Harvey Mudd College
Polya Lecture: Friday November 20, 2020, 5:00 PM
Abstract: With the explosion of sophisticated technology in the twentieth century and beyond, many female mathematicians, statisticians and data scientists are making essential contributions to human endeavors, from bioinformatics to spaceflight. We all know women who have shattered stereotypes, pursued their passions, and persisted even when things got tough. In this talk, I’ll share some of their stories and my own journey from college statistics professor to host of the PBS miniseries, “NOVA Wonders”. By bringing public awareness to the data-driven work we do, we can inspire the next generation and increase our Power in Numbers.
Bio: Dr. Talithia Williams is a host of the PBS series NOVA Wonders, a groundbreaking professor, popular TED speaker, inspiring author and passionate STEM/STEAM advocate. She has made it her life's work to get people of all ages and backgrounds excited about the bold possibilities of a STEM education and to “STEMpower” women and minorities to enter these professions. Her latest book, Power in Numbers: The Rebel Women of Mathematics reflects Williams’ passion to re-brand the field of mathematics as anything but dry, technical or male-dominated. Renowned for her popular TED Talk, “Own Your Body’s Data,” she advocates for all of us to deploy data as a way of taking charge of our own health. A vibrant, engaging and energizing speaker, Dr. Williams demystifies data, statistics, probabilities and the mathematical process in amusing and insightful ways. She also passionately champions the contributions of scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians and their vital role in transforming our future.
Dr. Williams is Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Diversity and Associate Professor of Mathematics at Harvey Mudd College, where she develops statistical models which emphasize the spatial and temporal structure of data, applying them to real world problems. Focused on data analytics, mathematics, statistical modeling and STEM outreach, she is the first African-American woman to achieve tenure at the college. She hosts NOVA Wonders, a PBS mini-series that explores the biggest questions on the frontiers of science. The Los Angeles Times praised the show for sending the message “that scientists come in a range of ages, genders, colors and hairstyles.” She also appeared in NOVA’s Prediction by the Numbers, a series exploring the history of probabilities and gambling which Forbes called, “an entertaining, fun piece that conveys her knowledgeable and deep interest in this predictive method.” In addition to her teaching and television work, she has partnered with the World Health Organization in developing a cataract model used to predict the cataract surgical rate for countries in Africa. Her professional experiences include research appointments at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA’s Johnson Space Center, and the National Security Agency.
An exceptional communicator and gifted teacher, Dr. Williams won the Mathematical Association of America’s Henry L. Alder Award for distinguished teaching. She also developed a 24-part college level lecture series, "Learning Statistics: Concepts and Applications in R", for The Great Courses, an online platform for lifelong learners. Dr. Williams earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Spelman College, a master’s degree in mathematics from Howard University and a PhD in statistics from Rice University. In 2019, she received an honorary doctorate from Fielding Graduate University for her "substantial impact on higher education" and for "championing the development of women in the STEM professions."
Described by audiences as engaging, relevant, funny, accessible, and a joy to work with, Dr. Williams captivates and inspires with her contagious enthusiasm for STEM in general and math in particular. Applying the data-driven approach made famous in her TED talk to a range of subjects, she takes sophisticated numerical concepts and makes them understandable to a wide audience, debunking perceptions with an energizing call to “show me the data!”
Williams College
Distinguished Teacher Lecture: Saturday November 21, 2020, 10:00 AM
Abstract: Having collaborated with almost 80 undergraduate students on mathematical research, I have seen these students flourish -- their work has resulted in over 25 research publications and more than 10 writing contributions to the profession. In this talk, I detail the specifics that make our research communities so fruitful. (Spoiler alert: it was not the math!) In particular, I share ways in which we implement restorative practices in our collaborations to build honest and sincere relationships that focus on individual responsibility and shared accountability. These practices are the foundation on which we build communities that value and center people over mathematics, which in turn, greatly advance our mathematical work.
Bio: Dr. Pamela E. Harris is a Mexican-American mathematician and Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Williams College. She received her B.S. from Marquette University, and M.S. and Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Dr. Pamela E. Harris's research is in algebraic combinatorics and she is the author of over 50 peer-reviewed research articles in internationally recognized journals. An award winning mathematical educator, Dr. Harris was the 2020 recipient of the MAA Northeast Section Award for Distinguished College or University Teaching, the 2019 MAA Henry L. Alder Award for Distinguished Teaching by a Beginning College or University Mathematics Faculty Member, and the 2019 Council on Undergraduate Research Mathematics and Computer Sciences Division Early Career Faculty Mentor Award. She was also selected as a 2020 Inaugural Class of Karen Uhlenbeck EDGE Fellows and was one of 50 women featured in the book “Power in Numbers: The Rebel Women of Mathematics.” Her professional mission is to develop learning communities that reinforce students’ self-identity as scientists, in particular for women and underrepresented minorities. In support of this mission, Dr. Harris co-organizes research symposia and professional development sessions for the national conference of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS), and is an editor of the e-Mentoring Network blog of the American Mathematical Society. Moreover, in order to provide visibility to and increase the positive impact of the role models within our community, Dr. Harris co-founded Lathisms.org, a platform that features the contributions of Latinx and Hispanic scholars in the Mathematical Sciences.
M.I.T.
The Christie Lecture: Saturday November 21, 2020, 4:00 PM
Abstract: Computational geometry has long been a topic of research in computer science, but "classical" algorithms in this domain often neglect the messiness of data we encounter in real-world applications. In this talk, I'll show how ideas in probability can be combined with geometric reasoning to design robust and widely-applicable algorithms compatible with the demands of modern computation. In particular, I'll describe two projects in my group that combine geometry and probability, for very different tasks: large-scale analysis of voting districts, and understanding the geometry of data as it cuts through high-dimensional space. Along the way, we'll see how optimal transport, statistical physics, and other mathematical domains naturally fit with these applications.
Bio: Justin Solomon in an associate professor in the MIT Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, leading the Geometric Data Processing group in the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. He received his BS (mathematics and computer science), MS (computer science), and PhD (computer science) at Stanford University and completed a postdoc in the Princeton Program in Applied and Computational Mathematics. His research involves development of computational tools for problems in machine learning and computer graphics that draw ideas from optimal transport, differential geometry, and other mathematical disciplines.