Spring 2025

Date Speaker Topic
T Jan 21
(2:30pm-3:30pm)
(JCC 574, Math Library)
Xue Wang (Shandong U.)

Title: The parameter-robust preconditioner for Stokes-Darcy coupled problem.

Abstract: In this talk, we consider the Stokes-Darcy coupled problem, which models the interaction between free-flow and porous medium flow.   By enforcing the normal flux continuity interface condition directly within the finite-element spaces, we establish unified well-posedness results for the coupled system under various boundary condition scenarios.  Using the operator preconditioning framework, we develop a parameter-robust preconditioner that avoids the use of fractional operators.  Numerical experiments employing both H(div)-conforming and nonconforming finite-element methods are presented to confirm the theoretical findings and demonstrate the robustness of the proposed block preconditioners with respect to the physical parameters and mesh size.

M Jan 27  

Organizational Meeting  

M Feb 3 Kyle McKee (MIT)
Title: “Circulation and Transport in Hele-Shaw Flows”
 
Abstract:
Viscously-dominated flow between two closely-spaced plates is described by two-dimensional potential flow according to the standard Hele-Shaw approximation. When driven exclusively by pressure, the class of realizable potential flows is highly restricted: only flows with exactly zero circulation are possible. For example, the Hele-Shaw experiments presented in Van Dyke’s famous Album of Fluid Motion clearly illustrate this zero-circulation restriction.  In the present work, we demonstrate how the Hele-Shaw cell can be used to capture flows with circulation – by using a conducting fluid and applying a constant magnetic field normal to the plates. We describe the physical picture and experimentally re-create canonical Hele-Shaw flows from Album of Fluid Motion now with arbitrary amounts of circulation induced by electromagnetic effects. The experimental flows are well described by our accompanying theoretical model. In the second part of this talk, I will segue into a related investigation of transport (advection-diffusion) in multiply-connected potential flows. By constructing a suitable conformal mapping, which is computed using recently developed methods (the AAA algorithm), we simplify the governing equations. We then formulate a boundary-integral solution to the governing equations in the mapped domain, where the exact Green’s function is known. Distinct scalings for the rate of transport (Nusselt number) under various boundary conditions are revealed.
 
M Feb 10    

M Feb 17

   
M Feb 24 Tyler Maunu (Brandeis)
Title: “Subspace Langevin Monte Carlo
 
Abstract:
Sampling from high-dimensional distributions poses significant computational challenges. We introduce Subspace Langevin Monte Carlo (SLMC), a novel and efficient sampling method that generalizes block-coordinate Langevin Monte Carlo while enabling efficient implementation of preconditioned Langevin algorithms. Our method can be viewed as a natural extension of subspace descent techniques from Euclidean space to Wasserstein space. The advantage of SLMC is its superior adaptability and computational efficiency compared to traditional Langevin Monte Carlo (LMC). Using coupling arguments, we establish error guarantees for SLMC and demonstrate its practical effectiveness through experiments on sampling from ill-conditioned distributions.
M Mar 3 Tudor Manole (MIT)
Title: “Central Limit Theorems for Smooth Optimal Transport Maps
 
Abstract:
One of the central objects in the theory of optimal transport is the Brenier map: the unique monotone transformation which pushes forward an absolutely continuous probability law in R^d onto any other given law. A large body of recent work has studied the question of estimating Brenier maps on the basis of random samples. In this talk, we derive the first such estimator which is both computationally tractable and achieves the optimal rate of convergence toward its population counterpart. We also show that this estimator enjoys a pointwise central limit theorem. This result provides a first step toward the question of performing uncertainty quantification for Brenier maps. Our proofs hinge upon a quantitative linearization of the Monge-Ampere equation governing the optimal transport problem, which may be of independent interest. 
M Mar 10 SeongHee Jeong (FSU)

Title: “Optimal control for Darcy’s flow in a heterogeneous porous media”

Abstract:
In this work, we investigate optimal control problems in heterogeneous porous media. Based on the partial differential equation constraint connecting the state and the control, we produce the associated control as a dependent quantity of the state. Then, we introduce the reduced optimal control problem which contains only the state variable. Here we employ $C^0$ interior penalty finite element methods for the spatial discretization to solve the reduced optimal control problem resulting in a fourth-order variational inequality. We provide a priori error estimates and stability analyses. Several numerical examples validate and illustrate the capabilities of the proposed algorithm. 

M Mar 17    
M Mar 24    
M Mar 31 Mahya Ghandehari (U Del) Title: Consistency of graph signal processing on large networks

Abstract:  The emerging field of Graph Signal Processing (GSP) aims to develop analysis and processing techniques for data that is represented on graphs. Signal analysis on graphs relies heavily on the notion of graph Fourier transform, which is usually defined as the expansion of a signal with respect to an eigenbasis of the associated shift operator. An important question in this field is to develop a common scheme for signal analysis that can be applied to graphs that are similar in structure. The notion of similarity of graphs is beautifully captured by the recent theory of Graph Limit Theory. In this talk, we discuss how defining a graphon Fourier transform allows us to produce consistent graph signal processing for any graph sampled from the graphon. We also briefly discuss GSP on atypical samples of certain graphon using the Large Deviation Principle. 
M Apr 7 Bill Basener (UVA)  
M Apr 14 Yves Atchade (BU)  

M Apr 21