Conference Service Mandl

abstract: In the slightly more than two decades that have elapsed since the fields of Symplectic and Contact Topology were created, the field has grown enormously and unforeseen new connections within Mathematics and Physics have been found. The goals of the 2009-10 program at MSRI are to: I. Promote the cross-pollination of ideas between different areas of symplectic and contact geometry; II. Help assess and formulate the main outstanding fundamental problems and directions in the field; III. Lead to new breakthroughs and solutions of some of the main problems in the area; IV. Discover new applications of symplectic and contact geometry in mathematics and physics; V. Educate a new generation of young mathematicians, giving them a broader view of the subject and the capability to employ techniques from different areas in their research.

abstract: Probability theory and communications have developed hand in hand for about a century. The research challenges in the latter field (from telephone networks to wireless communications and the Internet) have spurred the development of the mathematical theory of stochastic processes, particularly in the theory of Markov processes, point processes, stochastic networks, stochastic geometry, stochastic calculus, information theory, and ergodic theory. Conversely, a large number of applications in communications would not have been possible without the development of stochastics. This program aims at the exposition of the latest developments in mathematical sciences lying on the boundary between stochastics and communications. Several workshops will take place during the program.

abstract: The Mathematics Department at the University of Texas – Pan American will host an NSF/CBMS regional research conference on Nonlinear Water Waves with Applications to Wave-Current Interactions and Tsunamis during the week of May 17-21, 2010. The principal speaker will be Professor Adrian Constantin, Chair of Partial Differential Equations at the University of Vienna, Austria. Additional invited lectures will also be featured by other leading experts, including Professors J. Bona, A. Degasperis, J. Escher, A. S. Fokas, R. Johnson, W. Strauss, J. F. Toland, E. Varvaruca, and possibly others. Participation is open to scientists working at research level on theoretical and practical aspects of the conference’s topic. Some limited support is available for travel and local expenses. Underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged to apply.

abstract: The geometric Langlands correspondence lies at the core of one of the most significant current interactions between geometry and physics, integrating far-reaching discoveries and conjectures originating in physics, geometry, representation theory and arithmetic. This advanced school is designed to deliver training on this interdisciplinary topic. It is targetted at graduate students, postdocs and researchers working in geometry and physics at an international level.

abstract: The topic of this years MMNS spring workshop are inverse problems related to wave propagation. The workshop aims at bringing together current fields of interest in inverse problems related to wave propagation, to exchange recent results, and to provide an overwiev on the field. Topics met during this workshop include sampling methods, iterative and non-linear optimization methods, asymptotic methods, as well as hybrid methods. Further topics are inverse problems for time-dependent waves, in near-field optics, for rough surfaces and in impedance tomography.

abstract: The mathematical work concerned with or inspired by General Relativity has increased substantially over the years and is still expanding, thanks to the wide variety of interesting and challenging problems that General Relativity can offer in several distinct areas of Mathematics, for example PDEs, Geometry and Numerical Analysis. Fundamental open questions in General Relativity, such as the stability of Kerr, the formation and structure of Black Holes and the Cosmic Censorship Conjecture, require for their understanding a deep analysis of the global behavior of solutions to the Einsten equations.

This conference brings together leading experts on General Relativity/non-linear wave equations and will cover topics of current and future research in these fields.

abstract: Enhanced mixing and transport properties are distinguishing characteristics of both turbulent and more structured complex flows. The concepts of eddy diffusion and eddy viscosity, for example, were introduced as attempts to 'parameterize' these effects to produce reduced models for theoretical analysis and simulations. At the same time turbulent mixing and transport is the focus of significant attention from a fundamental point of view, based in some cases on the Navier-Stokes equations and in other cases on models or special flows amenable to more thorough analytical investigations. This workshop is concerned with modern mathematical approaches to the study of transport and mixing in turbulence and other complex flows, including transitional flows with significant attention to applications from the applied sciences, predominantly geophysics.

abstract: The Mathematics Department at the University of Texas – Pan American will host an NSF/CBMS regional research conference on Nonlinear Water Waves with Applications to Wave-Current Interactions and Tsunamis during the week of May 17-21, 2010. The principal speaker will be Professor Adrian Constantin, Chair of Partial Differential Equations at the University of Vienna, Austria. Additional invited lectures will also be featured by other leading experts, including Professors J. Bona, A. Degasperis, J. Escher, A. S. Fokas, R. Johnson, W. Strauss, J. F. Toland, E. Varvaruca, and possibly others. Participation is open to scientists working at research level on theoretical and practical aspects of the conference’s topic. Some limited support is available for travel and local expenses. Underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged to apply.

