PhD program on Mathematical Models and Methods in Engineering - Dipartimento di Matematica

General information

The Department of Mathematics of the Politecnico di Milano is hosting a PhD program in Mathematical Models and Methods in Engineering, aiming at training high level researchers in advanced areas of Pure and Applied Mathematics. The teaching activities include a broad range of possibilities designed for the PhD program. As a successful approach to practical applications depends on a deep understanding of real-world phenomena and knowledge of mathematical tools for their description and design, both modelling, methodological and theoretical aspects are included. Courses are offered in various areas of mathematics, and may vary every year.

Geometrindi e Matematindi (Luigi Serafini 2002)

Numerical simulation of blood flow in the heart
(courtesy of Prof. Alfio Quarteroni)

Objectives

The development of advanced technologies in Science and Engineering brings an increasing demand of advanced mathematical theories and methods, which in turn fosters the demand for education and training of skilled mathematicians in pure and applied research. The main scope of the Ph.D. course “Mathematical Models and Methods in Engineering” is to train high-level researchers in various fields of pure and applied mathematics.

Professional Opportunities

Expected professional placements for Ph.D. doctorates are: academic research in Italian or International Universities and Research Institutions, R & D divisions of private companies, study and research centers of public Agencies, financial and insurance Institutions.

Today's events

nov 05 wed 2025

Seminar
Francesco Russo, On the tangent degree and the degree of the tangent variety of a projective variety, 11-05-2025, 13:45 precise
- Seminar
- Francesco Russo
- Università di Catania
- On the tangent degree and the degree of the tangent variety of a projective variety
- Wednesday, 5 November 2025 at 13:45 right
- Sala Consiglio VII piano
- Abstract
  
  The tangent degree $\tau(X)$ of a projective variety $X^n\subset\mathbb P^N$ is the number of tangent spaces to $X$ at smooth points passing through a general point of the tangent variety $Tan(X)\subseteq\mathbb P^N$, if positive and finite; it is equal to zero if $\dim(Tan(X))$ < $2n$.
  
  We shall focus on general properties of $\tau(X)$ and of $\deg(Tan(X))$. For example $\tau(X)\neq 1$ if $N=2n$ and, as soon as $Tan(X)$ does not coincide with the secant variety, we prove a linear lower bound for the degree of $Tan(X)$ in terms of its codimension, generalizing the classical Bertini-del Pezzo lower bound for arbitrary varieties.
  
  Then we shall present some results about the cases in which the previous two invariants attain the lower bounds present, either in small dimension/codimension and/or under the smoothness assumption.
  
  Finally, if time allows, for $N\geq 2n+1$ we consider varieties $X^n\subset\mathbb P^N$ having $\tau(X)$ > $1$ and provide their classification in small dimension.
  
  This is joint work with Jordi Hernandez Gomez.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 05 wed 2025

Seminar
Edoardo Bocchi, Meccanica dei fluidi a scuola: esperimenti e teoria, 11-05-2025, 15:00 precise
- Seminar
- Edoardo Bocchi
- Politecnico di Milano
- Meccanica dei fluidi a scuola: esperimenti e teoria
- Wednesday, 5 November 2025 at 15:00 right
- Aula Laboratorio FDS - tiny.cc/zoomfds
- Abstract
  
  Lo scopo del seminario è proporre attività pratiche
  e teoriche per introdurre la meccanica dei fluidi agli studenti della scuola
  secondaria. Da un lato, verranno presentati esperimenti semplici e facilmente
  replicabili in classe, utili per spiegare alcune proprietà fondamentali
  dei fluidi ed il principio di Bernoulli. Dall'altro, come primo approccio alla
  modellizzazione matematica, si partirà da due concetti cardine della
  fisica classica, la conservazione della massa e la seconda legge di Newton,
  per derivare un modello giocattolo che descrive il moto di un fluido
  comprimibile contenuto in un tubo.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 05 wed 2025

Seminar
Tristan Benoist, Introduction to repeated quantum measurements, 11-05-2025, 16:00 precise
- Seminar
- Tristan Benoist
- CNRS - Université de Toulouse
- Introduction to repeated quantum measurements
- Wednesday, 5 November 2025 at 16:00 right
- Sala Consiglio, VII piano
- Abstract
  
  In these 4 hours, I will introduce the main results in the theory of quantum repeated measurements.
  
