Math Dept 2013-2014 Newsletter 19
Monday, 3 March 2014
University closed today due to heavy snow.
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Newsletter is sent out when there is something new.
Please send entries by the end of the week --Ed
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MEETINGS AND SEMINARS IN THE DEPARTMENT
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Every Monday
1. Combinatorics Seminar
Room 202, 4pm.
Organizers: Alex Burstein and Lou Shapiro
2. Geometry and Topology Seminar
ASB-B 213 3.00 to 4pm
Speaker: Professor Joseph Yeager
Topic: SYMPLECTIC AND CONTACT GEOMETRY.
Stanley M. Einstein-Matthews
Coordinator
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Every Tuesday
The Seminar on Topological Semigroups and Ramsey Theory
Tuesdays at 11:10 a.m in room 233 of Annex III
Neil Hindman will be speaking on separating subrings of the
rationals by partition regular matrices.
Organizer: Neil Hindman
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Wednesday, March 5
4:10 to 5:00 PM, 213 ASB B
Monthly Departmental Meeting for the
Spring semester
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Friday March 7
Mathematics Department Colloquium
4.10 to 5 pm, ASB-B 213
No colloquium this week.
Fluid dynamics seminar
Seminar will take place after colloquium, and at 4.30 if there is no
colloquium.
Abstract: (Neil Hindman)
The "Fluid" refers to soda and beer. The
"Dynamics" refers to the topics of conversation, which is as
likely as anything to deal with RGIII and the Washington Football
Club. Pizza, including a vegetarian option, and wings are provided.
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TALKS AND EVENTS OUTSIDE THE DEPARTMENT
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Summer School for Undergraduate Students
"Train Tracks, Diffeomorphisms of Surfaces and
Automorphisms of Free Groups,Ó
Instructor: Mladen Bestvina
University of Utah from July 7 - 18, 2014.
For details, go to: http://www.math.utah.edu/agtrtg/traintracks/
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
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1. (Crepin Mahop) Math dept Scholarship Competition.
The Scholarship Day will be held on April 4, 2014. I am writing
to request that you kindly communicate to the Scholarship Committee (Jill, Dan
and CrŽpin) the names of promising students in your present or past classes.
As a reminder, these scholarships are made available each year through
endowment funds and/or gifts from the following generous donors: the Elbert F.
Cox Scholarship Fund, the Solveig Espelie Foundation, the George H. Butcher,
Jr. Prize Fund, the James Donaldson Prize (initiated with a
donation by Dr. Peter Lax), the Gerald Chachere Award for Excellence
in Mathematics, and for the first time this year a generous gift from Phillips
66.
Competition procedure:
1. Nominations
of candidates by faculty members and/or Self-Nominations;
2. Formal
applications are received (letter of motivation & unofficial transcripts)
3. Recommendations
(from Mathematics faculty members)
4. Selection
of laureates
5. Distribution
of awards.
Applications and nominations are due by Mar 21 and should be sent to
Crepin Mahop.
2. (Talitha Washington) Advanced Computational Biology Symposium will
take place at Howard on March 26, 2014.
Topics include Molecular Simulation & Design, Systems Biology,
Genomics and Big Data.
See http://CompBioSymposium.com for further
details.
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SCHOLARSHIP AND FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITIES (from various sources)
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1. NRC Research Associateship Programs
The National Research Council of the National Academies sponsors
a number of awards for graduate, postdoctoral and senior researchers at participating federal laboratories
and affiliated institutions. These awards include generous stipends ranging
from $45,000 - $80,000 per year for recent Ph.D. recipients, and higher for
additional experience. Graduate entry level
stipends begin at $30,000. These awards provide the opportunity for
recipients to do independent research in some of the best-equipped and staffed
laboratories in the U.S. Research opportunities are open to U.S.
citizens, permanent residents, and for some of the laboratories, foreign
nationals.
Detailed program information, including online applications,
instructions on how to apply, and a list of participating laboratories, are available on the
NRC Research Associateship Programs Web site (see link
above).
2. The Noyce Mathematics Education
Teaching scholarship at NC State
University is a stipend/scholarship offered to students interested in being
prepared as a highly qualified mathematics teacher who will teach in a
high-needs district. Graduates who pursue a Master of Teaching in
Secondary Mathematics or a Master of Education in Secondary Mathematics can
receive $25,000 for one academic year.
Each scholar will teach two years in a high needs high
school for each academic year of funding and participate in all Noyce program
activities. Please share this opportunity with any students that you
believe will benefit from it. For more information, please visit poe.ced.ncsu.edu/noyce.
Applications are due by April 15.
3. (Aziz Yakubu) AMS-Simons Travel Grants
Applications are now being accepted, with support provided by the
Simons Foundation. The grant provides an early-career mathematician with $2,000
per year for two years to be used for research-related travel.
The application period for 2014 is February 1, 2014 through 11:59 pm
eastern time on March 31, 2014.
To learn more about eligibility and how to apply, visit
http://www.ams.org/programs/travel-grants/AMS-SimonsTG
4. New Directions Research Professorships (NDRP) and its New
Directions Short Course (NDSC).
The Institute for Mathematics and Its Applications.
