Events
Past Event
WED@NICO SEMINAR: Daniel Abrams, Northwestern University "Tractable mathematical modeling of social systems: some successes and failures"
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
//
Lower Level, Chambers Hall
Details
Speaker:
Daniel Abrams, Professor of Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics and (by courtesy) Physics and Astronomy, Northwestern University
Title:
Tractable mathematical modeling of social systems: some successes and failures
Abstract:
This talk will be an overview of various problems my group has worked on and approaches we've taken to mathematical modeling of social systems, including approaches that were unsuccessful. We define a system as "social" if dynamics for the individual are inextricably tied to the dynamics of the group. Some problems in this category include evolutionary dynamics (e.g., animal ornamentation, the evolution of human left-handedness), social group competition (e.g., language death, the growth of religiously unaffiliated populations), and the geographic spread of ideas (e.g., internet adoption, contagion of smoking behavior or obesity).
Speaker Bio:
Danny Abrams is co-director of NICO as well as a professor of Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics at Northwestern University. He holds a B.S. in Applied Physics from Caltech, a Ph.D. in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from Cornell University, and was an NSF Math Sciences postdoctoral fellow as well as a Fulbright Scholar and James S. McDonnell Foundation grantee. Danny's research interests include the study of synchronization, mathematical geoscience, and mathematical modeling of social systems.
Location:
In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/98183822887
Passcode: NICO23
About the Speaker Series:
Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems and data science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.
Time
Wednesday, March 1, 2023 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location
Lower Level, Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
WED@NICO SEMINAR: Daniel Harris, Brown University "At the interface: physical analogy with interfacial fluid mechanics"
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
//
Lower Level, Chambers Hall
Details
Speaker:
Daniel Harris, Assistant Professor of Engineering, Brown University
Title:
At the Interface: Physical Analogy with Interfacial Fluid Mechanics
Abstract:
Maxwell describes physical analogy as a "partial similarity between the laws of one science and those of another which makes each of them illustrate the other." Hydrodynamics has long since been a source of physical analogy, sharing similar equations with other seemingly disparate fields of physics. The focus of this talk will be on physical analogies with interfacial fluid systems, where accessible tabletop experiments can be used to investigate and communicate physical phenomena at vastly different scales. Following a brief review of some historical examples of analogy in interfacial fluid mechanics, I will describe two recent tabletop experiments developed in our lab that share similarities with certain microscopic colloidal systems. While physical analogy can be fruitfully used to advance science across disciplines, it can also be leveraged to enhance scientific communication and pedagogy.
Speaker Bio:
Daniel M. Harris is an Assistant Professor of Engineering at Brown University in the Fluids and Thermal Sciences group. Before joining Brown, Dan was a Postdoctoral Research Associate and Lecturer at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the Department of Mathematics. Dan received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University in 2010 and his Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics from MIT in 2015.
Dan’s primary research interests are in interfacial phenomena, microfluidics, and transport phenomena. His research involves an integrated experimental and theoretical approach. Dan has also received numerous awards for his scientific visualizations, including being selected as the winner of the 2016 NSF/Popular Science Visualization Challenge in Photography, as well as numerous prizes from the American Physical Society’s Gallery of Fluid Motion and Gallery of Soft Matter.
Location:
In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/93585934682
Passcode: NICO2024
About the Speaker Series:
Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.
Time
Wednesday, May 8, 2024 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location
Lower Level, Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
WED@NICO SEMINAR: Eleni Katifori, University of Pennsylvania "TBA"
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
//
Lower Level, Chambers Hall
Details
Speaker:
Eleni Katifori, Associate Professor, Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania
Title:
TBA
Abstract:
TBA
Speaker Bio:
Eleni Katifori is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania. Prof Katifori’s research group are interested in understanding the physics behind the morphological and functional attributes of living organisms. They primarily focus on questions inspired by and related to biological transport networks and the elasticity and geometry of thin sheets. Professor Katifori received her Ph.D from Harvard University in 2008 and a B.S. from the University of Athens, Greece in 2002.
Location:
In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/92857810876
Passcode: NICO2024
About the Speaker Series:
Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.
Time
Wednesday, May 15, 2024 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location
Lower Level, Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
WED@NICO SEMINAR: Serguei Saavedra, MIT "How Do Ecological Systems Become (re)Assembled?"
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
//
Lower Level, Chambers Hall
Details
Speaker:
Serguei Saavedra, Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, MIT
Title:
How Do Ecological Systems Become (re)Assembled?
Abstract:
One of the most iconic thought experiments in biology is what would happen if we could rewind the tape of life on Earth and play it again. Would the tape have a different story in every replay? Or is there a general order of events? The relevance of this thought experiment is not just philosophical or counterfactual, because (re)assembly processes undergone by ecological systems, from microbes to mega-fauna, are continuously replicating the experiment. By integrating theoretical and empirical work, in this talk I will provide a guideline to increase our understanding about the (re)assembly possibilities of ecological systems. Explaining and predicting the (re)assembly of ecological systems underpins our ability to develop successful interventions in bio-restoration, bio-technologies, and bio-medicine.
Speaker Bio:
Serguei Saavedra is an Associate Professor at MIT in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. He is also an external faculty at Santa Fe Institute. Serguei is a theoretical ecologist focused on understanding the feasibility of observing the emergence, transformations, and regeneration of ecological systems under environmental changes. Before joining MIT in 2016, Serguei studied systems engineering in Mexico; specialized in mathematical modeling at Genoa University; completed his PhD in engineering science at Oxford University; and did his postdoctoral work at the NICO (under the mentorship of Brian Uzzi), Doñana Biological Station, and in the department of environmental systems at ETH.
Location:
In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/91082510906
Passcode: NICO2024
About the Speaker Series:
Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.
Time
Wednesday, May 22, 2024 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location
Lower Level, Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
WED@NICO SEMINAR: Joseph Paulsen, Syracuse University "TBA"
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)
12:00 PM
//
Lower Level, Chambers Hall
Details
Speaker:
Joseph Paulsen, Associate Professor, Department of Physics, Syracuse University
Title:
TBA
Abstract:
TBA
Speaker Bio:
Joseph Paulsen earned a bachelor's degrees in Mathematics and Physics from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN, and he completed his PhD in Physics at the University of Chicago with Sidney Nagel. He won a National Science Foundation CAREER Award for his work that studies connections between geometry and mechanics in thin materials. Outside of science, one of his passions is trying to squirrel away as much time as possible to ski with his 7-year-old daughter (his son and his wife are not skiers... yet).
Location:
In person: Chambers Hall, 600 Foster Street, Lower Level
Remote option: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/94291553667
Passcode: NICO2024
About the Speaker Series:
Wednesdays@NICO is a vibrant weekly seminar series focusing broadly on the topics of complex systems, data science and network science. It brings together attendees ranging from graduate students to senior faculty who span all of the schools across Northwestern, from applied math to sociology to biology and every discipline in-between. Please visit: https://bit.ly/WedatNICO for information on future speakers.
Time
Wednesday, May 29, 2024 at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Location
Lower Level, Chambers Hall Map
Contact
Calendar
Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO)