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Department Events

Events

• Mar

  12

  Appl Math: Xiao Yu Wang on "What the Proposed Credit Card Regulation Really Means for Consumers"

  McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

  11:15 AM M416, Technological Institute

  EVENT DETAILS

  Title: What the Proposed Credit Card Regulation Really Means for Consumers

  Speaker: Xiao Yu Wang, CRI Foundation

  Abstract:

  My work addresses the need for a theoretical framework to evaluate proposed caps on credit card interest rates and swipe fees by developing a dynamic model that produces usable insights into the patterns and interdependence of consumer spending, credit use, and repayment choices, merchant pricing and competition, and the contract decisions of card issuers. There are several key innovations. First, I derive conditions under which credit cards increase total spending instead of simply reallocating it (rather than assuming one or the other). This is critical since credit cards are a special type of two-sided platform: the lending aspect means there is scope for increasing transaction value beyond the impact of reducing buying frictions. Second, I explicitly model consumer demand given credit access in equilibrium and show how this affects merchant pricing and entry, rather than assuming fixed merchants or that demand and elasticities for goods purchased with credit cards are invariant in consumer wealth. Third, I study which consumers fall into repayment traps and why. Preliminary results identify overlooked mechanisms and externalities which have important implications for the total and distributional impact of rate caps, fee caps, and increased competition, and for optimal regulation of credit cards in general.

  Zoom: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/93537284594

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  TIME Thursday, March 12, 2026 at 11:15 AM - 12:15 PM

  LOCATION M416, Technological Institute    map it

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  CONTACT Anne Umbanhowar    anne.umbanhowar@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

• Apr

  30

  Appl Math: Kevin Lin on "A coarse-grained model of the primary visual cortex"

  McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

  11:15 AM M416, Technological Institute

  EVENT DETAILS

  Title: A coarse-grained model of the primary visual cortex

  Speaker: Kevin K. Lin, University of Arizona

  Abstract: Biologically realistic models of cortical circuits are challenging to build and simulate due to the large numbers of neurons, their complex connectivity and interactions, and the many unknown parameters. Reduced, or coarse-grained, models are more tractable, but when carried too far reduced models may become hard to interpret. This talk concerns a coarse-graining strategy inspired by ideas from nonequilibrium statistical mechanics that aims to balance biological realism and computational efficiency. I will show
  that our strategy, when applied to the primate primary visual cortex, can faithfully reproduce the response of cortical circuits to external stimuli.

  Zoom: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/95622380807

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  TIME Thursday, April 30, 2026 at 11:15 AM - 12:15 PM

  LOCATION M416, Technological Institute    map it

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  CONTACT Noor Kaur    noor.kaur@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

• May

  7

  Appl Math: Jon Rubin on "Title TBA"

  McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

  11:15 AM M416, Technological Institute

  EVENT DETAILS

  Title: TBA

  Speaker: Jon Rubin, University of Pittsburgh

  Abstract: TBA

  Zoom: TBA

  -----

  To subscribe to the Applied Mathematics Colloquia List send a message to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.IT.NORTHWESTERN.EDU with the command:

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  TIME Thursday, May 7, 2026 at 11:15 AM - 12:15 PM

  LOCATION M416, Technological Institute    map it

  ADD TO CALENDAR

  CONTACT Noor Kaur    noor.kaur@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

• May

  13

  Appl Math: Melanie Mitchell on "The Nature of Artificial Intelligence" - Reiss Lecture

  McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

  4:00 PM L211, Technological Institute

  EVENT DETAILS

  Title: The Nature of Artificial Intelligence - Reiss Lecture

  Speaker: Melanie Mitchell, Santa Fe Institute

  Abstract: AI is all around us—recognizing faces in photos, transcribing speech, answering questions, writing essays, generating code, and much more. But rapidly improving AI is poised to play a much bigger role in all of our lives. In this lecture, I will describe how contemporary AI works, how “intelligent” it really is, and what our expectations—and concerns—about its near-term and long-term prospects should be.

  Zoom: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/97956443317

  -----

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  more less

  TIME Wednesday, May 13, 2026 at 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM

  LOCATION L211, Technological Institute    map it

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  CONTACT Noor Kaur    noor.kaur@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

• May

  14

  Appl Math: Melanie Mitchell on "Six Principles For Evaluating Cognitive Capabilities in AI Models" - Reiss Lecture

  McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

  11:15 AM M416, Technological Institute

  EVENT DETAILS

  Title: Six Principles For Evaluating Cognitive Capabilities in AI Models - Reiss Lecture

  Speaker: Melanie Mitchell, Santa Fe Institute

  Abstract: Modern AI systems have exceeded human performance on many benchmarks meant to evaluate general cognitive capacities. However, it is often the case that benchmark performance does a poor job of predicting general capacities in real-world settings. In this article I describe several issues related to evaluation that can cause this mismatch, and propose six principles, inspired by developmental and comparative psychology, that need to be adopted to enable rigorous evaluation for AI systems. These principles are illustrated by case studies from the psychology and AI literature.

  Zoom: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/96257055494

  -----

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  TIME Thursday, May 14, 2026 at 11:15 AM - 12:15 PM

  LOCATION M416, Technological Institute    map it

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  CONTACT Noor Kaur    noor.kaur@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

• May

  21

  Appl Math: Robert Hunt on "Title TBA"

  McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

  11:15 AM M416, Technological Institute

  EVENT DETAILS

  Title: TBA

  Speaker: Robert Hunt, University of Chicago

  Abstract: TBA

  Zoom: TBA

  -----

  To subscribe to the Applied Mathematics Colloquia List send a message to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.IT.NORTHWESTERN.EDU with the command:

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  TIME Thursday, May 21, 2026 at 11:15 AM - 12:15 PM

  LOCATION M416, Technological Institute    map it

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  CONTACT Noor Kaur    noor.kaur@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

• May

  28

  Appl Math: Dashun Wang on "Title TBA"

  McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

  11:15 AM M416, Technological Institute

  EVENT DETAILS

  Title: TBA

  Speaker: Dashun Wang, Northwestern University

  Abstract: TBA

  Zoom: TBA

  -----

  To subscribe to the Applied Mathematics Colloquia List send a message to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.IT.NORTHWESTERN.EDU with the command:

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  TIME Thursday, May 28, 2026 at 11:15 AM - 12:15 PM

  LOCATION M416, Technological Institute    map it

  ADD TO CALENDAR

  CONTACT Noor Kaur    noor.kaur@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

• Jun

  4

  Appl Math: Neil Ribe on "Title TBA"

  McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)

  11:15 AM M416, Technological Institute

  EVENT DETAILS

  Title: TBA

  Speaker: Neil Ribe, Université Paris-Saclay

  Abstract: TBA

  Zoom: TBA

  -----

  To subscribe to the Applied Mathematics Colloquia List send a message to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.IT.NORTHWESTERN.EDU with the command:

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  TIME Thursday, June 4, 2026 at 11:15 AM - 12:15 PM

  LOCATION M416, Technological Institute    map it

  ADD TO CALENDAR

  CONTACT Noor Kaur    noor.kaur@northwestern.edu EMAIL

  CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)