Seminars & Events, Fall 2004

• Department Seminar
  Paul Atela from Smith College
  Thursday, November 18 at 4:00-5:00 p.m. in RI-104
  Title:A Dynamical Systems model in Phyllotaxis
  Abstract:Pineapples, artichokes, marguerite flowers, asparagus, pinecones,... An
  enormous variety of plants exhibit spiral arrangements that come in two directions, clockwise and counterclockwise. When we count how many spirals we find in each of these two directions, most often we find two consecutive Fibonacci numbers (1,1,2,3,5,8,13,). We will talk about this phenomenon and we present a Dynamical Systems model for plant growth.
  
  
• Department Seminar
  Ethan Coven of Wesleyan Univeristy
  Thursday, November 4 at 4:30-5:30 p.m. in RI-232
  Title:The dynamics of one dimensional cellular automata: shift register sequences, inter alia
  Abstract: We consider some of the dynamics of one dimensional cellular automata determined by sliding block codes (i.e., continuous, shift-commuting functions) without memory, defined on all one-sided sequences of 0's and 1's. In pre-computer days they were used to construct codes for secure communication, for often the shift register sequences they generate, while periodic, appear to be random. Sample questions: when are such cellular automata topologically transitive, when do they have dense periodic points, what are their topological entropies? Except for such cellular automata "linear in the last variable," very little is known.
  
  
• Fall 2004 Sokol Lecture
  Andrew Knoll
  November 3, 2004 Kasser Theatre at 8:00 p.m.
  Title:Are We Alone in the Universe?
  Abstract: In his lecture, "Are We Alone in the Universe?" Andrew Knoll explains how twenty-first century scientists are exploring the solar system and beyond for signs of life. Building on his own research experience, Knoll explains how our understanding of biological history on Earth informs the search for life elsewhere, how the 2004 Mars rovers are reshaping astrobiological debate about our planetary neighbor, and how future exploration will carry the search beyond Mars to the outer solar system, nearby stars, and the farther reaches of space.
  
  
• CSAM Seminar Series in Mathematical Sciences
  Dr. Richard S. Falk, Rutgers University
  September 23, 2004 in the Sokol Seminar Room at 4:00 p.m.
  Title:Approximation by Piecewise Polynomials and Applications
  Abstract: In this general talk, the approximation of functions by polynomials and piecewise polynomials will be discussed. Applications will include data fitting, numerical integration, and the numerical solution of differential equations.
  
  
• Department Seminar
  Mike Puls
  Thursday, September 9 at 4:30 p.m. in RI-232
  Title:First L^p-cohomology and group cohomology of finitely generated groups.
  Abstract: In this talk we will discuss the vanishing and non-vanishing of the first L^p-cohomology space of some finitely generated groups. We also give a condition on a group G for which the first L^p-cohomology space of G will be equivalent to the first group cohomology of G with coefficients in L^p(G). A connection between L^p-cohomology and nonlinear analysis will be given.