Category: Talks

Title: Modeling lamprey swimming with mathematics and computation

Abstract: Locomotion — swimming, running, flying — is one of the most basic animal behaviors. In order for an animal (like a lamprey) to swim, a lot has to happen, including neural signaling, muscle contractions, interactions between the body and the water, and adjustments from sensory feedback. How do we use mathematics to better understand the underlying mechanisms that drive locomotion? We will explore how we can use mathematical models to describe these individual systems and then coordinate the systems to produce a naturally emerging behavior in computer simulations of swimming lampreys.

Title:  1+2+3+4+… = -1/12

Abstract: Infinite series. Every Calculus II student hates them; every mathematician loves them. So, why do mathematicians love infinite series? Well, ask one, and you’ll never hear the end of it… (just sum math humor).

We’ll see how two standard examples of series, the geometric series and the zeta function (p-series), lead to beautiful applications, such as in economics and signal processing. We’ll also see how even divergent series are fascinating.

Title:  Losing Altitude: A story of airplanes, heart rate, and one “controversial” dataset

Abstract: When you ride in an airplane, the lowered pressure in the cabin causes your blood oxygen levels to decrease. If oxygen saturation levels go low enough, you may experience some interesting side effects (like temporary color blindness, for example), that much we know. What we don’t know is if there is also an impact on the functioning of the heart. Partially motivated by a rash of flight related medical case studies, a study was conducted in 2007 to more formally assess the effects of exposure to altitude on heart health while in flight. We will explore this study, the complex dataset it generated, and the “controversy” of conducting research a certain airline manufacturer would rather we not.

Title:  Electoral College Math:  How to Become President with 20% of the Popular Vote

Abstract: The Electoral College makes it possible to become U. S. President with less than a majority of the popular vote. In a two-candidate election, what is the minimal percentage of the popular vote possible for a winning candidate? In this talk we’ll first mimic an approach suggested by George Pólya that to find a theoretical solution. We’ll then make use of of tools not readily available to Pólya – spreadsheets and binary linear integer problem software — to see if we can improve on his results using actual presidential election data. Anyone with a vague recollection of high school algebra has the mathematical background necessary to enjoy this talk.

Title:  Sequential data mining

Abstract:  Data representing DNA, proteins, literature, weather, and the stock market all share one common characteristic: their data are sequential. Sequence data present some of the most challenging problems for machine learning and data mining methods. In this talk, Professor Brian King will present a generalized, probabilistic framework for modeling sequential data. He will show how he and his students have adapted this model for classification and prediction tasks, reporting results from recent studies.

Title:  Being fair in a world of limited resources

Abstract:  Fair division is a problem that all of us encounter regularly.  Every time you and another person or several people have to divide something – pizza, money, space, Neapolitan ice cream, band width, candy, etc. – you are working on a fair-division problem.  How can several people share a limited resource and make sure that no person feels the resulting allocation is unfair?   Before we can answer this question, we need to figure out what exactly is means to be ‘fair’.  The mathematical development of this subject is fairly recent and the results touch issues in economics and game theory. We will do lots of examples.