Math Drives Careers: WPI Mathematical Sciences Alumni Panel
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
6 p.m. – 8 p.m., Rec Center 412 (’61 Meeting Room)
The mathematics department is proud to bring back to campus four successful WPI alumni who have chosen quite different career paths after receiving their degrees. Come see the value of a math degree, survey the many career options that use statistics, actuarial science, and mathematics, get advice on course selection and professional development, and learn the secrets of a successful job search. Plenty of pizza and soda will be available!
Panelists:
- Kathleen Haas (B.Sc. ’09, MAI ’10), MIT Lincoln Labs
- Kaitlyn Labbay (B.Sc., MAC ’14), Mathematics Instructor, Worcester Public Schools
- Jeremy Olszewski, FSA, EA (B.Sc., MAC ’97, mgmt minor), Vice President, Benefits Consulting, Fidelity Investments
- Rodney Sleith (M.Sc., MAS ’98), Principal Biostatistician, Veristat, Inc.
National Mathematics Festival, Washington, DC
Saturday, April 18, 2015
10 a.m. — 4 p.m.
Smithsonian’s Haupt Garden, Washington, DC
SIAM @WPI was awarded a grant of $500 to offset travel costs for Dan Chen, Weijie Pang, Zilu Tian, and Shao Zhou to go to Washington, DC and volunteer to help run MoMATH‘s exhibit at the inaugural National Mathematics Festival! We are excited that our student members are so willing to be active in the mathematics community, especially during Math Awareness Month, and we wish them a pleasant trip!
Research Talk: Zachary Grant (UMass Dartmouth)
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Talk 11 a.m. – 12 p.m., SH 306
Coffee and light refreshments at 1045 a.m. in SH 108
SIAM @WPI is happy to host its fourth Research Talk of the semester, 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. in SH 306, given by Zachary Grant (University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth). His talk is entitled “Explicit Strong Stability-Preserving Time-Stepping Schemes”, and you will find the abstract here [PDF, 387 KB].
Research Talk and Coffee Hour: Angela Leo Kenyon
Monday, April 6, 2015
Talk 11 a.m. – 12 p.m., SH 304
Coffee Hour 2-3 p.m., SH 203
SIAM @WPI is happy to host its third Research Talk of the semester, 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. in SH 304, given by Angela Leo Kenyon (WPI ’06, ’08, currently at LabCorp). Her talk is entitled “The Power of Mathematics within Molecular Diagnostic Patient Testing and DNA Sequencing: A Melting Pot of Biology, Programming, and Mathematics”, and you will find the abstract here [PDF, 426 KB].
Coffee Hour to follow from 2-3 p.m. in SH 203.
The SIAM @WPI Coffee Hour is a time for students to participate in open discussion with an experienced mathematical scientist, which means that Angela will be there to talk informally with you and answer questions about her experience at WPI and her subsequent career with LabCorp, or about general mathematical, biological, and programming topics. Coffee and light refreshments will be provided.
Research Talk: John McClain (University of New Hampshire)
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Talk 11 a.m. – 12 p.m., SH 202
Coffee and light refreshments at 10:45 a.m. in SH 108
SIAM @WPI is happy to host its second Research Talk of the semester, 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. in SH 202, given by John McClain (University of New Hampshire). His talk is entitled “First-Principles Computation of Low-Energy Electron Diffraction Spectra of 2D Materials”, and you will find the abstract here [PDF, 399 KB].
Math Movie Night: October Sky
Thursday, February 26, 2015
8:30 p.m.
SL 115
Come have fun with SIAM @WPI on Thursday watching the 1999 hit film October Sky, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper, and Laura Dern. See film description below. Running time is 108 minutes, and free popcorn and pizza will be provided.
This film is the third in our SIAM @WPI Math Movie Night series on campus, and we are excited to show this and other films related to mathematics. Please stay tuned for more SIAM @WPI Math Movie Night news!
Come have fun with SIAM @WPI on Thursday watching the 1999 hit film October Sky, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper, and Laura Dern. See film description below. Running time is 108 minutes, and free popcorn and pizza will be provided.
This film is the third in our SIAM @WPI Math Movie Night series on campus, and we are excited to show this and other films related to mathematics. Please stay tuned for more SIAM @WPI Math Movie Night news!
The true story of Homer Hickam, a coal miner’s son who was inspired by the first Sputnik launch to take up rocketry against his father’s wishes.
REU Panel
Thursday, February 12, 2015
4 p.m.
SH 308
Undergraduate US citizens/nationals/permanent residents: now is the time to apply for the NSF’s summer REU programs! (see them) Need advice on applying or choosing a program? Come to our REU Panel on Thursday night! You’ll get to talk to panelists who’ve done REUs before. Coffee and light refreshments will be served.
