News & EventsDepartment Events
Events
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Nov10
EVENT DETAILS
lessTitle: Data-Driven Modeling of Social Behavior
Speaker: Dr. Daniel Seara, University of Illinois Chicago
Abstract: In communities of living organisms, dynamic behavior is often driven by social interactions. Simplified models of many-body systems can give insight into the mechanisms underlying macroscopic observations, but it is unclear the extent to which they capture meaningful trends in real data. To address this issue, we combine tools from statistical physics, economics, and machine learning to construct and validate models of social behavior. First, we construct a hydrodynamic model of residential dynamics in the US. We show how to incorporate individual preferences within a hydrodynamic framework, verify our underlying hypotheses using neural networks, and predict dynamics seen in census data. Second, we use factor analysis to uncover the low-dimensional structure of 311 calls in the US. We show that call dynamics follow similar dynamics across US cities, and they correlate with underlying socioeconomic trends. Taken together, these works pave the way towards building simplified models of social behavior that can uncover not only the patterns that exist in urban systems, but also the mechanisms driving those patterns.
Bio: Daniel Seara is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Illinois Chicago and an Affiliate Member of the NSF-Simons National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology (NITMB). His group uses statistical physics, dynamical systems, and machine learning to study living and active systems. Recent topics include nonreciprocity in levitated matter, energy dissipation during cell division, and models of collective human behavior. Prof. Seara received his Ph.D. in Physics from Yale University and was a Kadanoff-Rice Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Chicago.
Zoom: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/93361380411
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SUBSCRIBE esam-seminar FirstName LastName
TIME Tuesday, November 10, 2026 at 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
LOCATION M416, Technological Institute map it
CONTACT Natalie Masini natalie.masini@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)
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Nov16
EVENT DETAILS
lessRegular registration for Winter quarter begins
TIME Monday, November 16, 2026
CONTACT Office of the Registrar nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR University Academic Calendar
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Nov20
EVENT DETAILS
lessDissertation, PhD Final Exam, and change of grade forms due to TGS for Fall PhD candidates
TIME Friday, November 20, 2026
CONTACT Office of the Registrar nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR University Academic Calendar
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Nov24
EVENT DETAILS
lessTitle: Symmetry Breaking, Directed Movement, and Organized Tissue Response from Local Interactions
Speaker: Dr. Calina Copos, Northeastern University
Abstract: Pattern formation and symmetry breaking have long been areas of interest in applied mathematics. In living systems, these questions take on additional complexities: molecular interactions generate dynamic intracellular structures, individual cells develop persistent migratory behaviors, and populations of cells coordinate their dynamics to produce spatiotemporal patterns. A central question is how do biological systems break symmetry, select among competing dynamical states, and coordinate response across scales?
Using cell doublets as the smallest nontrivial collective unit, I will discuss mathematical models, computational methods, and dynamical systems approaches for investigating how local feedback, geometry, and confinement shape these collective dynamical states. We examine how mechanochemical interactions generate directional and coordinated migration, biases, and how nonlinear feedback and spatial coupling give rise to coherent oscillations, traveling waves, and other patterns. Extending these principles to larger cell clusters and tissues reveals emergent organization with implications for development, wound healing, and limb regeneration. These examples illustrate how mathematical models can bridge scales and uncover principles by which local interactions generate global organization.
Bio: Calina Copos is an Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Biology at Northeastern University. Her research group is broadly interested in mathematical biology and numerical and computational methods for PDEs, with a particular focus on the cell cytoskeleton and cell migration in tissue development, homeostasis, and regeneration. Prof. Copos received her Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics at University of California, Davis and did her postdoctoral work at the Courant Institute at New York University.
Zoom: https://northwestern.zoom.us/j/94290664465
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To subscribe to the Applied Mathematics Colloquia List send a message to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.IT.NORTHWESTERN.EDU with the command:
SUBSCRIBE esam-seminar FirstName LastName
TIME Tuesday, November 24, 2026 at 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
LOCATION M416, Technological Institute map it
CONTACT Natalie Masini natalie.masini@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick-Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics (ESAM)
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Nov25
EVENT DETAILS
lessThanksgiving Vacation begins at 6:00 PM (No classes, University offices closed)
TIME Wednesday, November 25, 2026
CONTACT Office of the Registrar nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR University Academic Calendar
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Nov30
EVENT DETAILS
lessFall Classes Resume
TIME Monday, November 30, 2026
CONTACT Office of the Registrar nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR University Academic Calendar
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Dec5
EVENT DETAILS
lessFall classes end
TIME Saturday, December 5, 2026
CONTACT Office of the Registrar nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR University Academic Calendar
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Dec7
EVENT DETAILS
lessFall Exams begin
TIME Monday, December 7, 2026
CONTACT Office of the Registrar nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR University Academic Calendar
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Dec12
EVENT DETAILS
lessFall exams end
TIME Saturday, December 12, 2026
CONTACT Office of the Registrar nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR University Academic Calendar
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Dec12
EVENT DETAILSmore info
lessThe ceremony will take place on Saturday, December 12 in Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, 50 Arts Circle Drive.
TIME Saturday, December 12, 2026 at 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
LOCATION Pick-Staiger Concert Hall map it
CONTACT Andi Joppie andi.joppie@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science
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Dec24
EVENT DETAILS
lessWinter Recess Starts - University Closed Through January 1st, 2027
TIME Thursday, December 24, 2026
CONTACT Office of the Registrar nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR University Academic Calendar
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Jan4
EVENT DETAILS
lessWinter classes begin
TIME Monday, January 4, 2027
CONTACT Office of the Registrar nu-registrar@northwestern.edu EMAIL
CALENDAR University Academic Calendar