  Given the background and allowed time, I discuss the following topics.
  1- Quantum Instruments and repeated quantum measurements dynamical system definitions
  2- Quantum channel Perron-Frobenius theorem, ergodicity and mixing of the dynamical system
  3- Limit theorems through the spectral and martingale approximation methods
  4- Large deviation principle and hypothesis testing
  5- Quantum trajectories, purification and limit theorems
  
  This initiative is part of the "PhD Lectures" activity of the project "Departments of Excellence 2023-2027" of the Department of Mathematics of Politecnico di Milano. This activity consists of seminars open to PhD students, followed by meetings with the speaker to discuss and go into detail on the topics presented at the talk.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568

Upcoming events

nov 06 thu 2025

Seminar
Kais Ammari, Degenerate Damping in Interacting Elastic Systems, 11-06-2025, 11:00
- Seminar
- Kais Ammari
- University of Monastir
- Degenerate Damping in Interacting Elastic Systems
- Thursday, 6 November 2025 at 11:00
- Aula Seminari - III piano. Zoom link: polimi-it.zoom.us/j/94510717258
- Abstract
  
  We study the regularity and stability of coupled elastic systems subject to distinct damping mechanisms: one acting through the average velocity and another via a fractional power of the elastic operator. The damping matrix is degenerate, meaning that dissipation does not affect all components equally.
  Using a frequency-domain approach based on resolvent estimates, we describe how this degeneracy influences the semigroup regularity and the decay of solutions. The obtained results are shown to be optimal and relevant for applications in structural mechanics and vibration control.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 11 tue 2025

MOX Seminar
Kent-Andre Mardal, Mathematical challenges of modeling the fluid flow of the brain - brain clearance, sleep and dementia, 11-11-2025, 10:00
- MOX Seminar
- Kent-Andre Mardal
- Simula Research Laboratory
- Mathematical challenges of modeling the fluid flow of the brain - brain clearance, sleep and dementia
- Tuesday, 11 November 2025 at 10:00
- Aula Saleri
- Abstract
  
  Recent theories suggest that a fundamental reason for sleep is simply clearance of metabolic waste produced during the activities of the day. A crucial component of these theories are the fluid flow within and around the brain, in health and disease.
  
  In this talk we will present multi-physics problems and numerical schemes that target these applications. In particular, we will be lead from basic applications of neuroscience into multi-physics problems and interfaces coupled problems involving Stokes, Biot, and Darcy problems for describing the fluid-structure interaction between the brain and its fluids. Particular focus for us has been the exploitation of fractional solvers at the brain-fluid interface for creating efficient monolithic solvers.
  
  Contatto:
  paola.antonietti@polimi.it
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 11 tue 2025

Seminar
Anna Szczepanek, Approach to equilibrium in quantum spin systems, 11-11-2025, 16:00 precise
- Seminar
- Anna Szczepanek
- Jagellonian University
- Approach to equilibrium in quantum spin systems
- Tuesday, 11 November 2025 at 16:00 right
- Aula Seminari III piano
- Abstract
  
  I will present the recent results in the ongoing research program on approach to equilibrium. Having reviewed the basics of quantum spin systems, I will discuss the following topics:
  
  1. Equilibrium steady states (ESS), constants of motion, and approach to thermal equilibrium.
  
  2. Dynamical conservation laws via the Lieb-Robinson bound
  
  3. Application of our theory to the mixed-field Ising chain, link to the ongoing research program on nonintegrable systems by Shiraishi et al.
  
  4. Variational characterization of ESS, approach to constrained equilibrium
  
  This initiative is part of the "PhD Lectures" activity of the project "Departments of Excellence 2023-2027" of the Department of Mathematics of Politecnico di Milano. This activity consists of seminars open to PhD students, followed by meetings with the speaker to discuss and go into detail on the topics presented at the talk.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 12 wed 2025

Seminar
Anna Szczepanek, Approach to equilibrium in quantum spin systems, 11-12-2025, 16:00 precise
- Seminar
- Anna Szczepanek
- Jagellonian University
- Approach to equilibrium in quantum spin systems
- Wednesday, 12 November 2025 at 16:00 right
- Aula Seminari III piano
- Abstract
  
  I will present the recent results in the ongoing research program on approach to equilibrium. Having reviewed the basics of quantum spin systems, I will discuss the following topics:
  
  1. Equilibrium steady states (ESS), constants of motion, and approach to thermal equilibrium.
  
  2. Dynamical conservation laws via the Lieb-Robinson bound
  
  3. Application of our theory to the mixed-field Ising chain, link to the ongoing research program on nonintegrable systems by Shiraishi et al.
  
