News 2009

ANZIAM mini-meeting

NSW and ACT branches of ANZIAM held a joint mini-meeting at Batemans Bay on 4 & 5 December. There were 24 delegates in total, coming from UOW, ADFA, ANU, CSIRO and Geosciences Australia.

In total, 18 presentation were made, where 13 of these were given by students. The students presentations were all of a high calibre. Congratulations must go to Alex Badran for winning the prize of the Best Student Talk - the second time he has won this prize. Also, Ahmed Msmali was Highly Commended for his presentation.

Education award

	On World Teacher's Day Dr Annette Worthy and Dr Mark Nelson were presented with peer recognition awards by the Illawarra/South Coast Regional Group of the Australian College of Educators.
Annette was cited for "her guidance, support and understanding for all teachers and students in the BMathEd program". Mark was cited for "his outstanding ability to make Mathematics real and relevant for the students he teaches". [Oct 09]

New Grants

	Prof Iain Raeburn (with Dr Marcel Laca of Univ. of Victoria, Canada) has been awarded an ARC Discovery grant for a project entitled "Structure and states of operator-algebraic dynamical systems" from 2010-2012. This project is in the general area of functional analysis, and more specifically operator theory, an area in which the University of Wollongong has an active research group and a strong international reputation. The investigators will study dynamical systems arising in combinatorial and number-theoretic situations, where the analogue of the "dynamics'' is provided by an action of the real line on an operator algebra.
Prof Song-Ping Zhu is part of a team that was awarded an ARC Linkage grant with industry partner Strata Control Technology Pty Ltd for a project entitled "Study of Coupled Water-Gas-Sediment (three-phase) Flows through Jointed and Stratified Rock" 2010-2012. "Coupled Water-Gas-Sediment Flows through Rock Joints" project outcomes are expected to surpass the current knowledge on ground/slope stability and water inundation, enhance engineering solutions of the associated problems and provide vital improvements to public safety. [Oct 09]

New President for IASS

Prof Ray Chambers has been elected president of the International Association of Survey Statisticians (IASS). The IASS is the top international professional body for people working in sample surveys and censuses. It has strong membership from academic statisticians and statisticians working in government and industry. It also takes a special interest in raising the profile of survey methods in developing countries. [June 09]

Tibra Capital Scholarships

Interviews for the Tibra Work Integrated Learning Scholarships were held recently, and due to the outstanding quality of the candidates Tibra Capital has generously agreed to offer seven awards this year, three above the usual number of scholarships!

These scholarships are open to full time mathematics degree students, and involve invaluable work experience with Tibra Capital over the summer vacation, plus $15,000.

In the midst of the financial crisis this sends a very strong message about the worth and marketability of UOW Maths degrees. Our thanks to Tibra Capital for their support and generosity. [May 09].

Scholarship to Harvard

A few weeks ago we received the exciting news that current School of Mathematics and Applied Statistics student, Richard White, has been accepted into Harvard University's Department of Biostatistics. This is one of the world's great statistical groups and is located in a major epicentre of medical and public health research in Boston. In addition, Richard will have full funding from a prestigious Knox Fellowship.

Richard grew up in Gerringong and is in the final semester of his BMath(Adv) degree, with honours in Statistics. He will commence study at Harvard in August. Our congratulations and best wishes to Richard! [more details, Apr 09]

OCTAL award for Loftus team

Since the implementation of the Loftus BMathEd program in 2002, it has been served by an exclusive interdisciplinary team comprised of educationists, mathematicians, statisticians, computer scientists and a learning development lecturer, who have recently being recognised by the Vice-Chancellor's Awards for Outstanding Contribution to Teaching and Learning (OCTAL).

	The team's strong coherent purpose is to strive to inspire students through their passion for their discipline and importantly thirst for learning and knowledge, along with learning experiences and real world applications whilst promoting and using technologies where needed.
A group of students participating in class at Loftus

The strategies devised and implemented across the BMathEd program have specifically targeted at developing collaborative, yet independent and reflective learners, who will become tomorrow’s teachers who teach the next generation of discipline experts.

Success and a tradition has been set with a BMathEd student being awarded a BMath(Hons) First Class Honours from UOW’s main campus in 2008.

The winning Loftus Maths Education Team is comprised of:

• Dr Annette Worthy (Leader), School of Mathematics & Applied Statistics, Faculty of Informatics
• Faculty of Education: Dr Gwyn Brickell, Mr Kevin Gosbell, Dr Jennifer Rowley
• Faculty of Informatics: A/Prof Greg Doherty, Dr Luke McAven, Dr Maureen Morris, Mr Paul Wakenshaw
• Development Lecturer: Joanne Dearlove.

[Apr 09]

Maths in Industry Study Group (MISG) pages

Link to News 2008