The Mathematics Department holds regular seminars on a variety of topics. Please see below for further details.

Seminars

Seminar Meeting Details Title & Abstract
Data Seminar
event
-
place
MSB 110
group
Characterizing single-cell transcriptomic spatial patterns with Topological Data Analysis

To gain their unique biological function, plant cells regulate protein biosynthesis through gene activation and repression along with multiple mRNA mechanisms. The subcellular localization of mRNAs has been reported as a complementary regulatory mechanism of the biology of fungi, yeast, and animal cells. However, studies comprehensively reporting the impact of mRNA localization in plant cells are lacking.

Here, we set to mathematically model the spatial distribution of sub-cellular cytosolic transcripts across multiple cell types and developmental stages. Through the use of high-resolution spatial transcriptomic technology, we first report the comprehensive and differential mapping of millions of plant transcripts between the nuclear and cytoplasmic compartments of various soybean nodule cell types. We then characterize key mathematical features of these transcriptomic spatial distributions using Topological Data Analysis (TDA). TDA offers a comprehensive pattern-quantifying framework that is robust to variations in cell shape, size, and orientation. TDA thus provides us with a common ground to mathematically compare and contrast intrinsic differences in sub-cellular transcript distributions and patterns across cell types and expressed genes.

Our analyses reveal distinct patterns and spatial distributions of plant transcripts between the nucleus and cytoplasm, varying both between and within genes, as well as across different cell types. We believe this differential distribution is an additional, less understood, regulatory mechanism controlling protein translation and localization, cell identity, and cell state and reveals the influence of the sub-compartmentalization of transcripts as another post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism.


 

Speaker: Erik Amézquita
Analysis Seminar
event
-
place
Math Sci 111
Complete homogeneous symmetric polynomials and generalized Vieta  formulas

We generalize the classical Vieta formulas that express the coefficients of a polynomial in terms of all the roots. In particular, we focus on the case when just some of the roots are known. Our formulas are established by exploiting    some properties of the complete homogeneous symmetric polynomials. 
Further, we provide  new identities for these polynomials when the variables are in a geometric progression and give an application to cyclotomic polynomials. This is joint work with  A. Echezabal and M. Laporta


 

Speaker: Laura De Carli (Florida International University)
Data Seminar
event
-
place
MSB 110
group
The geometry of economic fragility for supply chain shocks

The study of fragile economic systems is important in identifying systems that are vulnerable to a dramatic collapse. For instance, complex systems like supply chains are at risk of being fragile because they require many parts to work well simultaneously. Even when each individual firm has a small susceptibility to a shock, the global system may still be at great risk. A recent survey by Matthew Elliot and Ben Golub review fragile economic systems from the point of view of networks. In a network, the reliability that the final product (e.g., a car, computer, or lifesaving medication) is made by a firm is determined the probabilities of shocks being in the system. Thus, reliability transitions from being zero to a positive probability depending on the chances of a shock --- characterizing these phase transitions is an important problem in the theory of economic fragility. In our work, we view these phase transitions through the algebraic geometry lens by using resultants. As a result, we bring new tools to econometrics to analyze multi-parameter models, and we fully describe the reliability of many new network models using computational algebraic geometry. Our most significant application is a surprising case study on a mixture of two multi-parameter supply chain models. This is joint work with Jiayi Li (UCLA).

Speaker: Jose Israel Rodriguez (UW Madison)
Pre-print Algebra Seminar
event
-
place
MSB Room 12
The Quillen-Suslin Theorem, Part II

We will finish the proof of Quillen-Suslin. Please note the non-standard meeting time for the seminar this week.

Speaker: Muktai Desai
Data Seminar
event
-
place
MSB 110
group
A complete error analysis on solving an overdetermined system in computer vision using linear algebra

Many problems in computer vision are represented using a parametrized overdetermined system of polynomials which must be solved quickly and efficiently. Classical methods for solving these systems involve specialized solvers based on Groebner basis techniques or utilize randomization in order to create well-constrained systems for numerical techniques. We propose new methods in numerical linear algebra for solving such overdetermined polynomial systems and provide a complete error analysis showing that the numerical approach is stable. Examples will be provided to show the efficacy of the method and how the error in the data affects the error in the solution.

Speaker: Margaret Regan (Holy Cross)
Pre-print Algebra Seminar
event
-
place
Room 12
The Quillen-Suslin theorem Part I

This is the first part of the talk on the Quillen-Suslin theorem, formerly known as Serre's Conjecture. The assertion is that a finitely generated projective module over a polynomial ring over a field is always free. In 1976, Quillen and Suslin independently provided a complete proof of this theorem. Quillen was awarded a fields medal in part because of his proof this conjecture. In this talk we'll discuss a simplification of Suslin's proof given by Vaserstein. 

In the first part, we'll develop the required machinery, starting with the concepts such as stably free modules and unimodular column extension property (UCEP). Based on these, we'll see what stably free modules of a commutative ring having UCEP look like. Also, we'll see the proof of Horrock's theorem and will draw some observations required to prove the main theorem.

Speaker: Muktai Desai
Data Seminar
event
-
place
MSB 110
group
Flatland Vision

When is it possible to project two sets of labeled points lying in a pair of projective planes to the same points on a projective line? Here one answer: such projections exist if and only if the two 2D point sets are themselves images of a common point set in 3D projective space. Furthermore, when the two sets of points are in general position, it is possible to give a complete description of the loci of pairs of projection centers. I will describe the roles of classical invariant theory, Cremona transformations, and geometric computer vision in this description.

Speaker: Tim Duff
Algebra Seminar
event
-
place
110 MSB
group
Intersection Theory and some Theorems of Rees

Let \(R\) be a Noetherian local ring  of dimension \(d\).   We define an intersection product on schemes \(Y\) which are birational and projective over \(Spec(R)\)  which allows us to interpret multiplicity in \(R\) as an intersection product, generalizing a theorem of Ramanujam and others. We use this to give new geometric formulations and proofs of some classical theorems about multiplicity. In particular, we give a new geometric proof of a celebrated theorem of Rees about degree functions. This is joint work with Jonathan Montaño.

Speaker: Dale Cutkosky, University of Missouri
Data Seminar
event
-
place
MSB 110
Recovering vectors from saturated frame coefficients

A frame (x_j) for a Hilbert space H allows for a linear and stable reconstruction of any vector x in H from the linear measurements (<x,x_j>).  However, there are many situations where some information of the frame coefficients is lost.   In applications such as signal processing and electrical engineering one often uses sensors with a limited effective range and any measurement above that range is registered as the maximum.  Depending on the context, recovering a vector from such measurements is called either declipping or saturation recovery.  We will discuss a frame theoretic approach to this problem in a similar way to what Balan, Casazza, and Edidin did for phase retrieval.  The talk is based on joint work with W. Alharbi,  D. Ghoreishi, B. Johnson, and N. Randrianarivony.

Speaker: Daniel Freeman (SLU)
Data Seminar
event
-
place
MSB 110
Convex programming relaxations for high-dimensional Fokker-Planck equation

In this talk, we explore adaptations of semidefinite programming relaxations for solving PDE problems. Our approach transforms a high-dimensional PDE problem into a convex optimization problem, setting it apart from traditional non-convex methods that rely on nonlinear re-parameterizations of the solution. In the context of statistical mechanics, we demonstrate how a mean-field type solution for an interacting particle Fokker-Planck equation can be provably recovered without resorting to non-convex optimization. 

Speaker: Yuehaw Khoo (UChicago)