  4. Variational characterization of ESS, approach to constrained equilibrium
  
  This initiative is part of the "PhD Lectures" activity of the project "Departments of Excellence 2023-2027" of the Department of Mathematics of Politecnico di Milano. This activity consists of seminars open to PhD students, followed by meetings with the speaker to discuss and go into detail on the topics presented at the talk.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 14 fri 2025

Seminar
Anna Szczepanek, Approach to equilibrium in quantum spin systems, 11-14-2025, 10:00 precise
- Seminar
- Anna Szczepanek
- Jagellonian University
- Approach to equilibrium in quantum spin systems
- Friday, 14 November 2025 at 10:00 right
- Sala Consiglio, VII piano
- Abstract
  
  I will present the recent results in the ongoing research program on approach to equilibrium. Having reviewed the basics of quantum spin systems, I will discuss the following topics:
  
  1. Equilibrium steady states (ESS), constants of motion, and approach to thermal equilibrium.
  
  2. Dynamical conservation laws via the Lieb-Robinson bound
  
  3. Application of our theory to the mixed-field Ising chain, link to the ongoing research program on nonintegrable systems by Shiraishi et al.
  
  4. Variational characterization of ESS, approach to constrained equilibrium
  
  This initiative is part of the "PhD Lectures" activity of the project "Departments of Excellence 2023-2027" of the Department of Mathematics of Politecnico di Milano. This activity consists of seminars open to PhD students, followed by meetings with the speaker to discuss and go into detail on the topics presented at the talk.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 19 wed 2025

Seminar
Alessio Cipriani, A new description of the Serre functor for perverse sheaves on $\mathbb{P}^n$, 11-19-2025, 14:00 precise
- Seminar
- Alessio Cipriani
- Università di Verona
- A new description of the Serre functor for perverse sheaves on $\mathbb{P}^n$
- Wednesday, 19 November 2025 at 14:00 right
- Aula Seminari III piano
- Abstract
  
  The constructible derived category of $\mathbb{P}^n$ is equivalent to the bounded derived category of the principal block of parabolic category $\mathcal O$ for $\mathfrak{sl}_n$, and to the bounded derived category of a certain special biserial algebra. In the latter two languages, the Serre functor can be explicitly described: as a concatenation of shuffling functors from the perspective of category $\mathcal O$ by results of Mazorchuk–Stroppel, and as the Nakayama functor from the perspective of finite-dimensional algebras by results of Happel. In this talk, I will explain a description of the Serre functor from the perspective of perverse sheaves. This is joint work with Lukas Bonfert.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 19 wed 2025

Seminar
Marco Pozzetta, Il salto del cavallo, la Congettura di Poincarè e altri invarianti, 11-19-2025, 15:00 precise
- Seminar
- Marco Pozzetta
- Politecnico di Milano
- Il salto del cavallo, la Congettura di Poincarè e altri invarianti
- Wednesday, 19 November 2025 at 15:00 right
- Aula Laboratorio FDS - tiny.cc/zoomfds
- Abstract
  
  La ricerca, l'uso e lo studio di oggetti cosiddetti "invarianti" sono idee estremamente comuni in tutta la storia della ricerca matematica. In questo seminario, cercheremo di spiegare il concetto generale di invariante risolvendo dapprima dei semplici indovinelli. Questo ci
  porterà a parlare della storia della Congettura di Poincarè, un problema di geometria formulato a inizio '900 e che ha trovato una soluzione solo nei primi anni 2000, portando una rivoluzione nell'analisi e nella geometria moderna. Infine, risolveremo insieme il problema della classificazione dei cosiddetti solidi platonici, esponendo una strategia che coinvolge un ultimo "invariante geometrico" e che può essere riproposta a studenti delle scuole superiori.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 20 thu 2025