The NDRP is a sabbatical supplement to be in residence at the IMA for
its program year. The NDRP provides an extraordinary opportunity for
established mathematicians - typically mid-career faculty at U.S. universities
- to branch into new directions and increase the impact of their research. The
program year for 2014-2015 is "Discrete Structures: Analysis and
Applications." We are also accepting applications for the 2015-2016
program year "Control Theory and its Applications." Evaluation
of applications will begin February 10, 2014, and will continue until they are
awarded.
The NDSC is on "Topics in Control Theory" and will be held
at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus from May 27 to June 13, 2014.
This intensive three-week course offers another extraordinary opportunity for
established mathematicians to branch into new research directions.
More detailed information can be found at http://www.ima.umn.edu/new-directions.
5. From Oak Ridge Labs
Graduate Internship opportunities at Oak Ridge National
Laboratory.
The Computational Data Analytics Research Group (CDAG)
at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has multiple openings for Graduate
Interns in the field of Data Analytics Research. https://www3.orau.gov/ORNL_TOppS/Posting/Details/516
The Computing and Computational Science Directorate
(CCSD) at ORNL oversees ORNLÕs store of computing power and its talented staff of
computational scientists and mathematicians. CCSD has multiple Graduate
Internship openings in the fields of: High-Performance File Systems and
Storage; Communications Middleware; HPC Languages and Tools (programming
languages, compilers, runtimes, and tools for high-performance computers);
Large-Scale and Data-Intensive, Collaborative, Scientific
Applications. https://www3.orau.gov/ORNL_TOppS/Posting/Details/515
6. (From Aziz Yakubu) Opportunities at the Navy
HBCU Undergradute Program:
NREIP Program:
http://www.onr.navy.mil/en/Education-Outreach/undergraduate-graduate/NREIP-naval-internship.aspx
Summer Faculty Program:
http://www.onr.navy.mil/Education-Outreach/Summer-Faculty-Research-Sabbatical.aspx
7. (From Aziz Yakubu) Opportunities at NASA
Spring 2014 throug spring of 2015 NASA will have workshops, research
projects and internship opportunities for undergrads in STEM programs.
Howard students are especially encouraged to apply.
More information at http://DCSpaceGrant.org/STEM
8. 2014 Geothermal Student Competition
The US Department EnergyÕs Geothermal Technologies Program and Oak
Ridge Institute for Science Education seek students interested in building and
showcasing scientific research, communication and leadership skills to promote
geothermal energy as a player in the nationÕs renewable energy future. This
yearÕs event focuses on a non-technical barrier to geothermal development:
public communications. Students are asked to develop a cutting-edge
geothermal communications tool that integrates accurate, technical information
with a graphical visualization infographic. Students will also create an outreach
plan to disseminate the infographic to local middle and high
schools. Teams may consist of undergraduates and/or graduate students.
High school seniors are encouraged to apply. The five most compelling and
competitive applications will receive a total award of $2,500, where $2000 is
expected to be used as project development funds (stipend) and $500 is to
develop an outreach presentation for middle and high school students.
The Competition application, guidelines, and further details can all
be found on the Competition website: http://orise.orau.gov/geothermal
9. Opportunity in China for graduate students and post-docs.
OTS and the Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical (XTBG: Chinese Academy of
Sciences) are offering a new course on ÒThe Ecology of Climate Change in
the Tropics and Sub-TropicsÓ. The course dates are June 16-July 16, 2014.
More information: Go to http://ots.ac.cr/ and look under
ÒGraduate Programs.Ó
10. Project Kaleidoscope (PKAL) Summer
Leadership Institute
Applications Due March 24
The PKAL Summer Leadership Institute is
designed for both early- and mid-career STEM faculty engaged in leading
projects aimed at transforming undergraduate STEM education in their
classrooms, departments, and institutions. This year, through its
Sustainability Improves Student Learning (SISL) initiative, PKAL will offer
travel and/or registration awards for STEM faculty with demonstrated commitment
to and experience in integrating elements of sustainability into STEM course
content. Additional information about the PKAL SISL Initiative can be found here.
11. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) SunShot
Postdoctoral Research Awards
The SunShot Postdoctoral Research Awards support innovative solar
research by offering recent Ph.D. recipients the opportunity to conduct applied
R&D at universities, national laboratories, and other research facilities.
Application Deadline: April 30, 2014
For more information and to apply, visit: http://www1.eere.energy.gov/education/postdoctoral
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INTERESTING ARTICLES AND WEBSITES
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1. (Louise Raphael) A free pdf link to the National Academy of
Sciences report on Math Sciences in 2025 is here:
http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=15269
2. (From Aziz Yakubu) Improving minority participation in STEM
education
Stereotypes are dangerous—they hurt, they mislead and they
ultimately diminish us all. When whole groups are stereotyped, prejudices that
damage the social and educational fabric result. This problem is
evident when women and minorities are stereotyped in the science, technology,
engineering and math fields known as STEM. The challenge of enrolling and
graduating more women and minorities in STEM fields has drawn national
attention. The College Board has undertaken an initiative to enroll more young
women and minority students in STEM advanced placement courses and the American
Association of University Women has a large outreach program for young women
wishing to enter STEM fields.
As part of this national conversation, AIRÕs Center for STEM Education
and Innovation<http://www.air.org/focus-area/education/?id=10> held a two-day
symposium in late September on using research to inform policies and
practices<http://www.air.org/focus-area/education/index.cfm?fa=viewContent&content_id=2305&id=10> in STEM
education, particularly in higher education.
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