REU Site: Applied Mathematics Research Program for Undergraduates

The AMRPU @ FIU program focuses on introducing undergraduate students to research in applied mathematics and provides opportunities for the students to explore various topics and models outside of the standard curriculum. Students will have instruction and mentoring that will help them pursue collaborative research projects closely aligned with their own interests.

With this applied modeling approach, the students can quickly get a deeper understanding of the mathematics than is possible in an ordinary classroom environment. In addition, group research projects will familiarize students with communication skills necessary for effective teamwork and will provide opportunities to write scientific, potentially publishable, papers and practice public presentations of their work.

Moreover, the program is designed to facilitate access to research in applied mathematics for a very diverse group of undergraduates, including under-represented minority and female students in mathematics and science, and to increase the number and proficiency of students entering the workforce. Through this multifaceted and inclusive approach, the students will gain valuable experiences that will enhance their success in graduate school and careers.

Applied Mathematics provides a rich and challenging field of study with practical applications. A wide variety of subjects across science and technology are advanced through mathematical modeling and analysis. Epidemiology, ecology, biomedicine, fluid dynamics, reaction-diffusion processes, and aerodynamics are just a few of the many examples.

Each summer this REU program will have a different set of topics for training and research but will keep the common theme of interconnections among the various disciplines of mathematics as well as modeling and applications. The areas of focus include Differential Equations and Dynamical Systems, Fourier Analysis, Linear Algebra, and Probability and Statistics.

Connections among these areas (as well as others) will provide the participants a broad view of the fields of mathematics and their utility in all areas of science and technology, a perspective too often missed in traditional mathematics instruction. Similarly, exposure to the common threads and variety of ideas and approaches from a diverse group of undergraduates, graduate students, and faculty mentors of all backgrounds, ethnicities, ancestry, and gender will help promote the progress of the scientific enterprise.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.