Proposals

Below are some proposals for talks from the past (and current). By clicking on the ID number, more details are shown. By default, these are sorted chronologically (recent first) and by then by last name. The data can be sorted by alternate means by using the links at the top right, each allowing ascending or descending orders.

Displaying 201-220 of 471 results.
ID: 533
Year: 2019
Name: Lorenzo Riva
Institution: Creighton University
Subject area(s): Analysis, PDEs
Title of Talk: Low Regularity Non-$L^2(\mathbb{R}^n)$ Local Solutions to the gMHD-$\alpha$ system

Abstract: The Magneto-Hydrodynamic (MHD) system of equations governs viscous fluids subject to a magnetic field and is derived via a coupling of the Navier-Stokes equations and Maxwell's equations. It has recently become common to study generalizations of fluids-based differential equations. Here we consider the generalized Magneto-Hydrodynamic alpha (gMHD-$\alpha$) system, which differs from the original MHD system by the presence of additional non-linear terms (indexed by the choice of $\alpha$) and replacing the Laplace operators in the equations by more general Fourier multipliers with symbols of the form $-\vert \xi \vert^\gamma / g(\vert \xi \vert)$. In \cite{penn1}, the author considered the problem with initial data in Sobolev spaces of the form $H^{s,2}(\mathbb{R}^n)$ with $n \geq 3$. Here we consider the problem with initial data in $H^{s,p}(\mathbb{R}^n)$ with $n \geq 3$ and $p > 2$, with the goal of minimizing the regularity required to obtain unique existence results.
ID: 330
Year: 2012
Name: Mariah Birgen
Institution: Wartburg College
Subject area(s): Analysis, Teaching tips and tricks
Title of Talk: Real Analysis - IBL Style

Abstract: One year ago, I went to a workshop on Inquiry Based Learning (IBL) and was inspired to teach my Advanced Calculus course this way in Winter 2012. I will never go back to my old style again. This may be the closest my students ever get to mathematical research as undergraduates. In this talk I will briefly describe how an IBL classroom works and, more importantly, give links to resources to help you help your students with this method of deep learning.
ID: 283
Year: 2010
Name: Samuel Ferguson
Institution: University of Iowa
Subject area(s): Analysis, Teaching, Foundations
Title of Talk: Reals Revisited: NO SUP FOR YOU!

Abstract: Traditionally, first courses in analysis have started with certain axioms and then, in the course of deducing the consequences of these axioms, they prove the major theorems of calculus. The chief among these axioms is the "sup/least upper bound axiom," which seems obscure to most beginners. Where did such a thing come from, and how do we know that such a number system, satisfying such axioms, actually exists? Are the "reals" real? If teachers and students leave such questions unasked, they risk getting the impression that mathematics is just what happens when a somebody writes down a set of axioms and uses them to go on, in the words of Steven G. Krantz, "a magical mystery tour." Fortunately, in 1872 Dedekind and Cantor, independently and with different approaches, which have come to be known as the "Dedekind cut" approach to the "sup" and the "Cauchy sequence" approach to "completeness," constructed such real number systems, but their approaches are considered too complicated to present in their entirety at the beginning of most courses in analysis. In this talk, assisted by the intuition of Cauchy, Weierstrass, Courant, and others, we will give another (new?) construction of the reals, which has the advantages of both of the other constructions discussed and the complications of neither. Time permitting, the number "e" will be defined with this approach, or the Intermediate Value Theorem will be proved.
ID: 430
Year: 2015
Name: Russ Goodman
Institution: Central College
Subject area(s): analytics, statistics, data analysis
Title of Talk: Experiences Teaching a Sports Analytics Honors Seminar

Abstract: This talk will offer the presenter's experience designing and teaching an honors seminar on sports analytics. The seminar, offered in spring 2015, was designed for honors students in general and not necessarily for mathematics majors. The presenter will describe effective and not-so-effective aspects of the seminar, along with ideas for improving the seminar in the future. Feedback and input from the audience will be solicited.
ID: 188
Year: 2007
Name: Neil Martinsen-Burrell
Institution: Wartburg College
Subject area(s): applied math, dynamical systems
Title of Talk: Assimilating Drifter Trajectories using Gradient Descent

