What do multiple sclerosis and algorithms have in common?
Seemingly very little: one is a complex neurologic disease, while the other is a mathematical framework that powers everything from GPS systems to artificial intelligence. But at Stony Brook University’s latest Provost’s Lecture Series event, both were presented as examples of the same essential pursuit: understanding what lies beneath the surface.
The February 10 program at the Charles B. Wang Center Theatre featured two members of the SUNY Distinguished Academy, Patricia Coyle, MD, and Joseph Mitchell, whose research spans medicine and mathematics yet shares a common foundation in problem solving.
Stony Brook Executive Vice President and Provost Carl Lejuez opened the event by emphasizing the significance of the series and the faculty being honored.
“This lecture series gives us the opportunity to celebrate the remarkable scholarship of our SUNY Distinguished Academy faculty,” he said. “These are individuals whose work has had a transformative impact in their fields and whose leadership elevates Stony Brook University.”
Coyle, SUNY distinguished professor of neurology and founder and director of the Multiple Sclerosis Comprehensive Care Center at the Renaissance School of Medicine, delivered a lecture titled “Are We Solving the Puzzle of Multiple Sclerosis?” Mitchell, SUNY distinguished professor and chair of the Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, followed with “A Case for Algorithms: A Computational Geometer’s Perspective.”
Read the full story at the SBU News website.