Math department announces Undergraduate Research Award winners

LAWRENCE – The University of Kansas Department of Mathematics awarded two students Undergraduate Research Awards in Mathematics (MathUGRA) to support their research projects for the spring 2022 semester.

MathUGRAs are $1,000 scholarships provided to undergraduate math majors pursuing original research or creative projects under the general guidance of a KU math faculty member. The awards are funded by the department’s endowment funds. MathUGRAs are awarded to students conducting semester-long independent projects culminating in an oral presentation or written work, demonstrating the student’s own development of a topic in mathematics and its applications. Recipients of the award were selected on the merit of the applicant’s proposal, the applicant’s academic record and the recommendation from a faculty member who is familiar with the applicant and the proposed project.

The winners:

Drake Clark, Lenexa, senior in mathematics and computer engineering; “Simulation of Topological Dirac Modes Using Deal.II,” a research project to improve the efficiency and performance of the numerical simulation using least-squares finite element method on Dirac operators; research mentor: Paul Cazeaux, assistant professor of mathematics.

Logan Honeycutt, Stilwell, senior in mathematics and physics; “Transform Methods for Partial Differential Equations,” a project to understand the unified transform method at a deeper level and how it can be employed to solve linear initial-boundary value problems; research mentor: Dionyssis Mantzavinos, assistant professor of mathematics.