Abstract: In geophysics, we frequently try to couple dynamical models of physical systems such as the atmosphere or ocean with direct observations of those systems. In the atmosphere, with fixed observing stations, there are advanced techniques for Numerical Weather Prediction. In the ocean, observations are often made by objects that drift with the flow. This presents difficulties for conventional data assimilation methods. I will discuss one possible way to assimilate drifter trajectories into a very simple dynamical model.
ID: 234
Year: 2008
Name: Neil Martinsen-Burrell
Institution: Wartburg College
Subject area(s): Applied Math, Geometry
Title of Talk: The Ping and the Pong: Echolocating for fun and profit

Abstract: Table tennis is the world's most popular sport. Little is known about the physical parameters of the game. In an effort to understand the basic flow of the game, we constructed an echolocation system that could find the location and time of the "ping" and the "pong" based on recordings from 4 microphones placed around the room. Such information can be used to approximately calculate the speeds at which the ball travels in a game of table tennis.
ID: 536
Year: 2019
Name: Mariah Birgen
Institution: Wartburg College
Subject area(s): Applied Mathematics
Title of Talk: Caucus Mathematics

Abstract: Welcome to Iowa. One of the best sources for cool, applied math problems comes from the Iowa Democratic Caucuses. Of course, every four years the Democratic Party fiddles with the rules. I will talk about ranked elections, viability, and apportionment. The last portion of the talk will discuss some of this year’s rule changes and how they affect the calculations.
ID: 219
Year: 2008
Name: Haseena Ahmed
Institution: Iowa State University
Subject area(s): Applied Mathematics, Numerical Analysis
Title of Talk: Alternating evolution (AE) schemes for hyperbolic conservation laws

Abstract: An alternating evolution (AE) system is proposed which is an accurate approximation to systems of hyperbolic conservation laws. We develop a class of local Alternating Evolution (AE) schemes, where we take advantage of high accuracy of the proposed AE approximation. Our approach is based on a sliding average of the AE system over an interval of [x − \Delta x, x + \Delta x]. The numerical scheme is then constructed by sampling the averaged system over alternating grids. Higher order accuracy is achieved by a combination of high-order polynomial reconstruction from the obtained averages and a stable Runge-Kutta discretization in time. The AE schemes have the advantage of easier formulation and implementation, and efficient computation of the solution. For the first and second order local AE schemes applied to scalar laws, we prove the numerical stability in the sense of satisfying the maximum principle and total variation diminishing (TVD) property. Numerical tests for both scalar conservation laws and compressible Euler equations are presented to demonstrate the high order accuracy and capacity of these AE schemes.
ID: 527
Year: 2019
Name: Hongyuan Zhang
Institution: Grinnell College
Subject area(s): applied topology
Title of Talk: Artworks and Articles Meet Mapper and Persistent Homology

Abstract: Since its recent birth, topological data analysis (TDA) has proven to be a very useful tool when studying large and high-dimensional data sets. We will talk about the application of two TDA tools, persistent homology and the Mapper algorithm, to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) artwork data set and two scholarly literature databases: arXiv and Google Scholar. For the MET data, we use the Mapper Algorithm to guide feature selection in building a logistic regression model for classifying certain artworks. Then we use persistent homology to help differentiate between two subsets of artwork. For the arXiv data, we use persistent homology to derive a general sense of the shape of the data. With help of the Mapper Algorithm, we further explore the point cloud by analyzing trends and features in visualizations. For the Google Scholar data, we find that there are interesting correlations between academic category of the paper and number of pages, number of references, and published date.
ID: 147
Year: 2006
Name: Scott Wood
Institution: University of Iowa
Subject area(s): Bayesian statistics, spatial statistics, medical geography
Title of Talk: Model Fitting and Selection for County-Level Depression Hospitalization Rates Using Bayesian Statistical Methods

