Programs & Events
Combinatorial Link Homology Theories, Braids, and Contact Geometry
Aug 4 - 8, 2014
This workshop will focus on recent advances in combinatorial link homology theories (e.g., Heegaard-Floer homology and Khovanov homology), especially as they apply to questions about braids and, more generally, mapping class groups of surfaces. There will be short mini-courses on
- Combinatorial knot Floer homology, with applications to contact geometry,
- Braid foliations and the Jones conjecture,
- Nielsen-Thurston theory, and
- Garside theory and a linear order on the braid group,
As the main goal of the workshop is to facilitate... (more)
Organizing Committee
- John Baldwin
- Julia E Grigsby
- Joshua Greene
- Keiko Kawamuro
- Dan Margalit
Integrability and Cluster Algebras: Geometry and Combinatorics
Aug 25 - 29, 2014
This workshop focuses on certain kinds of discrete dynamical systems that are integrable and have interpretations in terms of cluster algebras. Some such systems, like the pentagram map and the octahedral recurrence, are motivated by concrete algebraic constructions (taking determinants) or geometric constructions based on specific configurations of points and lines in the projective plane. The systems of interest in this workshop have connections to Poisson and symplectic geometry, classical integrable PDE such as the KdV and Boussinesq equations and also to cluster algebras. The aim of the workshop is to explore geometric, algebraic, and computational facets of these systems, with a view towards uncovering new phenomena and unifying the work to date.
Organizing Committee
- Vladimir Fock
- Max Glick
- Olga Kravchenko
- Sophie Morier-Genoud
- Valentin Ovsienko
- Richard Schwartz
Mathematics of Data Analysis in Cybersecurity
Oct 22 - 24, 2014
The goal of this workshop is to bring mathematicians and cybersecurity practitioners together to outline the key challenges in the mathematics of cybersecurity data analysis. The expected outcome of the workshop will be a roadmap for investment in specific mathematical topics that will directly impact the advancement of the science of cybersecurity.
Mathematicians have long been involved in information security through cryptography, and thus algebra and number theory. But modern cyber security is a much larger field, and the perspectives and methodologies of other parts of the mathematical sciences have been only rarely been brought to bear. Given the complexity and dynamics of cyberspace it is essential to have a formal scientific basis for the field of cybersecurity. Indeed, a variety of sources have called for the creation of a "science of cybersecurity", and mathematical methods should play a critical role in such a science.
The purpose of this workshop is to bring together... (more)
Organizing Committee
- Edoardo Airoldi
- Paul Barford
- Henry Cohn
- John Harer
- John Johnson
- Mauro Maggioni
- Jill Pipher
11th DIMACS Implementation Challenge in Collaboration with ICERM
Dec 4 - 5, 2014
The DIMACS Implementation Challenges address questions of determining realistic algorithm performance where worst case analysis is overly pessimistic and probabilistic models are too unrealistic: experimentation can provide guides to realistic algorithm performance where analysis fails.
The 11th Implementation Challenge is dedicated to the study of Steiner Tree problems (broadly defined), bringing together research in both theory and practice. Broadly speaking, the goal of a Steiner Tree problem is to find the cheapest way of connecting a set of objects. In most common variants, these objects are either points in a metric space or a subset of the vertices of a network, and the goal is to find a tree that connects all of them.
The main aim of the challenge is to create a reproducible picture of the state-of-the-art in Steiner Tree problems. Phases 1 and 2 of this challenge - the collection and improvement of testbeds and algorithm development and evaluation - began in June 2013.... (more)
Organizing Committee
- David Johnson
- Thorsten Koch
- Renato Werneck
- Martin Zachariasen
Mathematics of Lattices and Cybersecurity
Apr 21 - 24, 2015
Lattices are abstractly very simple objects, yet their concrete realizations contain beautifully intricate problems that are stubbornly difficult even in low dimensions. For example, our present day understandings of densest lattice packings and reduction theory are still plagued with large gaps.
In the 1970's and 1980's lattices entered the world of cryptography as tools used to break certain crypto systems, particularly those based on the subset sum problem, and since the 1990's they have become increasingly important in the building of other types of crypto systems (thanks to the difficulty in the underlying mathematics). Their significance has recently been bolstered by average-case complexity bounds and their present resistance to quantum computing attacks.
Currently the theory of lattices is a lively research topic among mathematicians, computer scientists, and experts in cybersecurity. However, to this date, there has been little to no interaction between these communities.... (more)
Organizing Committee
- Jeffrey Hoffstein
- Stephen Miller
- Ramarathnam Venkatesan
Integrability in Mechanics and Geometry: Theory and Computations
Jun 1 - 5, 2015
This workshop focuses on topics at the interface of classical mechanics, differential geometry, and computer experiments. The directions of current research to be explored at the workshop include the study of invariants and complete integrability of geometrically motivated differential equations (in particular, vehicle motion, tire track geometry, and smoke ring equations), sub-Riemannian geometry, geometric control, nonholonomic systems (such as e.g. bicycle stability and nonholonomic methods in billiard problems), computational methods in mechanics and dynamics (including geometric integrators, biological applications, etc.).
The goal of the workshop is to explore broad applications of the mechanical approach to geometry and geometric one to classical mechanics, to foster interaction between researchers in the above areas, with a view of finding new domains for applications of these fertile ideas.
Organizing Committee
- Annalisa Calini
- Boris Khesin
- Gloria Mari-Beffa
- Vadim Zharnitsky
Computational Geometric Topology in Arrangement Theory
Jul 6 - 10, 2015
This workshop will bring together mathematicians working on combinatorial, geometric and topological properties of arrangements. In addition to fundamental open problems in the area, we will emphasize connections to tropical geometry, configuration spaces, and applications (coding theory, statistical economics, topological robotics), building bridges between those working on different aspects of the area. The main aim of the workshop is to discuss computational issues that arise in studying topological and combinatorial invariants of arrangements.
