Research Experiences for Undergraduates- Environmental Mathematics

今年夏天，REU(本科生研究体验)项目将于2000年在华盛顿州立大学举行。主题将是环境数学。与会者将致力于研究涉及环境问题的问题，如地下水污染/修复和生物圈中的碳循环。他们将以描述这些环境问题的常微分方程/偏微分方程式的形式分析各种数学模型。在他们的分析中，将使用本科生水平的数学概念，如等倾角分析、相平面分析、拉普拉斯变换、伪逆、分离变量法和奇异摄动法。此外，还将使用数学软件和MatLab软件进行分析。对于某些问题，将利用LU分解技术和有限差分方法进行计算机模拟。头两周将致力于教授参与者必要的数学概念，并使他们熟悉现场的计算机资源。通过让本科生接触到有趣而重要的“现实世界”问题，我们打算让他们学习和欣赏数学在现实生活中的力量和用处。我们希望提供一种研究体验，让学生对应用数学充满热情，并吸引他们从事数学研究生研究。

This summer REU (Research Experience for Undergraduate) program will be held inthe year 2000 at Washington State University. The theme will be environmental mathematics. The participants will work on research problems that deal with environmental issues such as groundwater contamination/remediation and carbon cycle in the biosphere. they will analyze various mathematical models in the form of coupled ordinary/partial differential equations that describe these environmental problems. In their analyses, undergraduate-level mathematical concepts such as, isocline analysis, phase plane analysis, Laplace transforms, pseudo-inverses, method of separation of variables and singular perturbation methods will be used. Also, software such as MATHEMATICA and MATLAB will be employed in carrying out the analyses. For some problems, computer simulations will be performed making use of LU decomposition techniques and finite-difference methods. The first two weeks will be devoted to teaching the participants the necessary mathematical concepts and familiarizing them with the on site computer resources. By exposing the undergraduate participants to interesting and important "real world" problems, we intend to make them learn and appreciate the power and usefulness of mathematics in real life. Our hope is to provide a research experience that will get the students excited about applied mathematics and will attract them into doing graduate research in mathematics.