Abstract: Researchers in the health sciences are interested in identifying and modeling the risk factors that are associated with high rates of hospitalization for depression. Being able to identify U.S. counties with high standardized hospitalization rates (SHR) would be useful in allocating federal resources. This project analyzes and critiques three potential Bayesian statistical models that can be implemented using WinBUGS software. Ordinary least squares, Poisson regression, and Bayesian conditional autoregressive (CAR) models are considered in detail. Though each has its advantages and disadvantages, qualitative and quantitative evidence suggest that the Bayesian CAR model is the optimal choice for this data. While a Bayesian CAR model will be shown to account for spatial autocorrelation and Poisson response variables, it was not as reliable as hoped for making accurate predictions at the county level.
ID: 169
Year: 2006
Name: Rick Spellerberg
Institution: Simpson College
Subject area(s): Biology / Mathematics
Title of Talk: Sperm Competition Games

Abstract: Sperm Competition occurs when ejaculates of multiple males compete to fertilize the eggs of one female. In this talk we will discuss the work of G.A. Parker in his paper; Sperm Competition: sneaks and extra-pair copulations. In this paper, Parker examines ejaculation strategies for cases when an opportunist male "steals" a mating with the female of a paired male.
ID: 237
Year: 2008
Name: Fengrong Wei
Institution: University of Iowa
Subject area(s): biomathematics
Title of Talk: variable selection in high dimensional regression

Abstract: My research work studies statistical regression models for data sets with a small sample but huge number of variables. For example, we may wish to study the same 5000 genes in only 200 individuals with the goal of predicting whether they will develop a certain rare cancer. A classical linear regression for the cancer outcome in terms of the 5000 genes does not work with only 200 data points because the associated linear equations are not full rank. We might choose 200 of the genes and do a regression, but there are over 10^363 such choices. My work uses "penalty functions" add to the linear equations which will make the problem solvable. Theoretically, we can show that the result have the "oracle" property which means it will give us the baseline true model with probability going to 1.
ID: 476
Year: 2017
Name: Sabah Munir
Institution: Wartburg College
Subject area(s): Biostatistics
Title of Talk: Genetic Risk Factors for Preterm Birth

Abstract: Preterm birth, which affects 5-18% of pregnancies worldwide, occurs when an infant is born before 37 weeks of gestation. Studying the factors associated with preterm birth is important, for it is the leading cause of death in children under five years old. Besides many environmental factors, genetics also dictate the risk of preterm birth. This current research project is based upon the sequenced exomes of 93 pairs and 2 trios of sisters from Denmark who have a history of preterm birth. The goals of this project were to (1) develop gene burden tests to analyze the experimental data against the general population data obtained from the Exome Aggregation Consortium, (2) identify rare variants that may contribute to the risk of preterm birth, and (3) compare the two methods of statistical analysis that we developed. Gene burden tests collapse all variants on the same gene together, and then analyze each gene as a whole by determining the significance of its impact on preterm birth. Through R language, we developed a count-based method based on the Poisson distribution and a weighted version using the normal distribution. The genes producing the smallest p-values were examined further, which led to the identification of several promising variants to be studied more in future research.
ID: 466
Year: 2017
Name: Ranthony A.C. Edmonds
Institution: University of Iowa
Subject area(s): Blended learning; flipped instruction; trigonometry
Title of Talk: A Case for Blended Learning: A Partially Flipped Trigonometry Course