General Body Meeting
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
4PM
Salisbury Labs 104
First general body meeting of C-term. Come take a break from studying, get free pizza and refreshments, and find out what SIAM is all about! We’ve got big plans for this semester!
Math Movie Night: Moneyball
Thursday, December 4, 2014
8:30 p.m.
SL 115
Come have fun with SIAM @WPI on Thursday watching the 2011 hit film Moneyball, starring Brad Pitt, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Jonah Hill. See film description below. Running time is 133 minutes, and free popcorn and pizza will be provided.
This film will be the second in our SIAM @WPI Math Movie Night series on campus. Please stay tuned for more SIAM @WPI Math Movie Night news!
Oakland A’s GM Billy Beane is handicapped with the lowest salary constraint in baseball. If he ever wants to win the World Series, Billy must find a competitive advantage. Billy is about to turn baseball on its ear when he uses statistical data to analyze and place value on the players he picks for the team.
Student Talk and Coffee Hour: Yiqing Li (WPI Ph.D. Student, Mathematical Sciences)
Tuesday, November 25, 2014
Talk 2-3 p.m., SH 203
Coffee Hour 3-4 p.m.
SIAM @WPI is happy to host its first Student Talk of the semester, 2-3 p.m. in SH 203, given by Yiqing Li (WPI Ph.D. student in mathematical sciences). His talk is entitled “A Mathematical Model of Fracture Evolution with Cohesive Energy”, and you will find the abstract below.
Coffee Hour to follow from 3-4 p.m. in SH 203.
The SIAM @WPI Student Talk series is meant to introduce a general audience, including undergraduate students, to current research being done by graduate students that involves applied and industrial mathematics.
Abstract: We introduce and compare several mathematical models that are commonly used to describe the evolution of fractures in materials, giving a detailed treatment of the cohesive energy model. We explain this model in a mathematical context, and discuss existence of solutions to this time-dependent problem.
Research Talk and Coffee Hour: Julia Baum (WPI ’11, MIT Lincoln Labs)
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Talk 2-3 p.m., SH 203
Coffee Hour 3-4 p.m., SH 306
SIAM @WPI is happy to host its first Research Talk of the semester, 2-3 p.m. in SH 203, given by Julia Baum (WPI ’11, currently at MIT Lincoln Labs). Her talk is entitled “Integer and Dynamic Programming in Aircraft Sequencing Optimization”, and you will find the abstract below.
Coffee Hour to follow from 3-4 p.m. in SH 306.
The SIAM @WPI Coffee Hour is a time for students to participate in open discussion with an experienced mathematical scientist, which means that Julia will be there to talk informally with you and answer questions about her experience at WPI, her MQP project and subsequent internship and career with Lincoln Labs, or about general mathematical topics. Coffee and light refreshments will be provided.
Abstract: This project uses Mixed Integer Linear Programming and Dynamic Programming to optimize the takeoff sequence of aircraft at Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) by minimizing departure delay while also obeying separation requirements and position shifting constraints. We modeled taxi time uncertainties based on real data from DFW and analyzed the robustness of the optimization solution and the feasibility of using these methods in real-life. The runtimes of these methods proved to be feasible in real-time, however the solutions failed to be robust, creating a future need for a stochastic optimization.
Research Talk and Coffee Hour: Julia Baum (WPI ’11, MIT Lincoln Labs)
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Talk 2-3 p.m., SH 203
Coffee Hour 3-4 p.m., SH 306
SIAM @WPI is happy to host its first Research Talk of the semester, 2-3 p.m. in SH 203, given by Julia Baum (WPI ’11, currently at MIT Lincoln Labs). Her talk is entitled “Integer and Dynamic Programming in Aircraft Sequencing Optimization”, and you will find the abstract below.
Coffee Hour to follow from 3-4 p.m. in SH 306.
The SIAM @WPI Coffee Hour is a time for students to participate in open discussion with an experienced mathematical scientist, which means that Julia will be there to talk informally with you and answer questions about her experience at WPI, her MQP project and subsequent internship and career with Lincoln Labs, or about general mathematical topics. Coffee and light refreshments will be provided.
Abstract: This project uses Mixed Integer Linear Programming and Dynamic Programming to optimize the takeoff sequence of aircraft at Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) by minimizing departure delay while also obeying separation requirements and position shifting constraints. We modeled taxi time uncertainties based on real data from DFW and analyzed the robustness of the optimization solution and the feasibility of using these methods in real-life. The runtimes of these methods proved to be feasible in real-time, however the solutions failed to be robust, creating a future need for a stochastic optimization.
