 under the supervision of Michel Goemans. His main research interests include matrix analysis, numerical linear algebra, and spectral graph theory. He recently received the SIAM DiPrima Prize and the SIAM Early Career Prize in Linear Algebra.

About the Atlanta Combinatorics Colloquium

The Atlanta Combinatorics Colloquium is a seminar in discrete mathematics jointly hosted by the combinatorics groups at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia State University, and Emory University.
 

Please RSVP by March 20, 2025.

Food will be provided!

Come participate in the first-ever SoM Speed Networking Event!

Friday, April 4th • 4-6PM • Skiles 006

Presented by the Skiles Committee

Hosted by the Skiles Committee, the event is open to all members of SoM. Each round will give 5 minutes to introduce yourself, exchange thoughts, and network with someone new. Don’t miss your chance to expand your circle and meet some other members of SoM. Refreshments will be served. Confirm your spot at

https://gatech.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0O3KRuLgbltXqJg

Register via Career Buzz.

Visit the 2025 Atlanta Science Festival Launch at Georgia Tech event webpage for more information!

For general questions, contact Georgia Tech Research Events.

The Atlanta Science Festival, returning Saturday, March 8, 2025, is an annual public celebration of local science and technology. Curious people of all ages will explore the science and technology in our region and see how science is connected to all parts of our lives. Learn more.

Presented by Mathematics in Motion, VinsonArt.com

Experience the beauty of mathematical art and create some yourself during Mathapalooza!, which marks the opening of The Art of Math at the Sun ATL gallery. The afternoon will start with a mathematical magic show by Matt Baker and end with a performance of Bach's Crab Canon by Tracy Woodard including a discussion of the symmetries hidden in that work. While visiting the exhibition you will explore the math in circus arts, construct mathy artwork yourself, and learn about math through puzzles, games, and more!

Stay for the whole show from 3:00 to 7:00 or drop by at any time.

Tickets to "Mathapalooza!" will also be valid for admission to "The Art of Math" for the duration of the Atlanta Science Festival.

GETTING THERE

ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION
Take MARTA bus route 3 and exit at Edgewood Ave SE and Boulevard SE. Walk east on Edgewood Ave SE for about .1 miles to arrive at the Sun ATL Gallery.
 

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Register via Career Buzz.

Part One: Meet Deloitte Representatives

• When: 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
• Where: Bill Moore Success Center, President’s Suites (1st floor)

Engage with professionals from Deloitte during an afternoon tabling session. Explore career pathways and learn about the company's innovative projects. 

No RSVP needed — just drop by before or after class!

Part Two: What Can I Do with My Georgia Tech Science Degree? – Deloitte Edition

• When: 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
• Where: John Lewis Student Center, Cypress Theater

Dive into an evening of career exploration! The program includes a Q&A panel featuring Deloitte employees and Georgia Tech alumni as well as a networking reception to connect directly with professionals. Dinner will be served!

You MUST RSVP for this event via Career Buzz.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

organized by: Alex Dunn, Xiaoyu He, Rose McCarty, Dmitrii Ostrovskii, and Wei Zhu

Abstract

I will give an overview of a research path in data driven modeling of complex systems over the last 30 or so years – from the early days of shallow neural networks and autoencoders for nonlinear dynamical system identification, to the more recent derivation of data driven “emergent” spaces in which to better learn generative PDE laws. In all illustrations presented, I will try to point out connections between the “traditional” numerical analysis we know and love, and the more modern data-driven tools and techniques we now have – and some mathematical questions they hopefully make possible for us to answer.