Abstract: Blended learning is an instructional approach that combines online digital media with traditional classroom methods. Blended courses are sometimes known as hybrid courses in that some of the introduction is occurring outside of the classroom, and it has gained recent attention as a method to address remediation and student motivation in introductory math courses in higher education. Flipped instruction is a type of blended learning that has gained a lot of attention as an alternative to lecture based instruction in its own right. However, common pitfalls of this technique include resistance from instructors due to the perceived amount of time to create instructional videos and materials, and from students due to the amount of independent learning required outside of class. Partially flipped instruction addresses these concerns by incorporating both independent and face-to-face instruction. It can also alleviate the amount of time spent on additional materials by instructors, while still holding students accountable for their own learning outside of class. This talk will give a brief introduction to blending learning, what is it, and what it is not. Next, we will focus on a particular type of blended learning, flipped instruction, and subsequently a partially flipped model used in the Spring of 2017 at the University of Iowa for a College Trigonometry course. The main features of this model included instructional videos, created with Doceri for iPad, which were viewed outside of class once a week by students, coupled with a short assessment based on that instruction. The following ‘flipped’ period involved individual and/or group activities expanding upon concepts introduced in the videos. Canvas by Instructure was used heavily throughout the course. Motivation and implementation of the design will be described, quantitative data with regards to course assessments will be given, and the results of a qualitative survey given to students about their experience in the course will be shared. Last, we will describe some specific efforts of certain math departments to incorporate blended learning in their curricula.
ID: 307
Year: 2011
Name: Brian Birgen
Institution: Wartburg College
Subject area(s): Calculus
Title of Talk: A First Calculus Course Using Numerical Tools and Modeling

Abstract: Our Calculus redesign consists of students learning the concepts of differentiation and integration by focusing on mathematical modeling and numerical solutions to differential equations. Topics covered include Euler's method, the Newtonian model for air resistance, the buoyancy of hot air ballooning, predator-prey models, Malaria and more.
ID: 314
Year: 2011
Name: Bill Wood
Institution: University of Northern Iowa
Subject area(s): calculus
Title of Talk: Squigonometry: Developing non-euclidean trigonometry with elementary calculus

Abstract: Differential equations offers one approach to defining the classical trigonometric functions sine and cosine that parameterize the unit circle. We adapt this approach to develop analogous functions that parameterize the unit "squircle" defined by $x^4+y^4=1$. As we develop our new theory of "squigonometry" using only elementary calculus, we will catch glimpses of some very interesting and deep ideas in elliptic integrals, non-euclidean geometry, number theory, and complex analysis.
ID: 65
Year: 2004
Name: Tauqir Bibi
Institution: Iowa State University
Subject area(s): Calculus
Title of Talk: Experiences of Tauqir Bibi in Teaching Calculus Courses

Abstract: I have taught calculus courses for many years. Most of the students in these courses are engineering majors. Many of these students appreciate seeing applications to their majors. I will present examples of some problems and projects that introduce students to applications of Calculus in their majors.
ID: 133
Year: 2005
Name: Phil Wood
Institution:
Subject area(s): Calculus
Title of Talk: Simple Teaching of Differential Calculus

Abstract: Calculus may be taught more understandably by first describing its practical uses and then presenting it as simple algebra and geometry. In doing this all mention of infinitesimals, increments, theory of limits and formal proofs has been eliminated.
ID: 310
Year: 2011
Name: Ruth Berger
Institution: Luther College
Subject area(s): Calculus (special session 1)
Title of Talk: Calculus at Luther College

Abstract: Calculus at Luther College: Over the past two decades Calculus instruction at Luther has slowly moved from Reform Calculus back towards a more traditional approach. Several aspects of Reform Calculus, especially the use of technology, have been retained as essential components to teaching Calculus in the modern age. The main reason we moved back to a more traditional way of teaching Calculus was that we found we needed a more intellectually challenging course with sound theoretical foundations for our math majors.
ID: 94
Year: 2004
Name: Russell Goodman
Institution: Central College
Subject area(s): Calculus and Writing
Title of Talk: Using Letter-Writing to Enhance a Calculus Course

Abstract: In this talk, the presenter will describe the experience he is having with letter-writing in a first-semester calculus course. In particular, the presenter has his students write letters to family members, friends, or others in order to communicate what they are experiencing in their calculus class. The presenter will discuss his original goals for this activity, along with the procedural details he set forth. In addition, there will be examples of student letters along with a discussion of what the presenter might want to do differently the next time he runs this activity