December 2014
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LONDON MATHEMATICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER No. 442 December 2014 Society NEW MATHEMATICS Meetings DEPARTMENT AT LINCOLN and Events The City of Lincoln has histori- Fund. The school offers a range of 2014 cal connections with some of mathematics programmes from the most notable mathemati- BSc up to PhD including both Wednesday cal minds. It is the birth place pure and applied mathemat- 17 December SW & South Wales of George Boole and Charlotte ics, with the first undergraduate Regional Meeting Scott. George Boole started his intake beginning in September Plymouth mathematical career in Lincoln as 2015. page 23 a school teacher and spent a large The main research area of the part of his short life there. school in pure mathematics is 2015 An important cathedral city, algebra (group theory and theory Friday 16 January Lincoln, however, only recently of Lie rings). Applied mathemat- 1 150th Anniversary became a university place, and did ics is represented by theoretical Launch, London not previously have its own math- and computational modelling of page 7 ematical university provision. soft matter. Friday 27 February That situation changed in The school has recently made its Mary Cartwright September 2014 with the first staff appointments. The plan Lecture, London page 14 opening of the School of Math- is to have at least six academics ematics and Physics at the Univer- in post by next summer, with the 16 - 20 March 2015 sity of Lincoln. It is the result of long-term aim being to bring this LMS Invited Lectures Durham a close collaboration with indus- number up to thirty. Pure math- page 8 trial partners, and a £6.8 million ematics development will be led Wednesday 1 April grant from the HEFCE Catalyst by a well-known algebraist, Dr 150th Anniversary Celebrations at the BMC-BAMC 2015 Cambridge page 26 Tuesday 7 April Northern Regional Meeting, Lancaster 20-31 July LMS Undergraduate Summer School Loughborough page 12 NEWSLETTER © University of Lincoln ONLINE: newsletter.lms.ac.uk University of Lincoln Main administration buildings @LondonMathSoc LMS NEWSLETTER http://newsletter.lms.ac.uk Contents No. 442 December 2014 16 15 150th Anniversary Events Combining Probability and Logic...........25 BMC-BAMC 2015 - LMS 150th INI Almost Periodic and Other Anniversary Celebration Day.................26 Ergodic Problems Workshop..................24 Launch of the 150th INI Periodic and Other Ergodic Anniversary Celebrations.......................7 Problems Workshop...............................24 2 Calendar of Events..........................35 News Isaac Newton Institute - Call for LMS Items Proposals...............................................6 Book of Presidents.................................34 Mathematics Policy Round-up................4 Council Diary...........................................5 New Mathematics Department at David Crighton Medal 2015 - Call for Lincoln.....................................................1 Nominations...........................................10 Royal Commission Fellowship.................22 Hardy Fellowship Lecture Tour 2016 - Nominations Sought...................21 Obituary Invited Lectures 2016 - Call for Basterfield, John Gavin...........................29 Proposals...............................................20 Reports Prizes 2015 - Call for Proposals...............19 Brian Hartley Memorial Day...................15 Postdoctoral Mobility Grants - 2015-16 Good Practice Scheme Workshop..........3 Awards...................................................13 Operator Theory 2014............................17 Spitalfields Day - Call for Proposals.........8 The Maxwell Institute Graduate Undergraduate Research Bursaries in School on Evolution Equations..............16 Mathematics 2015.................................9 Word Periodicity and Conjugate Words..18 LMS Meetings Reviews Christopher Zeeman Lecture and Chaotic Fishponds and Mirror Medal Presentation................................11 Universes............................................32 LMS Invited Lecturer...............................8 Coffee, Love and Matrix Algebra.........31 LMS Undergraduate Summer School.....12 Really Big Numbers................................30 Mary Cartwright Lecture.........................14 SW & South West Regional Meeting......23 Scholarship Statistical Properties of Dynamical Cecil King Travel Scholarship..................28 Systems.................................................27 Visits Meetings Batat, Wafa..............................................25 AMS EMS SPM International Meeting....25 Maestripieri, Alejandra...........................29 [email protected] No. 442 December2014 Evgeny Khukhro, expert in group theory and on-Rideal Prize