About the Speaker 

Yannis Kevrekidis studied Chemical Engineering at the National Technical University in Athens. He then followed the steps of many alumni of that department to the University of Minnesota, where he studied with Rutherford Aris and Lanny Schmidt (as well as Don Aronson and Dick McGehee in Math). He was a Director's Fellow at the Center for Nonlinear Studies in Los Alamos in 1985-86 (when the Soviet Union still existed and research funds were plentiful). He then had the good fortune of joining the faculty at Princeton, where he taught Chemical Engineering and also Applied and Computational Mathematics for 31 years; seven years ago he became Emeritus and started fresh at Johns Hopkins (where he somehow is also Professor of Urology). His work always had to do with nonlinear dynamics (from instabilities and bifurcation algorithms to spatiotemporal patterns to data science in the 90s, nonlinear identification, multiscale modeling, and back to data science/ML); and he had the additional good fortune to work with several truly talented experimentalists, like G. Ertl's group in Berlin. Currently -on leave from Hopkins- he works with the Defense Sciences Office at DARPA. When young and promising he was a Packard Fellow, a Presidential Young Investigator and the Ulam Scholar at Los Alamos National Laboratory. He holds the Colburn, CAST Wilhelm and Walker awards of the AIChE, the Crawford and the Reid prizes of SIAM, he is a member of the NAE, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Academy of Athens.

About Elaine Hubbard

The SoM Colloquiums are named in honor of Elaine M. Hubbard (MATH 1972, M.S. MATH 1974, Ph.D. MATH 1980), who died in 2016 after a 28-year career as a mathematics professor at Kennesaw State University. Hubbard was a long-time friend and supporter of the School of Mathematics and a member of the College of Sciences Advisory Board. 

Hubbard also included a provision in her estate that established the Elaine M. Hubbard Endowed Chair for the School of Mathematics.

Prepare to showcase your scientific expertise at career fairs and networking events with confidence! 

"CoS Under the Scope: Selling Your Science" is designed to help students craft compelling personal narratives and refine their professional communication skills. Gain insights into making impactful first impressions and learn strategies to highlight your unique strengths as a science student. This interactive session is your key to standing out in a competitive job market.

Register via Career Buzz and Zoom.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

When Optics Met Digital Signal Processing: A Love Story

Featuring Kim Robers, Vice President, WaveLogic Science, Ciena and Ian Roberts, DSP Engineer, Ciena

Abstract: Control and Information Theories added spice to the marriage. Teams of analog and digital CMOS designers and firmware coders delivered the progeny that now transport 800 Gb/s signals across optical fiber networks around the world. Ian Roberts, of Ciena Alpharetta, and Kim Roberts, of Ciena Ottawa, will describe the challenges and some of their solutions that have created the Digital Coherent revolution in high-capacity optical communications. Then they will outline the opportunities to push against daunting physical limits and create the next generation of transmission systems that will carry more information even greater distances to achieve lower cost and lower heat per cat video transported. Chromatic dispersion in optical fibers is a change in the velocity of light as a function of frequency. This smears each transmitted symbol on top of hundreds of its neighbors. Because of the Kerr nonlinearity in glass, amplitude variations create optical phase shifts which are expressed as self-phase and cross-phase degradations of the communications signal. Semiconductor lasers are compact sources, but have wide phase-noise spectra which complicates tracking of the signal phase in a receiver. Optical components have polarization dependent loss or gain. Optical fibers create differential delay between polarizations, that changes with the mechanical orientation of the cable. Lightning strikes can create large transients in the polarization orientation. Optical fibers lose half of the transmitted power after 15km. Optical amplifiers are used to overcome this loss across about 5 or 10 THz of optical spectrum, but inevitably contribute optical noise. These effects create 30 billion errors per second in the decoded signal which all need to be corrected. Users of internet services continue to demand twice as much capacity every two years. In many networks, greater spectral efficiency is required as that optical spectrum is getting full. 115 GHz analog sampling and 800 trillion integer operations per second are implemented in the fifth generation modem, WaveLogic-5e, to mitigate these issues.

