Congratulations to postdoctoral fellow Chapin Korosec, Department of Mathematics & Statistics, who has received the Michelson Postdoctoral Prize Lectureship for his exceptional early-career research achievements during his PhD in physics.

Read the full story in YFile.

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“A lot of people, when they think about math, think about geometry and Pythagoras’ theorem,” says Iain Moyles, an associate professor in York’s Department of Mathematics & Statistics. “Math is a language of structure and logic and science that can help you test a hypothesis. So we’ve designed a mathematical model to understand the cause and effect of peer influence in smoking.”

The idea came from PhD student Sarah Machado-Marques in response to a class assignment to experiment with math modelling to explain the psychology behind human behaviour.

Although she has never vaped, she says she wanted to understand why so many of her peers took up the e-cigarette craze when they were in high school.

“I’m really interested in why people do what they do, what drives people to make certain decisions,” she says. “I was walking around campus and noticed that vaping is still relevant in both my age group and also younger age groups, and so I started thinking, how can we use math to address this problem?”

Ten years ago, the surge in vaping among adolescents was considered an epidemic. In 2018, the number of U.S. high-school students vaping nearly doubled in a single year, according to the American Heart Association. More recent data, from Statistics Canada, shows that vaping is still popular among Canadian youth. In 2022, one in 10 Canadians aged 20 to 24 and one in 15 aged 15 to 19 vaped every day, compared with one in 50 Canadians aged 25 and older.

Moyles says the vaping epidemic is not a classic disease like COVID-19 but a social contagion that behaves like one.

“In a standard disease, you might walk past someone and infect them with an actual virus or bacteria,” he says. “In vaping or similar behaviours, an adolescent can pressure someone and you change your behaviour because you were ‘infected’ by the influence of your peer.”

Machado-Marques says it can be a subtle pressure, where teenagers and young adults feel the need to fit in or mimic the behaviour of their friends.

What their research suggests is that while teenagers can be influenced to vape because their friends are, equally so, they may be influenced to quit the habit because their friends are. Their mathematical model shows that the long-term trajectory of vaping is a cyclical pattern of starting and quitting depending on what their cohort is doing.

“We see this re-emergence in society all the time – things that were cool when we were kids, then weren’t cool,” says Moyles. “Our kids and our grandkids eventually find them again and once again they become cool.”

The findings from Machado-Marques and Moyles can apply to any adolescent trend where friends have influence on each other. The same cycle can be seen in the pendulum between bell bottoms and skinny jeans, and curly and straight hair, for example.

Moyles says math modelling can be used by parents, teachers and public health authorities to identify cycles of undesirable adolescent behaviours influenced by peers and look for opportunities to intervene.

“The key learning I would say from our modelling would be to recognize the cycle and to start to saying, ‘OK, when do we think this sort of thing is happening and how do we get ahead of it?’”

The researchers say that while prevention is always best, attempts to influence more positive behaviour among adolescents may be strongest coming from other adolescents.

“If a parent or teacher encourages a certain behaviour, adolescents might do the opposite, just because it's not coming from within their influence group,” says Moyles. “The key from the influence structure of our model is to find a way to have that information coming through the peer network.”

Courtesy of YFile

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Congratulations to Professor Huaiping Zhu, who was honoured this year by the Canadian Applied and Industrial Mathematics Society (CAIMS). He received the 2024 CAIMS-Fields Industrial Prize, and presented the Industrial Research Prize Lecture at the , held June 24-27, 2024.

Zhu, based in the Department of Mathematics & Statistics, is a leader in infectious disease modelling. He directs the Centre for Disease Modelling (CDM) and Laboratory of Mathematical Parallel Systems (LAMPS) at York, as well as the pan-Canadian One Health Modelling Network for Emerging Infection (OMNI). Through his work in CDM, LAMPS and OMNI, he has advanced the understanding of pandemic dynamics and provided timely guidance for public health policy.

His CAIMS Industrial Research Prize Lecture focused on modelling studies for the transmission of mosquito-borne diseases in Canada. Warming, climate variability and extreme weather events are expected to drive an increase in frequency and intensity of mosquito-borne disease (MBD) outbreaks globally. In Canada, this will mean an increased risk of endemic and emerging MBD outbreaks, such as West Nile virus, dengue and other MBDs with origins in tropical regions. To characterize the incidence and spread of mosquito-borne diseases among people and animals, the West Nile virus surveillance system has adopted a One Health approach involving experts from human, animal and environmental domains.

