Scientific Computing

2003 — 2005
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Scientific computing, in connection with applied mathematics, has become essential in solving many real-world problems. Its methodologies are needed, for example, in modeling physical, chemical, and biomedical phenomena; in designing engineered parts, structures, and systems to optimize performance; in planning and managing financial and marketing strategies; and in understanding and optimizing manufacturing processes. Problems in these areas arise in companies that manufacture a host of industrial and consumer products such as aircraft, automobiles, engines, textiles, computers, communications systems, chemicals, drugs as well as in various service and consulting organizations. They also arise in many national and international initiatives such as those in global change, biotechnology, and advanced materials. Because today's research problems are complex and multi-faceted, they very often require highly trained scientists with strong mathematical and computational skills and an in-depth knowledge of the discipline from which the research problem comes.

The excitement within Applied Mathematics and Scientific Computing comes from their evolution at the speed of technology. The exponential increase in computing capabilities continually opens up new vistas accessible to numerical modeling. Every advancement in scientific measurement reveals new phenomena demanding explanation and produces yet larger datasets requiring analysis. The importance of mathematics has largely increased because for many of the industrial applications of computing, the central questions are mathematical ones.

Scientific computing plays a critical role in applied and industrial mathematics at the PIMS universities and across North America. Within PIMS universities, the scientific computing community has been a very active collaborative group with a tradition of multi-university activities particularly among researchers at U. of Washington, SFU, and UBC. Recently new activities have emerged, due in large part to the leading role played by PIMS. A special feature of this period of concentration is the promotion of a multidisciplinary approach to the subject and the inclusion of important research topics such as the earth and atmospheric sciences. The base of support for the proposed programs includes researchers from Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, and Computer Science.

PIMS Distinguished Chair

The CRG will have two Distinguished Chair in 2003 and two more in 2004. These chairs will visit the group for at least one month and give a minicourse of lectures.

Professor Otmar Scherzer will be at University of British Columbia as a PIMS Distinguished Chair in Scientific Computing for the period of July 1 to September 30, 2004

Professor Chris Budd will be at Simon Fraser University as a PIMS Distinguished Chair in Scientific Computing in the summer of 2004.

Faculty

CRG Leaders: 

SFU:

  • R. Choksi
  • C. Kropinski
  • T. Möller
  • D. Muraki
  • K. Promislow
  • B. Russell
  • S. Ruuth
  • L. Trajkovic
  • M. Trummer
  • J. Verner
  • R. Zahar.

U. Alberta:

  • Y. Lin
  • J. Macki
  • P. Minev
  • Y.S. Wong

UBC:

  • U. Ascher
  • O. Dorn,
  • S. Dunbar
  • I. Frigaard
  • A. Peirce
  • B. Seymour
  • B. Shizgal
  • J. Varah
  • M. Ward
  • B. Wetton
  • M. Yedlin

U. Calgary:

  • T. Ware
  • R. Westbrook

U. Victoria:

  • D. Olesky
  • P. van den Driessche

U. Washington:

  • R. LeVeque
  • L. Adams
  • D. Durran
  • A. Greenbaum
  • G. Hakim
  • N. Kutz
  • R. O'Malley
  • P. Schmid
  • J. Burke
  • C. Bretherton

Ballard Corporation:

  • R. Bradean
  • J. Kenna

Boeing Corporation:

  • J. Lewis
  • S. Filipowski
  • M. Epton

Quadrus Financial Technologies:

  • S. Reddy

 

PIMS Postdoctoral Fellows

  • Jian-Jun Xu, PIMS PDF at SFU
  • Jianying Zhang, PIMS/MITACS PDF at UBC

This CRG will include another PDF in 2003 and two more in 2004.