Bios:

Kim Roberts has been a major force in the field of digital signal processing for optical transmission in developing the first coherent 40, 100, 400, and 800 Gb/s optical systems. Today Kim is Vice President at Ciena, leading an R&D team focused on pushing the optical boundaries even further with WaveLogic-6. Kim is a passionate evangelist of new optical technologies and holds more than 190 patents with many more pending. Kim was named an IEEE Fellow, a Nortel Fellow, and in 2008 the Outstanding Engineer by IEEE Canada. Kim is the 2019 recipient of the Tyndall Award. Kim resides in Canada and can be reached at kroberts@ciena.com.

Ian Roberts completed his Ph.D. in optimization of nonlinear optical fiber networks at Stanford. At Ciena he created a popular constellation morphing demo first shared at the Optical Fiber Conference, carrying uninterrupted traffic at 35 billion symbols per second during constellation transformations. More recently, he has implemented nonlinear probabilistic amplitude shaping and DSP for 800 Gb/s and beyond optical systems. Ian resides in Sandy Springs, Georgia and can be reached at iroberts@ciena.com.

Hosted by: Stephen Ralph and Nima Ghalichechian

Pizza and soda will be available post seminar

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Refreshments will be provided after the talk.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Become a fossil hunter and help discover how vertebrate communities have changed through time. Experience firsthand what it is like to be a paleontologist, finding and identifying new specimens! 

You will be picking and sorting 3,000 to 30,000-year-old fossil specimens from rock matrix that has been brought back from Natural Trap Cave, WY. These specimens are part of many research projects examining how the community of species living around Natural Trap Cave has changed since the extinction of the cheetahs, lions, dire wolves, mammoths, camels, horses, and other megafauna that used to live in North America. 

You are welcome to participate anytime that is convenient, with no commitment necessary. In fact, you can drop in or leave anytime within the two-hour timeframe. All are welcome, so bring your friends! 

For more information join the mailing list and/or contact Katie Slenker (kslenker3@gatech.edu) or Jenny McGuire (jmcguire@gatech.edu).

​* No T. rex actually helped with the excavations of Natural Trap Cave as their arms would be much too small.

Learn more about Georgia Tech Homecoming 2024.

Stelson Lecture Abstract

Ramanujan and Expander Graphs (Thursday 10/24 at 4:30pm in Bill Moore SSC Press Rooms A & B)

Expander graphs are highly connected  sparse graphs. They have wide theoretical and practical applications in Computer Science and Engineering. Ramanujan Graphs are optimal expanders and as the name suggests they are constructed number theoretically. We review their construction as well more recent constructions that use statistical physics. We highlight some recent applications in the reverse direction where combinatorial ideas are combined with arithmetical ones to establish expansion of graphs arising in diophantine analysis.

SoM Colloquium Abstract

The Arithmetic Structure of the Spectrum of a Metric Graph (Friday 10/25 at 11am in Skiles 005/006) 

Endowing a finite combinatorial graph with lengths on its edges defines singular 1-dimensional Riemannian manifolds known as metric graphs. The spectra of their Laplacians have been widely studied. We show that these spectra have a structured linear part described in terms of arithmetic progressions and a nonlinear "random" part which is highly linearly and even algebraically independent over the rationals.These spectra give rise to exotic crystalline measures ("Generalised Poisson Summation Formulae") and resolve various open problems concerning the latter. Joint work with Pavel Kurasov.

About the Speaker

Professor Peter Sarnak is a South African/American mathematician who has been a member of the permanent faculty of the School of Mathematics at the Institute for Advanced Study since 2007. He is also Eugene Higgins Professor of Mathematics at Princeton University since 2002.  Professor Sarnak has made important contributions to analysis and number theory. Sarnak’s work on the existence of cusp forms led to the disproof of a conjecture of Selberg. He has obtained the strongest known bounds towards the Ramanujan–Petersson conjectures for sparse graphs, and he was one of the first to exploit connections between certain questions of theoretical physics and analytic number theory. Professor Sarnak has also made fundamental contributions to arithmetical quantum chaos, a term which he introduced, and to the relationship between random matrix theory and the zeros of L-functions. His work on sub-convexity for Rankin–Selberg L-functions led to the resolution of Hilbert's eleventh problem.   Professor Sarnak has received many international prizes in recognition of his broad and deep contributions to mathematics. He was awarded the 2024 Shaw Prize for "his development of the arithmetic theory of thin groups and the affine sieve, by bringing together number theory, analysis, combinatorics, dynamics, geometry and spectral theory”.  Professor Sarnak has mentored over 57 PhD students during his career, many of whom have gone to have spectacular careers in mathematics.