In his lecture, Zhu presented data-driven modelling for Culex mosquito populations, as well as a dynamic study of models for the threshold conditions for an outbreak and recurrent outbreaks. He also discussed the risk of MBDs in Canada if warming continues, and how modelling studies will contribute to early warning capacity for emerging infectious disease outbreaks as a key adaptive response to climate change.

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Thanks to the availability of , an online open educational resource (OER) provided to students at no cost, homework shouldn’t be as stressful as usual for the hundreds of �첥��Ƶ students enrolled in the Linear Algebra (MATH 1025) course this term.

WeBWorK allows them to practise solving challenging problems as often as they’d like and provides instantaneous feedback.

“In mathematics, you need to practise, and with this system, you can keep trying until you get it right,” said Andrew McEachern, an assistant professor and course director for linear algebra. “For retention, research shows that engaging with problems multiple times is best. We want students engaged and practising, and this system allows for low, no-stakes practice. There is no cost for failure.”

Online homework platforms aren’t new, but many of them are costly for students since they are owned by textbook publishing companies.

“Textbook companies have proprietary rights to their platforms and many of them have a lot of bells and whistles that we don’t need,” McEachern said. “This bare-bones system works and does 90 per cent of the job that expert systems do.”

WeBWorK is open source and very customizable. This means it can be downloaded for free, although there are significant costs associated with the server and staff resources. The Faculty of Science is covering these costs to provide the software free of charge to students.

McEachern and other instructors approached the Faculty about installing WeBWorK and joined forces with Hovig Kouyoumdjian, associate dean of curriculum and pedagogy, and Violeta Gotcheva, director of information technology (IT) for the Faculty, to explore the idea. Gotcheva, along with Steven Chen, a systems administrator, and Kalpita Wagh, an IT learning technology support specialist in the Faculty of Science, met with instructors and IT support teams from other Canadian universities to discuss their experiences with WeBWorK. They also joined the worldwide WeBWorK user group to expand their understanding of its applicability and support requirements.

Although faculty members assumed the IT staff could easily upload the software and run it, Gotcheva explained to them that supporting the platform was more complicated.

“It’s essential to ensure any software we run has appropriate security, robustness, reliability and scalability,” she said. “This is accomplished by obtaining a server hosting service aligned with the software requirements and hiring skilled staff for system maintenance and user support. After determining this, we realized we needed to install the open-source WeBWorK platform relying on community support.”

Gotcheva, in collaboration with Kouyoumdjian, McEachern, and Michael Haslam and Stephen Watson – current and former Chairs of the Department of Mathematics & Statistics, respectively – created a business case for running the platform. They outlined the financial requirements for hosting and maintaining it and the cost savings that would accrue to students compared to the need for a proprietary platform. The Faculty of Science IT team partnered with Pamela Mills, assistant manager of University Information Technology System Management Services, and her team to use the University enterprise virtual server hosting. The WeBWorK pilot received a grant from the Faculty of Science Academic Equipment Fund to cover the server hosting costs, and the Faculty of Science IT team proceeded with the installation.

Now, the pilot is underway in all the linear algebra sections during the winter term.

“Testing the platform across all sections of the course was a bold move, as initially, we anticipated it being piloted only in Andrew’s section,” said Koyoumdjian. “We eagerly look forward to hearing about the experiences from both the faculty and the students.”

So far, said McEachern, instructors haven’t discovered any insurmountable problems with the platform, and the more than 700 students studying linear algebra this term seem satisfied. He has paired the homework platform with an online help forum on social media platform Discord to provide students with a means for asking questions and getting answers quickly.

“It’s amazing how many times other students pitch in with answers before I even get to the question,” McEachern said. “They just do it out of the goodness of their hearts.”

He also said his students are reporting much less anxiety about their homework than usual.

After the term is over, he, the other instructors and the team will review the success of the pilot, examining usage statistics and trends. They are also considering an informal survey of participants.

“It’s easy to use and it’s cost-effective during tough economic times,” said McEachern. “In my opinion, if even one student benefits, it’s worth it.”

