Computational and Applied Analysis

This area of mathematics concerns the modeling and analysis of continuous physical or biological processes that occur frequently in science and engineering. Students interested in this area should have a solid background in analysis which includes the ability to analyze ordinary and partial differential equations through both analytical and computational means.

In most circumstances, an applied mathematician does not work alone but is part of a team consisting of scientists and engineers. The mathematician's responsibility is to formulate a mathematical model from the problem, analyze the model, and then interpret the results in light of the experimental evidence. It is, therefore, important for students to have some experience in mathematical modeling and secure a background in one branch of science or engineering through a carefully planned sequence of courses outside of the department.

With the increase in computational power, many models previously too complicated to be solvable, can now be solved numerically. It is, therefore, recommended that students acquire enough computer proficiency to take advantage of this. Computational skill is growing in importance and should be a part of every applied mathematician's training. Students may learn these skills through various numerical analysis courses offered by the department. An MQP in this area will generally involve the modeling of a real-life problem, analyzing it, and solving it numerically.

Courses of Interest

Maintained by webmaster@wpi.edu
Last modified: October 02, 2006 12:20:11