This event is your gateway to a semester filled with career-focused workshops and panels, including: 

• What Can I Do with My Science Degree: Physical Sciences and Math: Sept. 18, 2024
• What Can I Do with My Science Degree: Life Sciences: Sept. 25, 2024
• Science & Math Internships (How to get started): Oct. 9, 2024
• CoS Student and Alumni Leadership Dinner: Oct. 30, 2024

Dive into the world of possibilities, mingle with fellow students in your major, and network with industry leaders. Plus, we've got a delicious dinner waiting for you!

Secure your spot and register via CareerBuzz for this insightful presentation! Don't forget to bring a friend — it's the perfect way to kick off the fall semester. See you there!

Secure your spot today and join us for an engaging exploration into the world of scientific internships and how to register them with the career center. 

Refreshments will be served. Students may RSVP via CareerBuzz.

All College of Sciences faculty, staff, and graduate students are invited to attend.
RSVP by August 21 for details and a calendar invitation. (GT login required.)

Robin Thomas was a renowned mathematician and Regents' Professor in the School of Mathematics at Georgia Tech, who passed away on March 26, 2020, following a long struggle against Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Robin made major contributions to the development of graph theory and related fields, proving transformational results and mentoring dozens of junior researchers. 

Robin Thomas won the top prize in combinatorics, the Fulkerson prize, twice: first in 1994 for his work with Robertson and Seymour on Hadwiger's Conjecture, and then again in 2009 for proving the Strong Perfect Graph Theorem with Chudnovsky, Robertson, and Seymour. In his classes, however, Robin was very modest. He once attempted to attribute this influential theorem only to "CRST", until his assistant was obliged to point out what the "T" stands for.

Robin Thomas directed Georgia Tech's interdisciplinary PhD program in ACO (Algorithms, Combinatorics, and Optimization) for 13 years, graduating 16 PhD students. Robin's lasting impact as a mentor was apparent at this conference. Many of the speakers and attendees worked with Robin as colleagues, postdocs, PhD students, undergraduates, and as friends. Robin's family were honored guests at the conference dinner, which featured wonderful talks and anecdotes in his memory.

Robin Thomas is also honored by the creation of the Robin Thomas Memorial Fellowship at Georgia Tech, by the 2022 conference CSGT which was dedicated to him and held in Prague, where he always maintained close ties, and by a 2023 issue of the journal JCTB, which was a tribute to his work.

This workshop is combined with the Atlanta Lecture Series in Graph Theory and Combinatorics, and will focus on recent advances in graph theory and combinatorics that are related to the work of Robin Thomas.

Registration

There is no registration fee. However, please register, in order to let us know that you will be attending the conference. We have limited funds that can be used to support graduate students and junior researchers, in particular those from underrepresented groups. Please let us know when you register. For any question related to registration and financial support, please conatct Zhiyu Wang (zwang672 at gatech.edu).

Registration Form

Invited Speakers

• Maria Chudnovsky, Princeton University 
• Zdenĕk Dvořák, Charles University 
• Guoli Ding, Lousiana State University 
• Andrea Jimenez, Universidad de Valparaiso 
• Dan Král', Masaryk University 
• Chun-Hung Liu, Texas A&M University 
• Martin Loebl, Charles University 
• Rose McCarty, University of Warsaw
• Bojan Mohar, Simon Fraser University 
• Theo Molla, University of South Florida 
• Sergey Norin, McGill University 
• Sang-il Oum, IBS and KAIST 
• James Oxley, Lousiana State University
• Jinyoung Park, Stanford University
• Luke Postle, University of Waterloo 
• Zixia Song, University of Central Florida 
• Prasad Tetali, Carnegie Mellon University 
• Paul Wollan, University of Rome 
• Youngho Yoo, Georgia Tech

