Dylan Shepardson

  • Robert L. Rooke Associate Professor of Mathematics
  • Nexus Track Chair for Data Analytics & Society
  • on leave 2023-2024
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

Margaret Robinson, Julia and Sarah Ann Adams Professor of Mathematics at Mount Holyoke College, was recognized for support and empowerment of women in the mathematics field.

Patricia Brennan, associate professor of biological sciences at Mount Holyoke College, discusses a new study on serotine bat reproduction with The New York Times.

Angelica Patterson, the curator of education and outreach at the Miller Worley Center for the Environment at Mount Holyoke College, is the principal investigator for a new National Science Foundation grant to produce virtual field experiences for underserved students.

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.

View More