abstract: The conference centers on random structures in the context of complex analysis, inspired by interactions between mathematics and physics. The central example is perhaps the Stochastic Loewner Evolution, introduced by Oded Schramm. SLE arises as the scaling limit of interfaces in 2D lattice models at criticality (percolation, Ising model, self avoiding polymers), and its elegant combination of probability and complex analysis has led to the proofs of many conjectures originating in physics. Other topics include Diffusion Limited Aggregation (a model for electrodeposition and other phenomena), Hele-Shaw flow (describing interfaces between fluids of different viscosities, e.g. oil and water), 2D Quantum Gravity and Random Maps.

abstract: Natural locomotion in fluids includes the swimming of fish and microorganisms and the flying of birds and insects. Other creatures employ similar movements on solid and fluid surfaces, e.g., snails, snakes, and water striders. Nature has exploited the complex fluid dynamics of time-dependent three-dimensional flows over a wide range of Reynolds numbers to evolve a variety of interesting mechanisms of locomotion. This workshop will focus on the mechanics of these behaviors and the current state of theoretical and experimental work in the field. The scope will cover the dynamics from low to high Reynolds numbers, emphasizing the links between the fluid dynamics and the nature of the evolved mechanisms. The inclusion of movement over solid and fluid surfaces introduces new phenomena involving surface stresses and complex fluid layers.

abstract: Michigan State University will be the host of the Institute for Mathematics and its Applications (IMA) Summer Graduate Program in Mathematics. The course will concentrate on Computational Wave Propagation. The program will focus on presenting some of the fundamental concepts and techniques currently used in computational wave propagation and related applications. It will provide a unique and timely synthesis of disciplines which will better position graduate students as future researchers for the next step to work on computational wave propagation.

abstract: The focus is on Relativity Theory in Mathematics and in Physics. There will be survey lectures and specialized talks.

abstract: The workshop organisers will gather about 40 mathematicians and physicists, and the scientific goal is to pursue an in-depth understanding of the interactions between Hodge theory on the one hand and QFT and string theory on the other. This includes work relating to supersymmetric gauge theories with the geometric Langlands conjecture, the use of mixed Hodge theory to study the renormalization group flow, and the noncommutative Hodge structure uncovered in the theory of charges in boundary TQFTs. In addition, there are plans to have a series of expository lectures on scale in QFT.

abstract: The ISQS-19 Colloquium is devoted to modern developments in the context of integrable systems, quantum groups and quantum symmetries.

abstract: Conservation Laws (or balance laws) are systems of partial differential equations which arise naturally as models for a variety of physical phenomena (e.g., fluid dynamics, magneto-hydrodynamics, combustion, oil recovery, and nonlinear elasticity). The primary focus of this summer program will be on recent developments in our understanding of such equations. Beginning with a rapid tutorial phase, the aim of the program will be to expose participants to current areas of active research and to help prepare them to pursue open problems in the field. The program will touch on both theoretical and computational aspects of conservation laws, and application areas (old and new) in which conservation laws play a central role will be highlighted.

abstract: The conference will focus on research in mathematical fluid dynamics, spanning areas from rigorous analysis of nonlinear partial differential equations to numerical analysis and modeling of related physical systems. This includes: (1) Analysis of PDEs for fluid dynamics: rigorous results for regularity, existence, uniqueness for Navier-Stokes and Euler, problems with free-surfaces and surface tension, convergence of vortex methods and splitting methods, (2) Fluid motion driven by interfaces: computational methods and analysis of problems with moving interfaces and (3) Computational methods for fluid dynamics. Thomas Beale has made important contributions to many problems in these areas.The conference will feature talks by a list of invited speakers and an extended poster session for contributed research presentations by conference participants.

abstract: This ESF-EMS-ERCOM Conference aims to highlight some of the most important advances in Teichmüller theory. This theory will be considered both from the geometric point of view (Thurston's theory and its ramifications) and from the analytic point of view (the Ahlfors-Bers theory and its ramifications). The relation with physics will also be emphasized.

abstract: The aim of this permanent school is to introduce undergraduate and Ph.D. students in Mathematics and Physics as well as post-doctoral researchers in a recently emerged area of Mathematics and Theoretical Physics: Secondary Calculus. A 'diffiety' is a new geometrical object that properly formalizes the concept of the solution space of a given system of (nonlinear) PDEs, much as an algebraic variety does with respect to solutions of a given system of algebraic equations. Secondary Calculus is a natural diffiety analogue of the standard Calculus on smooth manifolds, and as such leads to a very rich general theory of nonlinear PDEs. It appears that it is this the only natural language of quantum physics, just as the standard Calculus is for classical physics.