Kouyoumdjian also sees it as a tool for student retention.

“Mathematics is a foundational subject, and by enriching our students’ practice opportunities, we set them up for success and better equip them for future career endeavours” he said. “This pilot is a stepping stone, and we plan to extend the use of this platform to other math courses. We’ve also received positive feedback from colleagues outside our Faculty, who expressed enthusiasm for implementing WeBWorK at �첥��Ƶ, which indicates a growing interest in adopting such powerful open-source platforms in their own courses as well.”

In addition, noted Gotcheva, the United Nations considers OERs a public good, which aligns well with the �첥��Ƶ Academic Plan’s commitment to furthering the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

“The Faculty of Science is committed to OERs,” said Kouyoumdjian. “Our aim is to promote the use of resources that are economically more feasible for our students and flexible enough to be reused, revised, remixed and redistributed. WeBWork aligns with these standards of OERs.”

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New faculty members further York’s scientific innovation, impact

The Faculty of Science welcomed 12 new high-calibre researchers and instructors to its five departments and one division. By recruiting talented faculty members with diverse backgrounds, world views and expertise, we are ensuring the best learning experience for our students and cultivating integrity and principles of equity, diversity and inclusion in our community.

Record growth in experiential education opportunities

Experiential education allows students to deepen their learning and apply theories learned in the classroom to hands-on, paid work experiences. Over 2022-23, the Faculty of Science’s experiential education program saw record growth, with co-op applications increasing by 180 per cent and internship applications increasing nearly 140 per cent over the previous year. As well, this past summer, 110 student opportunities were posted by 21 employers.

Leading pharmaceutical technology innovation

Our chemists are leading a team of researchers and industrial leaders in training the next generation of technologically advanced graduates for the pharmaceutical industry. Supported by a new NSERC CREATE grant worth $1.65 million, the Technology-Enhance Pharmaceutical Discovery (TEPD) program will train Master’s and PhD students with the technical and managerial skills to capitalize on disruptive technologies that aim to impact Canada’s research and development in the pharmaceutical industry.

Strengthening community engagement

The Faculty of Science’s sense of community and its ability to tackle challenges have been bolstered by our community member’s willingness to engage with each other and with our university partners centrally, through various initiatives including our year-long Community 2022 initiative; these events were attended by hundreds of faculty and staff through to the program’s conclusion in Summer 2023. More.

Canada Research Chairs position FSc at the forefront of future-defining research

The national Canada Research Chairs (CRC) program recognizes world-leading researchers in a variety of fields. The Faculty of Science gained one new and two renewed Canada Research Chairs (CRC): Kohitij Kar received a new CRC Tier II in Visual Neuroscience; Christopher Caputo received a renewed CRC Tier II in Main-Group Catalysis and Sustainable Chemistry; and Raymond Kwong received a renewed CRC Tier II in Environmental Toxicology.

$4M in NSERC Discovery Grants support scientific innovation at York

More than 20 faculty members from the Faculty of Science were collectively awarded over $4 million in NSERC Discovery Grants to continue advancing scientific innovation. The funding is enabling our researchers to independently pursue long-term research programs, innovative research activities, diverse partnerships and interdisciplinary collaborations.

Science Explorations Summer Camp offers expanded opportunities for youth

Our Science Explorations Summer Camp for Grades 3 to 8 featured curricula with a greater emphasis on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including a new week-long program called Sustainable Science. Overall, our summer youth programming welcomed more than 500 students who engaged in 27 unique camp themes in the areas of environmental chemistry, space adventures, forensic chemistry, structural engineering, and more.

Faculty of Science hosts science deans from across Canada

Our Faculty hosted the 2023 Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Council of Deans of Science (CCDS) to share knowledge and strengthen pan-Canadian advocacy for science education. The three-day event was attended by 30 science and associate deans from universities across Canada.

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Miles Couchman, a �첥��Ƶ assistant professor in applied mathematics, Faculty of Science, is part of an international research collaboration featuring a multidisciplinary network of researchers – including applied mathematicians and mechanical, civil and environmental engineers – that has been been awarded a highly competitive 2024 Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment (INCITE) Supercomputing Award.

