2019 Diversity in Mathematics: Undergraduate Summer School Information and Registration

Undergraduate Summer School Eligibility Requirements:

The summer school is open to female-identifying, non- binary and two- spririt undergraduate students studying mathematics or a related discipline such as computer science, physics and statistics at a university in Canada or in the northwest United States, with at least one year of studies remaining in their program. Priority will be given to second and third-year students. Each participant will receive on-campus room and board and a possible allowance for travel expenses to and from Vancouver.

Please note that the purpose of the program is to introduce the undergraduate participants to a wide variety of professions and careers, in academia and in industry, where advanced mathematics is used every day with spectacular success. It is NOT a purely research-oriented or purely industry-oriented summer school, rather a sampler of different flavours of mathematics-based careers.

A new component of the program will facilitate effective engagement and interaction with high school students who are good at math, who may not have had enough opportunities to learn about the impact of advanced mathematics and who can thrive under the mentorship of bright and strong undergraduate women in STEM.

Please use the above information to assess your interest and fit for the program. Address these items adequately in your personal statement.

Program delivery format: 

Courses: There will be mini-courses, running through the two weeks, taught by female instructors on the topic of their choice. The students will do group projects  with presentations the last day for each course.

Field Trips:One day each week will be for field trips to businesses employing individuals in the Mathematical Sciences.

Distinguished public lecture: Erika Camacho, ASU

Guest speakers and  Panel discussions:  

Melania Alvares, UBC 

Anne Condon, UBC

Alejandra Herera, UBC

Christine Jakshoej, Fincad

Luz Angelica Mata, Comp.Geosciences Inc.

Priyanka Mishra, SFU

Lana Ritter, Avcorp,

Margo Seltzer, UBC

Toni Schmader, UBC,

Alexandria Vassallo, MSC, SFU

Lilian Wong, Amazon

Elyse Yeager, UBC 

2019 Course Overview:

Course 1: Introduction to Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for Medical Applications

Course Instructor: Malebogo Ngoepe, University of Cape Town 

Prerequisites: Differential Calculus, Integral Calculus, Basic Exposure to Partial Differential Equations.

Brief Course Description: The course aims to introduce participants to computational fluid dynamics as it is applied to the study of flows encountered in medical applications. The main themes will be introduced in taught sessions, and participants will have the opportunity to implement what they learn during hands-on tutorials, where they will develop a basic model using a commercial CFD software suite (ANSYS). Over the course of the week, the following topics will be covered:

• Use of computational fluid dynamics in biological/medical problems

• Conservation laws of fluid motion

• The finite volume method

• Relevant analytical solutions to fluid flow problems

• Application of these methods to a fluid flow problem in the human body

Tech Requirements: 

• MS Windows 10, 64 bit machines, 4GB RAM, 25GB hard drive space

• Link to the free version of the software for students: https://www.ansys.com/academic/free-student-products  

Course 2: Fighting infectious diseases with math and genomics.

Course Instructors: Jessica Stockdale and Priscila Do Nascimento Biller, Simon Fraser University

Prerequisites: Differential calculus, basic introduction to ODEs and graph theory. No biology experience needed. Basic statistics would be beneficial but not required.

Brief Course Description: How do infectious diseases spread in a population? How do pathogens evolve? This course will explore the use of mathematical modelling and genomics to answer key questions in the fight against infectious diseases. Integrating genomic data in predictive models is a challenging task composed of different steps, from assembling samples of DNA to reconstructing disease outbreaks. Participants will see an overview of all these steps, with a combination of taught sessions, hands-on problem solving and computational activities. Particularly, participants will explore:

• How graphs can help to reconstruct the original structure of the DNA from innumerous DNA fragments;

• How models of genome evolution can be used to extract information from DNA sequences and infer evolutionary histories;

• How ODE models can be implemented in order to analyse infectious disease outbreaks. 

Application information:

Interested participants are required to review the below information carefully. Application and registration to the Summer School is a two step system. Applicants must send in the information below. Once you qualify, you will receive an email from the organizers with the second step on registration and payment of the summer school fee ($100CAD). Early applications are strongly encouraged as spaces may fill up early.

Email Subject Line: DIVERSITY IN MATH: Summer School Application: Last Name, First Name  

Email Contents:

a) A personal statement (300 words max) including why you would like to participate, the value of this workshop to you and how you have prepared for this summer school. Also indicate whether you will require accommodation on-campus.

b) CV

c) Informal transcript

d) Attach one letter of recommendation from your supervisor or other qualified persons. It should indicate why you are well suited to the summer school, and how you would benefit from attending.

Applications are now closed. Applicants who submitted their files will be contacted  before the end of April on the selection outcomes.

Successfull applicants will receive:

- Accommodation at UBC and SFU for the duration of the program (particpants will be housed in single rooms at the dorms)

- Some funding to defray travel costs to and from Vancouver (applicable to students outside the Vancovuer Lower Mainland) 

- Coffee breaks during the summer school and a hosted lunch or dinner as part of the program.