for Molecular Science from theory of Lie rings, a member of the editorial King’s College London, and of the Springer boards of the Journal of Algebra and Journal Thesis Prize. Research in applied mathematics of Group Theory. has possibilities of collaboration with Lincoln’s In applied mathematics and physics we have existing strengths in materials science, also attracted top scientists: Dr Marco Pinna, molecular biology, nanotechnology and phar- the winner of the UK Institute of Physics 2009 macology. PhD Prize in Computational Physics and Dr Professor Andrei Zvelindovsky Manuela Mura, the winner of the 2010 Tadi- Head of School of Mathematics and Physics LMS GOOD PRACTICE SCHEME WORKSHOP Report The Good Practice Scheme has now run a number of workshops for departments to try and help them to implement good working practices. Most of these have fact students!) in this area so it seemed focused on Athena SWAN awards with timely to offer a workshop on this theme. presentations being given by departments The ECU is the organisation that runs who have been successful in obtaining the Athena SWAN scheme but it also runs awards. a number of other activities including 3 The latest workshop was held on 21 training sessions on topics such as uncon- October 2014 at De Morgan House and had scious bias. For this particular topic, the a rather different format. The workshop ECU has developed a training pack www. was led by Claire Herbert who is a Senior ecu.ac.uk/publications/unconscious-bias- Policy Advisor for the Equality Challenge colleges-he-training-pack/ that is freely Unit (ECU) and was on the theme of Un- available for university staff to use at their conscious Bias. Participants at previous own institutions. Claire used this pack to run workshops had indicated that they would the session at the LMS Workshop and also like a session on this topic and a recent talked through ways in which participants Government Inquiry on women in scientific could use and adapt the material to run careers recommended that all universities sessions themselves. should give training to their staff (and in The workshop was well attended with Editorial team Publication dates and deadlines http://newsletter.lms.ac.uk Published monthly, except August. Items and adver- Editorial office www.lms.ac.uk/newsletter/ tisements by the first day of the month prior to London Mathematical Society, ratecard.html publication, or the closest preceding working day. No- tices and advertisements are not accepted for events De Morgan House, 57–58 Russell General Editor that occur in the first week of the publication month. Square, London WC1B 4HS Mr A.J.S. Mann (t: 020 7637 3686; ([email protected]) News items and notices in the Newsletter may be f: 020 7323 3655) freely used elsewhere unless otherwise stated, Reviews Editor Events calendar although attribution is requested when reproducing Professor D. Singerman whole articles. Contributions to the Newsletter are Updates and corrections to ([email protected]) [email protected] made under a non-exclusive licence; please contact the Administrative Editor author or photographer for the rights to reproduce. Articles S.M. Oakes The LMS cannot accept responsibility for the accuracy Send articles to ([email protected]) of information in the Newsletter. Views expressed do [email protected] Typeset by the LMS at De not necessarily represent the views or policy of the Advertising Morgan House; printed by London Mathematical Society. For rates and guidelines see Holbrooks Printers Ltd. Charity registration number: 252660. LMS NEWSLETTER http://newsletter.lms.ac.uk around 30 participants from a range of uni- whole workshop or to provide material for versities. The feedback was very positive and part of a workshop on a topic such as recruit- several participants said that they were con- ment. In fact the ECU is currently preparing sidering using the training material at their a new training pack on recruitment which own universities. Claire illustrated the theory will include a section on unconscious bias. with a range of practical examples and case Participants appreciated the experienced studies which were discussed in groups and and friendly input from Claire and also the these were especially helpful in getting a chance to chat and swap ideas about this better understanding of the issues involved and other issues with members of other de- and ways in which they could be overcome. partments over lunch. It became clear that unconscious bias is Gwyneth Stallard an important issue and that the training Chair, LMS Women in Mathematics material could be used as the basis for a Committee MATHEMATICS POLICY ROUND-UP November 2014 RESEARCH form an important part of the development process. Specific points have been taken on EPSRC Strategic Advisory Teams (SATs) board