Sponsors

• Math@Tech Hub (M@TH) - School of Mathematics, Georgia Institute of Technology
• ACO -Algorithms, Combinatorics and Optimization, Georgia Institute of Technology
• National Security Agency and National Science Foundation (for Atlanta Lecture Series)

Please RSVP by July 30

Parking will not be provided. Please park in the Visitor Area 1: North Avenue parking lot.

Event highlights:
- Connect with fellow College of Sciences students and alumni
- Engage in meaningful small group discussions
- Hear inspiring stories and insights from accomplished alumni
- Enjoy delightful music and dinner
- Ignite your passion and drive for success

Don't miss this opportunity to connect, learn, and be inspired!

Date: October 30, 2024
Time: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Location: Alumni House

Attire: Business casual attire is recommended.

Registration: To attend this exclusive event, please register through CareerBuzz on the Georgia Tech Career Center webpage.

To answer this question, we have developed a series to connect students with professionals from various disciplines of the science industry who can provide insight on career pathways post-graduation. 

This session targets our physical sciences and math majors including: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biochemistry, and Earth & Atmospheric Sciences.

Refreshments will be served.

Students may register via CareerBuzz.

April 5 - 6, 2024

Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA

Conference website: https://wliao60.math.gatech.edu/2024ACMWorkshop.html

Where: Klaus 2447

Uniform Convergence is a one-woman play, written and performed by Corrine Yap, an SoM postdoc.

Through the lives of a 19th century Russian mathematician and a present-day Asian-American math professor, this solo piece explores the struggles of two women trying to find their place in a white male-dominated academic world. Using text, mathematics, movement, and music, the play is an attempt to understand identity and how we communicate who we are.

Admission is free of charge. Refreshments served at 4:45pm. RSVP at https://bit.ly/3PG3N5t

Public lecture:

From Coffee to Mathematics: Making Connections and Finding Unexpected Links

March 7, 2024
Welcome reception: 4 p.m.
Lecture: 4:30 - 5:30 p.m.
Location: Howey-Physics L3
No RSVP required

The game of HEX has deep mathematical underpinnings despite its simple rules. What could this game possibly have to do with coffee, and how does that connection, once identified, lead to consideration of ferromagnetism and even to the melting polar ice caps? Join Hugo Duminil-Copin, Professor of Mathematics at Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques (IHES) and the University of Geneva, for an exploration of how mathematical thinking can help us make some truly surprising connections.

Colloquium:

Critical phenomena through the lens of the Ising model

March 8, 2024
Time: 11 a.m.
Location: Skiles 006

The Ising model is one of the most classical lattice models of statistical physics undergoing a phase transition. Initially imagined as a model for ferromagnetism, it revealed itself as a very rich mathematical object and a powerful theoretical tool to understand cooperative phenomena. Over one hundred years of its history, a profound understanding of its critical phase has been obtained. While integrability and mean-field behavior led to extraordinary breakthroughs in the two-dimensional and high-dimensional cases respectively, the model in three and four dimensions remained mysterious for years. In this talk, we will present recent progress in these dimensions based on a probabilistic interpretation of the Ising model relating it to percolation models.

About the speaker

Professor Hugo Duminil-Copin is a French mathematician specializing in probability theory, who studies the border between mathematics and physics and analyzes models of fluids flowing through a porous medium, such as water coursing through coffee grounds. Such models, which involve the formation of connected clusters in random networks, can also represent the spread of a disease, the circulation of a rumor, or the advance of a forest fire.

Professor Duminil-Copin has diverse interests in a range of activities which also characterizes his work, and has sampled tools from various fields in an ongoing effort to transform mathematicians’ understanding of phase transitions.

