POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY 2005-2007

DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS
Head: Erwin Lutwak
The Department of Mathematics is committed
to excellence and innovation in the
teaching and research of mathematics.
Current active areas of research include
geometric analysis, partial differential equations,
mathematical physics, sports science
and mathematics education. The
bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree
programs provide both a solid foundation
in mathematics and extensive exposure to
how mathematics is used in practice. Half
of a mathematics major’s courses are taken
in other departments. The department also
offers a complete spectrum of undergraduate
and graduate courses.
Students taking departmental courses
become confident in their abilities to reason
rigorously, use the language of mathematics
properly, write and speak about
mathematical ideas precisely and concisely
and appreciate the amazing power of mathematics
to describe phenomena in the
world. Students learn how to use mathematical
software appropriately as a tool in
the study and application of mathematics.
The department also has degree programs
in its own discipline, with a strong
interdisciplinary focus. The BS in
Mathematics, for instance, has an optional
concentration in physics. The MS in
Mathematics focuses on strong abstract
and quantitative reasoning abilities. The
PhD in Mathematics encourages work
applying advanced mathematics in other
disciplines, with the major adviser from
those disciplines.
To support its academic quality and to
strengthen interdisciplinary work, the
department’s research excels in the areas
of convex geometry and the analysis of
nonlinear partial differential equations arising
from gauge field theory.
MISSION STATEMENT
The mission of the Department of
Mathematics is to develop and implement
innovative teaching strategies designed to
help each student understand fundamental
mathematical concepts and to use these
concepts to excel in subsequent science
and engineering courses.
DEGREES OFFERED
Bachelor of Science
• Mathematics
Master of Science
• Mathematics
Doctor of Philosophy
• Mathematics
CONTACT INFORMATION
Rogers Hall, Room 305
Polytechnic University
Six MetroTech Center
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Tel: 718-260-3850
Fax: 718-260-3660
E-mail: chair@math.poly.edu
Web: www.math.poly.edu
FACULTY
PROFESSORS
Keith Ball, Professor of Mathematics
PhD, Cambridge University
Functional analysis, combinatorics,
convexity
Erwin Lutwak, Professor of
Mathematics, Department Head
PhD, Polytechnic University
Geometric analysis
Edward Y. Miller, Professor of
Mathematics
PhD, Harvard University
Differential topology
Deane Yang, Professor of Mathematics
PhD, Harvard University
Geometric analysis
Yisong Yang, Professor of Mathematics
PhD, University of Massachusetts at
Amherst
Partial differential equations, mathematical
physics
Gaoyong Zhang, Professor of
Mathematics
PhD, Temple University
Geometric analysis
ASSOCIATE PROFESSORS
Juan Carlos Álvarez-Paiva, Associate
Professor of Mathematics
PhD, Rutgers University
Symplectic and Finsler geometry
Kathryn Kuiken, Associate Professor
of Mathematics
PhD, Polytechnic University
Complex analysis, group theory
Joel C. W. Rogers, Associate Professor
of Mathematics
PhD, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology
Partial differential equations, fluid
mechanics, numerical methods
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