AMS Sponsors Exhibit on Capitol Hill

The AMS sponsored an exhibit at the 20th annual Coalition for National Science Funding (CNSF) Exhibition & Reception on Capitol Hill featuring  Robert Ghrist, the Andrea Mitchell University Professor of Mathematics and Electrical/Systems Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania, presenting work on "Topological Sensor Networks."  This event, showcasing research and education projects supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), was held May 7, 2014 and drew over 280 attendees and eight Members of Congress.

Ghrist and his collaborators have worked for nearly a decade on applications of algebraic topology to problems of data over networks.  The problem of detecting global, robust features from networked, local data matches perfectly the mathematical tools of algebraic topology developed over the past century.  Ghrist's work, initially funded by the NSF, uses homology, cohomology, and sheaves to address problems in sensor networks ranging from coverage (are there any gaps in the network?) to data aggregation (how to merge redundant data over the network?) and target tracking (how to infer from detections over a nework?).

These novel applications, combined with emerging ideas from computational topology, allow for efficient algorithms with performace guarantees.

CNSF is an alliance of over 130 scientific and professional societies and universities united by a concern for the future vitality of the national science, mathematics and engineering enterprise.  CNSF supports the goal of increasing the national investment in the National Science Foundation's research and education programs.

Previous AMS exhibits at CNSF Exhibitions include:

• Beyond Coursework: Extending a Successful Model for Building Diversity in STEM to University Campuses presented by Talea Mayo, University of Central Florida
• Berry Smart: Mathematics for Food and Water Security presented by Lea Jenkins, Clemson University
• On the Movement of Cells, Birds, Fish and Other Agents: Mathematical Modeling in Biology and Ecology presented by Konstantina Trivisa, University of Maryland
• Mathematical Algorithms for Space Weather, Tsunamis, and Plasma Physics presented by Katharine Gurski, Howard University
• Topological Sensor Networks presented by Robert Ghrist, University of Pennsylvania
• The Boltzman Equation: Where Mathematics and Science Collide presented by Philip T. Gressman, University of Pennsylvania
• ICERM: Connecting Mathematics and Computing through Experimentation presented by Jill Pipher and Lauren Barrows, ICERM
• Efficient Energy Conversion: Mathematics of Nanoscale Networks presented by Keith Promislow, Michigan State University
• Industrial Modeling and Simulation: The Wave of the Future presented by Susan Minkoff, University of Maryland-Baltimore County
• Modeling Outbreaks in Agricultural Systems, Human Communities and Computer Networks presented by David Hiebeler, University of Maine
• Mathematics and Cardiology: Partners for the Future presented by Suncica Canic, University of Houston
• Computational Models for Cardiovascular Disease Assessment and Surgery Design presented by DalinTang, Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)
• Disease Prediction and Treatment Design presented by Eva K. Lee, Georgia Institute of Technology
• Mathematics for Advanced Composites Technology presented by Robert Lipton,Louisiana State University
• Mathematical Modeling of Swimming Organisms presented by Lisa Fauci and Nick Cogan, Tulane University
• Mathematics of Sea Ice presented by Kenneth M. Golden, University of Utah
• Liquid Films and Image Inpainting presented by Andrea Bertozzi, Duke University
• Undergraduate Research Opportunities Made Possible by NSF presented by Dr. John Bush, MIT
• Computer Simulation of Blood Flow in the Heart presented by Charles S. Peskin, Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University
• Mathematical Foundations of Image Analysis and Computational Vision presented by Don McClure, Brown University
• Ergodic Theory presented by Doug Lind, University of Washington
• The Energy of Knots presented with JPBM by Jonathan K. Simon, University of Iowa and Gregory R. Buck, Saint Anselm College