Summer Research Conferences: A Collaboration Between AMS, IMS & SIAM

American Mathematical Society, Providence RI

Investigators

Abstract

Since 1981, the American Mathematical Society (AMS), the Institute for Mathematical Statistics (IMS) and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) have managed a program of research conferences, which have been held during the summers at various locations and funded by the National Science Foundation. During this time, more than 9,000 U.S. mathematical scientists have participated in these conferences, which have allowed them to advance their research and make connections with other scientists. For many young mathematicians, these summer conferences have played a crucial role as they enter a specific area of mathematical research. This project consists of three additional one-week conferences in this series to be held during the summer of 2007 at the Snowbird Conference Center in Utah. These three conferences were the results of the traditional solicitation for the Summer Research Conferences (SRCs) proposals carried out during 2005. They were thoroughly reviewed in March 2006 by a twelve-member Selection Committee jointly appointed by the AMS, IMS and SIAM. This proposal requests support for three one-week conferences: 1. Derived Categories in Mathematics and Physics 2. Interactions of Random Matrix Theory, Integrable Systems and Stochastic Processes 3. Symplectic Topology and Measure-Preserving Dynamical Systems Each of these conferences will bring together a core of leading researchers in a mathematical area that is experiencing active expansion of the research frontiers in the field. Each of the organizing committees is composed of leaders in the field of the conference and includes individuals with previous experience in organizing successful workshops and conferences. The programs of these meetings will help bring together groups of individuals working on the core problems from different perspectives and lead to exchanges of concepts and insights that can occur more readily with face-to-face communication. The sponsoring societies have a long track record of attracting outstanding organizing committees and administering them so as to maximize the experience of the participants. These conferences play a major role in career development for young mathematicians. They bring together senior and junior researchers in an ideal environment to establish connections, which often last for many years after the conference itself. In this sense, the conferences help to train the next generation of researchers in various fields. This is especially true with the added emphasis on including recent Ph.D.s. The organizing societies are also keenly aware of the need to increase participation of under-represented groups, and all aspects of the conferences will reflect that awareness. Finally, the proceedings that are produced from these conferences reach mathematicians throughout the world and in every part of the mathematical community. In this way, the work done at these conferences can reach scientists who work in areas far from the specific conference topic and who are separated from the meeting by both place and time.