All Seminars

Title: Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction: A Look At Some Improbabilities
Seminar: N/A
Speaker: Dr. Rick Durrett of Duke University
Contact: TBA
Date: 2014-04-24 at 4:00PM
Venue: MSC E208
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Abstract:
Probability is full of surprises and paradoxes, most of which result from doing the calculation incorrectly. We will illustrate this using some familiar old stories and new ones: the Monty Hall problem, cognitive dissonance in Monkeys, the birthday problem, lottery coincidences, the sad story of Sally Clark, the 2012 election, and Warren Buffet’s bracket challenge.
Title: Rational connectivity and analytic contractibility
Seminar: Algebra
Speaker: Tyler Foster of University of Michigan
Contact: David Zureick-Brown, dzb@mathcs.emory.edu
Date: 2014-04-22 at 5:00PM
Venue: W302
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Abstract:
Let K be an algebraically closed field of characteristic 0. A smooth projective K-variety X is rationally connected if each pair of points in X is connected by a rational curve inside X. Over a non-archimedean field K, each of these rational curves becomes a contractible Berkovich space, so X has lots of contractible subvarieties. In fact more is true: In this talk, I will discuss recent work with Morgan Brown in which we prove that over the non-archimedean field K=C((t)), the Berkovich space associated to any smooth projective, rationally connected variety X is contractible.
Title: What is Ramsey-equivalent to a clique?
Seminar: Combinatorics
Speaker: Andrey Grinshpun of Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Contact: Dwight Duffus, dwight@mathcs.emory.edu
Date: 2014-04-21 at 4:00PM
Venue: W306
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Abstract:
Title: Image Recognition of Coronary Stents for Automatic Construction of Patient Specific Models
Honors Thesis: Applied Mathematics
Speaker: Shannon Buckley of Emory University
Contact: TBA
Date: 2014-04-16 at 1:00PM
Venue: MSC E408
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Abstract:
Professor Veneziani and his team of graduate students have been working on the problem of modeling the effects that cardiovascular disease and the medical procedures employed to cure it have on the fluid dynamic process of the cardiovascular system. One of the newer solutions to this pressing disease is to insert a medical structure, called a stent, into the artery where a blockage is occurring. The modeling of this procedure requires the creation of a 3D model of the stent, which is then used in the algorithms. For real patients this data has previously been collected by manually recording the locations of the stent structures found in arthroscopic images of the patient’s arteries. To speed up this data collection process and provide more accurate data, we have created a MATLAB algorithm that uses image recognition software to automatically identify stent structures in the arthroscopic images and record their positions in the artery.
Title: Support Vector Machine Classification of Resting State fMRI Datasets Using Dynamic Network Clusters
Undergraduate Thesis Defense: Computer Science
Speaker: Hyo Yul Byun of Emory University
Contact: TBA
Date: 2014-04-15 at 10:30AM
Venue: MSC E408
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Abstract:
Title: Quasirandom Discrete Structures and Powers of Hamilton Cycles
Seminar: Combinatorics
Speaker: Hiep Han of Emory University
Contact: Dwight Duffus, dwight@mathcs.emory.edu
Date: 2014-04-14 at 4:00PM
Venue: W306
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Abstract:
The aim of the talk is to give a gentle introduction into the topic of quasirandom discrete structures, putting emphasis on linear quasirandom hypergraphs and subsets of integers with small linear bias. We then continue with the study of the extremal behaviour of sparse pseudorandom graphs, a problem which has attracted the attention of many researchers in recent years. In particular, we shall discuss how to find powers of Hamilton cycles in sufficiently pseudorandom graphs.
Title: Live-Coding in Introductory Computer Science Education
Seminar: CS Undergraduate Honors Thesis Defense
Speaker: Amy Shannon of
Contact: Valerie Summet, valerie@mathcs.emory.edu
Date: 2014-04-04 at 10:00AM
Venue: W306
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Abstract:
Live-coding, an active learning technique in which students create code solutions during class through group discussion, is an under-used method in computer science education. However, this technique may produce greater learning gains than traditional lectures while requiring less time and effort from the instructor. We begin with a discussion of active learning techniques in STEM disciplines and then present a study to evaluate this instructional method in introductory Computer Science courses. While our results were inconclusive, we discuss several interesting and positive trends related to our live-coding results that deserve further investigation.
Title: Adaptive Approaches to Utility Computing for Scientific Applications
Defense: Dissertation
Speaker: Jaroslaw Slawinski of Emory University
Contact: Jaroslaw Slawinski, jaross@mathcs.emory.edu
Date: 2014-04-04 at 3:00PM
Venue: W306
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Abstract:
Coupling scientific applications to heterogeneous computational targets requires specialized expertise and enormous manual effort. To simplify the deployment process, we propose a novel adaptive approach that helps execute unmodified applications on raw computational resources. Our method is based on situation-specific “adapter” middleware that builds up target capabilities to fulfill application requirements, avoiding homogenization that may conceal platform-specific features. We investigate three dimensions of adaptation: performance, execution paradigm, and software deployment and propose the ADAPT framework as a methodology and a toolkit that automates execution-related tasks. For parallel applications, ADAPT matches logical communication patterns to physical interconnect topology and improves execution performance by reducing use of long-distance connections. In a proof-of-concept demonstration of application–platform paradigm transformation, ADAPT enables execution of unmodified MPI applications on the Map–Reduce Platform as a Service cloud by recreating and emulating missing MPI capabilities. To facilitate software deployment, ADAPT automatically provisions resources by applying soft-install adapters that dynamically transform target capabilities to satisfy application requirements. As a result of these types of transformations, a broader spectrum of resources can smoothly execute scientific applications, which brings the notion of utility computing closer to reality.
Title: Linear Preserver Problems and Cohomological Invariants
Defense: Dissertation
Speaker: Hernando Bermudez of Emory University
Contact: Hernando Bermudez, hbermud@emory.edu
Date: 2014-04-02 at 4:00PM
Venue: W306
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Abstract:
Let G be a simple linear algebraic group over a field F. In this work we prove several results about G and it's representations.. In particular we determine the stabilizer of a polynomial f on an irreducible representation V of G for several interesting pairs (V,f). We also prove that in most cases if f is a polynomial whose stabilizer has identity component G then there is a correspondence between similarity classes of twisted forms of f and twisted forms of G. In a different direction we determine the group of normalized degree 3 cohomological invariants for most G which are neither simply connected nor adjoint.
Title: Validation of an open source framework for the simulation of blood flow in rigid and deformable vessels
Seminar: N/A
Speaker: Annalisa Quaini of University of Houston
Contact: TBA
Date: 2014-04-02 at 4:00PM
Venue: W302
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Abstract:
We discuss the validation of an open source framework for the solution of problems arising in hemodynamics. The framework is assessed through experimental data for fluid flow in an idealized medical device with rigid boundaries and a numerical benchmark for flow in compliant vessels. The core of the framework is an open source parallel finite element library that features several algorithms for fluid and fluid-structure interaction problems. A detailed account of the methods is provided.