The workshop will be comprised of two main activities: A series of short courses by leading experts and research or expository talks. The short courses will be aimed at a broad audience; in particular they will be appropriate for advanced graduate students and early career mathematicians. In addition to theory, talks will highlight computational aspects of the problems, and the state of the art on the main open conjectures in the field. We... (more)
Organizing Committee
- Nero Budur
- Graham Denham
- Anca Daniela Macinic
- Daniel Matei
- Laurentiu Maxim
- Hal Schenck
- Max Wakefield
Computational and Analytical Aspects of Image Reconstruction
Jul 13 - 17, 2015
The mathematical study of image reconstruction problems can have a huge impact on human life. More efficient mathematical algorithms for X-ray tomography and more accurate mathematical models in seismic or hybrid imaging can lead to better imaging devices in fields such as medicine and remote sensing. Developing the underlying mathematics, including the analysis of reconstruction stability, regularization, singularity characterization, and efficient algorithms, may lead to fewer false positives in fields such as medical, seismic and radar imaging.
This topical workshop will bring together international experts working in computational and analytical aspects of image reconstruction (including but not limited to electron-microscope tomography, hybrid imaging, radar and sonar, full waveform inversion of seismic imaging and X-ray CT) as well as postdoctoral fellows and graduate students. There will be multiple introductory-level talks for early-career researchers and non-specialists in... (more)
Organizing Committee
- Gaik Ambartsoumian
- Vladimir Druskin
- Esther Klann
- Venkateswaran Krishnan
- Alfred Louis
- Eric Quinto
Mathematics in Data Science
Jul 28 - 30, 2015
The goal of this workshop is to bring together mathematicians and data scientists to participate in a discussion of current methods and outstanding problems in data science. The workshop is particularly aimed at mathematicians interested in pursuing research or a career in data science who wish to gain an understanding of this rapidly evolving field and the ways in which mathematics can contribute.
Researchers currently working in data science are also encouraged to attend, to share ideas about mathematical methodologies and challenges. A number of experienced data scientists with a variety of backgrounds from academics, national laboratories, and industry (including startups) will be invited. The program will include overview and technical talks, several panels consisting of practitioners with different experience levels, and one or more poster sessions.
Organizing Committee
- Philip Kegelmeyer
- Tamara Kolda
- Randall LeVeque
- Aleksandra (Saska) Mojsilovic
- Linda Ness
- Alyson Wilson
Numerical Methods for Large-Scale Nonlinear Problems and Their Applications
Aug 31 - Sep 4, 2015
Over the last 20 years or so, Newton-Krylov methods have developed to maturity, allowing effective fully-coupled treatment of a broad range of large-scale nonlinear problems. This development has set the stage for addressing more difficult problems with more challenging features. Additionally, applications for which state-of-the-art Newton-Krylov approaches are inapplicable have recently exposed several basic research questions. At the same time, there remain many problem-specific methods and legacy codes that are still useful and can be regarded as a resource for further development.
This workshop will include mathematicians and computer scientists who work on algorithm design, implementation, and analysis, together with disciplinary scientists and engineers who use the algorithms in applications and have a working knowledge of their capabilities, weaknesses, and limitations. The major foci of the workshop will be acceleration methods, in particular Anderson acceleration; methods for... (more)
Organizing Committee
- Carl Kelley
- Homer Walker
- Carol Woodward
Effective and Algorithmic Methods in Hyperbolic Geometry and Free Groups
May 16 - 20, 2016
The recent proof of Thurston's virtual fibering conjecture brought together tools at the forefront of geometric group theory, dynamics, and hyperbolic geometry. We still lack, however, an effective or constructive understanding of three-dimensional hyperbolic geometry, and more generally, 3-manifold topology. For example, a closed hyperbolic 3-manifold admits a finite cover which fibers over the circle, but can one construct such a cover from a presentation of the fundamental group? Can one implement an algorithm -- perhaps with the help of preexisting software such as SnapPea -- to obtain such a cover?
While much work remains, both computation and theory have progressed. Fast algorithms have been developed for running computations in the mapping class group and other finitely generated groups, as well as for recognizing certain types 3-manifolds and knot and link complements up to homeomorphism. These have been supplemented by a new wave of constructive theorems which explicitly... (more)
Organizing Committee
- Tarik Aougab
- Mladen Bestvina
- Jeffrey Brock
- Eriko Hironaka
- Johanna Mangahas
Algorithmic Coding Theory
Jun 13 - 17, 2016
In the theory of error correcting codes, a sender (Alice) wants to send a message to a receiver (Bob), over a noisy channel. Strategies for Alice and Bob have been studied since the works of Shannon and Hamming from the late 1940's, from many different communities. Coding theory is a fundamental solution to challenges that arise in communication, storage, cryptography, and others; as the world changes, our challenges in these areas change, and the scenario changes for Alice and Bob. Fueled by these new scenarios, coding theory remains a rapidly advancing area of research.
One trend in many of these new scenarios in coding theory is the need for algorithmic solutions. For many problems in coding theory, it is possible to come up with nearly optimal solutions (information-theoretically speaking) which are likely very hard for Alice and Bob to actually implement. The goal of algorithmic coding theory is to design solutions which are not only combinatorially good, but are also... (more)
Organizing Committee
- Hamed Hassani
- Atri Rudra
- Mary Wootters