For that work, Duminil-Copin was awarded the Fields Medal in 2022 for "solving longstanding problems in the probabilistic theory of phase transitions in statistical physics, especially in dimensions three and four".

About the Stelson Lecture Series

Thomas Stelson was a distinguished Civil Engineer who served as the Dean of Georgia Tech's College of Engineering from 1971 to 1974, as Vice President for Research from 1974 to 1988, and as Executive Vice President from 1988 to 1990.

During the 70's and 80's, he oversaw a vast expansion in Tech's research expenditures during an era when Tech went from being primarily teaching-oriented university to a major research institution.

Thomas Stelson helped the School of Mathematics create the Center for Dynamical Systems and Nonlinear Studies, and he endowed the School's Stelson lectures in 1988 in honor of his father, Hugh Stelson, who was a mathematician. Hugh Stelson was born in 1903 and earned his doctorate from the University of Iowa in 1930. From 1925 to 1930, Hugh taught mathematics at several universities in Iowa, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania, and then he went on to teach at Kent State University (1930-1947) and Michigan State University (1947-1970). During that time Hugh worked on problems related to interest rates, annuities, and numerical analysis. Hugh Stelson was married to Ada May Woolley on June 4, 1925, and he was the father of Paul, Thomas, Lois, and Glenda Stelson.

Contact: Please contact Christian Houdré (houdre@math.gatech.edu) for questions in connection to the visit.

Previous Stelson Lectures

• Nonlinear Waves, Spectra, and Dynamics in Infinite Dimensions

  Schlag, Wilhelm (Georgia Institute of Technology, 2023-03-10)

  Waves are ubiquitous in nature. Some wave phenomena are conspicuous, most notably in elastic objects, and in bodies of water. In electro-dynamics, quantum mechanics, and gravity, waves play a fundamental role but are much more difficult to find...

• Reunited: An Art Historical and Digital Adventure

  Daubechies, Ingrid (Georgia Institute of Technology, 2022-04-09)

  Combining the mathematics of digital image processing with the history, craftsmanship, and science of art conservation, my research team at Duke University, Bass Connections Image Processing Algorithms for ...

• Cryptography: From Ancient Times to a Post-Quantum Age  

  Pipher, Jill C. (Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-03-01)

  How is it possible to send encrypted information across an insecure channel (like the internet) so that only the intended recipient can decode it, without sharing the secret key in advance? In 1976, well before this ...

• The Complexity of Random Functions of Many Variables  

  Arous, Gérard Ben (Georgia Institute of Technology, 2016-08-31)

  A function of many variables, when chosen at random, is typically very complex. It has an exponentially large number of local minima or maxima, or critical points. It defines a very complex landscape, the topology of its ...

• How Quantum Theory and Statistical Mechanics Gave a Polynomial of Knots  

  Jones, Vaughan (Georgia Institute of Technology, 2014-09-25)

  We will see how a result in von Neumann algebras (a theory developed by von Neumann to give the mathematical framework for quantum physics) gave rise, rather serendipitously, to an elementary but very useful invariant in ...

• Riemann, Boltzmann and Kantorovich Go to a Party  

  Villani, Cedric (Georgia Institute of Technology, 2013-04-19)

  This talk is the story of an encounter of three distinct fields: non-Euclidean geometry, gas dynamics and economics. Some of the most fundamental mathematical tools behind these theories appear to have a close connection, ...

• Role of Mathematics Across Science and Beyond  

  Glimm, James (Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010-11-22)

  The changing status of knowledge from descriptive to analytic, from empirical to theoretical and from intuitive to mathematical has to be one of the most striking adventures of the human spirit. The changes often occur ...

• Multiscale Modeling and Simulation: The Interplay Beween Mathematics and Engineering Applications  

  Hou, Thomas Y. (Georgia Institute of Technology, 2009-10-26)

  Many problems of fundamental and practical importance contain multiple scale solutions. Composite and nano materials, flow and transport in heterogeneous porous media, and turbulent flow are examples of this type. Direct ...