Barrett Leslie (AMAT 4th year) recently completed the undergraduate workshop at the Statistical and Applied Mathematical Sciences Institute (SAMSI). The weeklong program was held at SAMSI in Research Triangle Park and at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, N.C.

The workshop was an introduction to the field of uncertainty quantification to students from the mathematical and statistical sciences. The overall goal of the workshop was to illustrate the need for and power of quantitative methods to confront the very hardest and most important data- and model-driven scientific challenges.

The students worked on controlling specific stochastic dynamical systems, specifically, shock absorber systems for cars on bumpy roads. They acquired a working knowledge of techniques such as Kalman filters and Monte Carlo method. The students worked in groups of three under the supervision of SAMSI researchers and postdocs.