abstract: The aim of the Oporto meetings is to bring together mathematicians and physicists interested in the inter-relation between geometry, topology and physics and to provide them with a pleasant and informal environment for scientific interchange. As in previous years, the meeting is focussed on the short courses given by the main speakers. The talks are at the advanced graduate or postdoctoral level, and should be of interest to all researchers wishing to learn about recent developments in the overlap between geometry, topology and physics. The remaining participants are invited to submit titles and abstracts for contributed talks, relevant to the main topic of the meeting.

abstract: In the last 25 years, a new mathematical approach, gyrokinetics, has been developed to treat low-frequency fluctuations in plasmas. In this approach, the fast orbital 'gyromotion' is averaged to produce kinetic equations for rings of charge. This is a mathematically rigorous description that is far more tractable than the full kinetic theory. Despite some practical successes in code-building and simulations, the mathematical properties and physical implications of gyrokinetics are insufficiently well understood. In space and astrophysics, the wide applicability and power of the gyrokinetic theory has yet to be fully recognised and exploited. To realise the benefits of this approach, it is essential that gyrokinetics be put on a firm mathematical and physical footing. This program will include several workshops.

abstract: JAIRO CHARRIS SEMINAR (JCHS) is an IMA annual meeting which is dedicated to Jairo Antonio Charris Castañeda (in memoriam). The thematic for JCHS 2010 is Algebraic Aspects of Darboux Transformations, Quantum Integrable Systems and Supersymmetric Quantum Mechanics (see http://ima.usergioarboleda.edu.co/SJCH/JCHS2010.htm ).

abstract: The goal of this program is to showcase the many remarkable developments that have taken place in the past decade in Random Matrix Theory (RMT) and to spur on further developments on RMT and the related areas Interacting Particle Systems (IPS) and Integrable Systems (IS): IPS provides an arena in which RMT behavior is frequently observed, and IS provides tools which are often useful in analyzing RMT and IPS/RMT behavior.

abstract: Inverse Problems are problems where causes for a desired or an observed effect are to be determined. They lie at the heart of scientific inquiry and technological development. Applications include a number of medical as well as other imaging techniques, location of oil and mineral deposits in the earth's substructure, creation of astrophysical images from telescope data, finding cracks and interfaces within materials, shape optimization, model identification in growth processes and, more recently, modelling in the life sciences. During the last 10 yeas or so there has been significant developments both in the mathematical theory and applications of inverse problems. The purpose of the program would be to bring together people working on different aspects of the field, to appraise the current status of development and to encourage interaction between mathematicians and scientists and engineers working directly with the applications.

abstract: An exciting and largely unexpected consequence of Holography is that String and M-theory can provide useful information for transport phenomena of strongly interacting theories in low dimensions, fluid mechanics and non-relativistic systems. Physical systems that may have dual holographic descriptions include quantum critical points in 2+1 dimensions, high-Tc superconductors, quantum Hall systems, systems that exhibit parity breaking, non-relativistic critical systems as well as fluid mechanics and turbulence. Such systems – the Holographic States of Matter - have the potential to radically alter the perception of string theory and its relevance for physics. A basic theoretic setup for the holographic study of such systems is AdS4/CFT3 correspondence. This is also the main framework for holographic studies of the mysterious M-theory. The subject has experienced great formal growth, driven by the discovery of various field theoretical models for M2-branes. It is a fortunate and intriguing that progress in the more applied directions coincides with enhancement in the understanding of more formal aspects of M-theory. By bringing together experts in both the applied and formal directions we aim to create a fertile environment where future developments regarding the Holographic States of Matter in connection with our understanding of M-theory can be studied.

abstract: Every second year the Department of Theoretical Physics at the University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland, organizes International Conference of Theoretical Physics. The forthcoming 34th meeting will take place in September in Ustron, Poland. The conference will cover various areas related to correlations and coherence in different systems. The main topics will include:
- Correlations and coherence in macrosystems
- Correlations and coherence in nanosystems
- Correlations and coherence in optical lattices

abstract: The Fall Workshops on Geometry and Physics have been held yearly since 1992, and bring together Spanish and Portuguese geometers and physicists, along with an ever increasing number of participants from outside the Iberian peninsula. The meetings aim to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas between researchers of different fields in Differential Geometry, Applied Mathematics and Physics, and always include a substantial number of enthusiastic young researchers amongst the participants.

abstract: The AGMP meeting will focus on contemporary topics in Algebra, Geometry and Mathematical Physics, with an emphasis on the interface between them. It also promotes corresponding international scientific collaboration.

abstract: This program aims at the study of various topics within the area of Free Boundaries Problems, from the viewpoints of theory and applications. Many problems in physics, industry, finance, biology, and other areas can be described by partial differential equations that exhibit apriori unknown sets, such as interfaces, moving boundaries, shocks, etc. The study of such sets, also known as free boundaries, often occupies a central position in such problems. The aim of this program is to gather experts in the field with knowledge of various applied and theoretical aspects of free boundary problems.