Math Movie Night: The Amazing Transparent Man
Thursday, November 13, 2014
8:30-9:45 p.m.
SL 115
Come have fun with SIAM @WPI on Thursday watching The Amazing Transparent Man, a 1960 sci-fi B-film about a scientist who successfully manages to solve the applied mathematics problem of optical frequency cloaking!
See film description below. Running time is less than an hour, and free popcorn and light refreshments will be provided.
All are welcome to join in the laughs, both with and at this charming, bizarre little movie. If you know the MST3K quips, feel free to shout them out during the show!
This film will kick off our SIAM @WPI Math Movie Night series on campus, and until we obtain public performance permissions for some newer features we’ll be excited to bring to campus later this year, we are showing this and other public-domain works that are tangentially related to mathematics. Please stay tuned for more SIAM @WPI Math Movie Night news!
Paul Krenner, an ex-major with delusions of grandeur, has forced scientist Peter Ulof to develop a radiation-based technique to turn men invisible, with which process he plans to create an invisible army to sell to the highest bidder. He busts safecracker Joey Faust out of prison and forces him to undergo the invisibility treatment so he can steal more radium to further the experimentation. Plans go awry when Faust discovers there is a side-effect to the invisibility treatments he didn’t count on.
Coffee Hour: Prof. Gwen Spencer, Smith College
Friday, November 7, 2014
3-4 p.m.
SH 306
The second SIAM @WPI Coffee Hour of the year will be held Friday, November 7, 2014, 3-4 p.m. in SH 306. We are happy to host Prof. Gwen Spencer of Smith College. Prof. Spencer’s research is in the field of optimization and approximation algorithms, with a particular focus on stochastic optimization problems in graphs.
The SIAM @WPI Coffee Hour is a time for students to participate in open discussion with an experienced mathematical scientist, which means that Prof. Spencer will be there to talk informally with you and answer questions about her field of research, her career in academia, or about general mathematical topics. Coffee and light refreshments will be provided.
SIAM@WPI also encourages anyone interested to attend Prof. Spencer’s colloquium talk earlier on Friday. The title of the talk is Beyond Exposure: Tackling an Economic variant of Seeding Viral Spread, and it will be given from 11-12:00 in SH 203.
Graduate School Panel
Monday, November 3, 2014
5-6:30 PM
Stratton Hall 306
An open discussion session about panel members’ experiences with graduate school in the mathematical sciences. It’s almost time to apply! Come with questions about how to choose a department, how to apply, how to prepare yourself, or any other grad school related issues you wish you had an honest answer to! All are welcome, and panelists will have experience both in the U.S. and abroad, and in mathematics, applied mathematics, statistics and financial mathematics.
LaTeX Seminar Series
Wednesday, October 29, 2014 and Wednesday, November 5, 2014
5-7 PM
Stratton Hall 003 (Computer Lab)
Curious to learn LaTeX, the scientist’s ideal typesetting language that will allow you to easily produce professional-looking reports, theses, articles, and other scientific documents? Come to our Seminar Series and learn from experienced LaTeX users about how to install LaTeX on your computer, and typeset your first LaTeX documents together with us. All are welcome!
General Body Meeting
Thursday, October 9, 2014
4PM
Salisbury Labs 104
First general body meeting of the year. Come take a break from studying, get free pizza and refreshments, and find out what SIAM is all about! We’ve got big plans for this academic year!
Ice Cream Social
Friday, October 3, 2014
11:00 – 1:00
Table by the Fountain
Come meet members of SIAM, register for WPI’s chapter or for the national organization, and talk mathematics or student life with us! Free ice cream!
SIAM @WPI Coffee Hour: Dr. Vanessa Lopez, Research Scientist, IBM
Friday, September 26 , 2014
2PM
SH306
The first SIAM @WPI Coffee Hour of the year will be this Friday, September 26 from 2-3 p.m. in SH 306. We are happy to host Dr. Vanessa Lopez, a Research Staff Member at IBM’s Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, NY. Her research deals with simulating heat and mass transfer in data centers and other indoor environments, and her general research interests lie in the area of computational math and science.
The SIAM @WPI Coffee Hour is a time for students to participate in open discussion with an experienced mathematical scientist, which means that Dr. Lopez will be there to talk informally with you and answer questions about her field of research, her career at IBM, or about general mathematical topics. Coffee and light refreshments will be provided.
SIAM @WPI also encourages anyone interested to attend Dr. Lopez’s colloquium talk earlier on Friday. The title of the talk is Simulating heat and mass transfer in buildings equipped with sensor networks, and it will be given from 11-12:00 in SH 203.