Dylan Shepardson

  • Robert L. Rooke Associate Professor of Mathematics
  • Nexus Track Chair for Data Analytics & Society
Dylan Shepardson

Dylan Shepardson works on mathematical problems that are motivated by applications in other disciplines, like biology, epidemiology, sociology, or archaeology. He is especially interested in new and unusual applications of optimization theory. In most physical, biological, and economic systems, a property is being optimized (like energy or entropy in physical systems, or reproductive success in evolutionary biology), and optimization techniques offer interesting insights into these systems. Shepardson's recent projects include voting theory and its connections to combinatorial geometry, infectious disease modeling, and the problem of using collections of radiocarbon data to estimate dates of the earliest human settlements of Pacific islands.

Education

  • Ph.D., Georgia Institute of Technology
  • M.A., University of California - Berkeley
  • B.A., Amherst College

HAPPENING AT MOUNT HOLYOKE

Recent Campus News

Mount Holyoke College’s longest-running tradition is Mountain Day, and this year, the community made its way to the top of Mt. Holyoke to celebrate.

Mount Holyoke College’s Professor Jared Schwartzer, a behavioral neuroscientist, spoke to the Boston Globe about the move to relabel this form of folic acid as a treatment for autism.

Mount Holyoke College Art Museum (MHCAM) hosted a panel to celebrate the artist Anni Albers. An exhibition of Albers’ work will be on view through Dec. 9, 2025.

Recent Grants

Margaret Robinson PI with Co-PIs Giuliana Davidoff, Dylan Shepardson and Jessica Sidman (Mathematics) received a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for “Collaborative Proposal: Hudson River Undergraduate Mathematics Conference 2020-2022” – with Keene and Siena Colleges. The project is for three years.

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