The Principal Investigator is a mathematician in the Department of Mathematics at the University of North Texas (UNT). This grant will support the PI spending a year visiting the Institute of Applied Sciences (IAS) at UNT. One objective is to establish a collaborative research program in quantitative environmental biology. Work will initially focus on developing and analyzing complex ecosystem models, and applying stochastic optimal control techniques to evaluate resource management strategies. The PI will also serve as a mathematics consultant for the UNT Department of Biology. This will help the PI develop a basic understanding of a wide range of biological research problems and so acquire necessary firsthand knowledge to direct the development of an interdisciplinary program in mathematical biology at the University of North Texas. Student participation and community outreach will be important parts of the work. Undergraduate and graduate mathematics students will be involved both in the ecosystem research and in the consulting projects. The PI will develop presentations including- three-dimensional computer visualizations- which illustrate results from the proposed work for the IAS public education center. This IGMS project is jointly supported by the MPS Office of Multidisciplinary Activities (OMA) and the Division of Mathematical Sciences (DMS).