The winning collaborative project looks to better understand turbulence in stratified flows, notably scenarios where a fluid has variable density. One application of particular interest is developing more robust mathematical models for characterizing the turbulence-enhanced mixing of heat in the ocean, a leading area of uncertainty in global climate modelling and a topic of direct importance to global society.

The INCITE program, run by the Office of Science at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), grants 75 computational intensive science projects access to the world’s fastest supercomputers, located at the DOE’s Argonne and Oak Ridge national laboratories, to further innovation across the fields of science, engineering and computer science.

Couchman’s co-project was among 108 total proposals received by INCITE this year from international researchers or research organizations asking for supercomputer access. The evaluation process was highly competitive, with proposals evaluated over the course of four months based on computational readiness, the scalability of a project’s code and algorithms, and more.

Couchman’s team was awarded use of Frontier, the largest supercomputer in the world, in 2024 to perform numerical research simulations, allowing the researchers to simulate turbulent processes with unprecedented resolution, leading to more accurate and universal turbulent models. They hope what they learn won’t just apply to the mixing of heat in water, but how pollutants mix in the atmosphere and more.

The research team is made up of individuals from Duke University, the University of Washington and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst in the U.S., as well as the University of Cambridge in the U.K.

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Department of Mathematics & Statistics student Yibin Zheng is the inaugural recipient of the Global Engagement Funding Award (GEFA), created by the Faculty of Science to support �첥��Ƶ science students who want to study or participate in academic activities abroad as part of their degree.

Zheng received the award in recognition of ongoing academic excellence and a profound commitment to expanding his research knowledge and skills across borders. Most recently, he demonstrated those qualities this summer by taking part in the Faculty of Science’s , which led him to participate in a research internship in the Department of Applied Mathematics at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, where he was responsible for using the Bayesian statistics theory to work with R, a programming language, and help solve statistical problems.

GEFA is part of the Faculty of Science’s efforts to support a wide variety of global experiences and perspectives for science students, notably eligible degree-seeking undergraduate students (domestic or international), by facilitating international academic experiences.

The award was spearheaded by the Office of International Collaborations & Partnerships within the Faculty and – recognizing the financial barriers that may deter students from engaging in enriching opportunities – is designed to extend financial aid to ambitious students like Zheng, enabling them to immerse themselves in global scientific communities and endeavours.

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, a professor in �첥��Ƶ’s Department of Mathematics & Statistics at the Faculty of Science, and a member of the Laboratory of Mathematical Parallel Systems, has had a U.S. patent approved for an algorithm that will reduce the training time of artificial intelligence (AI) machine learning (ML).

The patent, titled “,” was inspired by a 2018 paper titled “.” Both were based on collaborations with Ricky Fok, a former postdoctoral Fellow student; Aijun An, a professor in the Department of Engineering & Computer Science; and Zana Rashidi, a former graduate research assistant who carried out some of the computing experiments.

The now-patented algorithm, approved this year, was a result of six months of research at York. It was submitted to the United States Patent and Trademark Office in 2019. The algorithm’s framework is based on mathematical arguments that helps significantly reduce the training time of machine learning, as it absorbs, processes and analyzes new information. It does so by using a mathematical formula to allow residual networks – responsible for the training of AI – to compute in parallel to each other, thereby enabling faster simultaneous learning.

Wang’s desire to accelerate machine learning’s abilities is driven, in part, by a specific area of AI applications. “I want to apply all the algorithms I develop to health care,” Wang says. “This is my dream and mission.”

Wang has especially focused on using AI to improve care for seniors and that work has previously earned him the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Award from the House of Commons for initiatives during COVID-19 to mitigate the spread of the virus in long-term care facilities.

Wang plans to use the patented algorithm in ongoing projects that aim to provide smart monitoring of biological signals for seniors. For example, it could be used in long-term care to continuously monitor electrocardiogram signals at night to register heartbeats that have stopped. To move towards that goal, Wang is also working on building an AI platform that will complement those ambitions, and expects it to be ready in several years.

He is deeply invested in the social impact of AI as a member of the York organized research unit Centre for Artificial Intelligence & Society, where researchers at York who are collectively advancing the state of the art in the theory and practice of AI systems, governance and public policy.

“I can use the machine learning to help the long-term care facilities improve the quality of care, but also help out with the struggles of the Canadian health-care system,” says Wang.

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