Seminar
Elsa Maria Marchini, On some optimal control problems for moving sets, 11-20-2025, 15:15
- Seminar
- Elsa Maria Marchini
- Politecnico di Milano
- On some optimal control problems for moving sets
- Thursday, 20 November 2025 at 15:15
- Aula Seminari - III Piano
- Abstract
  
  The talk is concerned with a family of geometric evolution problems, modeling the spatial control of an invasive population within a plane region bounded by geographical barriers. The "contaminated region" is a set moving in the plane, which we would like to shrink as much as possible. To control the evolution of this set, we assign the velocity in the inward normal direction at every boundary point. Three main problems are studied: existence of an admissible strategy which eradicates the contamination in finite time, optimal strategies that achieve eradication in minimum time, strategies that minimize the average area of the contaminated set on a given time interval. For these optimization problems, that we like to see as “time dependent isoperimetric problems”, a sufficient condition for optimality is proved, together with several necessary conditions. Based on these conditions, optimal set-valued motions are explicitly constructed in a number of cases.
  
  Coauthors: Alberto Bressan and Vasile Staicu
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
nov 26 wed 2025

Seminar
Lauren Conger, Monotonicity of Coupled Multispecies Wasserstein-2 Gradient Flows, 11-26-2025, 11:15
- Seminar
- Lauren Conger
- California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
- Monotonicity of Coupled Multispecies Wasserstein-2 Gradient Flows
- Wednesday, 26 November 2025 at 11:15
- Aula Seminari - III Piano
- Abstract
  
  We present a notion of $\lambda$-monotonicity for an $n$-species system of PDEs governed by flow dynamics, extending monotonicity in Banach spaces to the Wasserstein-2 metric space. We show that monotonicity implies the existence of and convergence to a unique steady state. In the special setting of Wasserstein-2 gradient descent of different energies for each species, we prove convergence to the unique Nash equilibrium of the associated energies and discuss the relationship between monotonicity and displacement convexity. This extends known zero-sum (min-max) results in infinite-dimensional game theory to the general-sum setting. We provide examples of monotone coupled gradient flow systems, including cross-diffusion, nonlocal interaction, and linear and nonlinear diffusion. Numerically, we demonstrate convergence of a four-player economic model for market competition, and an optimal transport problem.
  This is joint work with Ricardo Baptista, Franca Hoffmann, Eric Mazumdar, and Lillian Ratliff.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
dec 10 wed 2025

Seminar
Marco Antonio Pellegrini, Niccolò Tartaglia: gli anni dopo la disfida, 12-10-2025, 15:00 precise
- Seminar
- Marco Antonio Pellegrini
- Università Cattolica di Brescia
- Niccolò Tartaglia: gli anni dopo la disfida
- Wednesday, 10 December 2025 at 15:00 right
- Aula Laboratorio FDS - tiny.cc/zoomfds
- Abstract
  
  In questo incontro racconteremo gli anni forse meno noti della vita di Niccolò Tartaglia, quelli che seguirono la diatriba con Gerolamo Cardano.
  
  Tra il marzo del 1548 e l'ottobre del 1549, Tartaglia fece infatti ritorno a Brescia, sua città di origine, invitato da alcuni importanti personaggi per tenere delle lezioni sulla geometria di Euclide. Quello che doveva essere un ritorno trionfale nella sua città si rivelò invece essere un vero incubo per Tartaglia: mancati pagamenti, scomodi viaggi nella provincia, ospiti indesiderati a casa e, se ciò non bastasse, il cimento reale con Ludovico Ferrari a Milano. Tartaglia raccontò queste sue disavventure nella "Travagliata Inventione" e nel "General Trattato".
  
  Il racconto di queste vicende ci permetterà di approfondire anche l'opera del matematico bresciano, con particolare attenzione ai suoi contributi riguardanti la risoluzione algebrica delle equazioni di terzo grado.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
jan 14 wed 2026

Seminar
Francesca Ceragioli, Marco Abrate, Exploring Math: La bellezza delle curve parametriche, 01-14-2026, 15:00 precise
- Seminar
- Francesca Ceragioli, Marco Abrate
- Politecnico di Torino, IIS Fermi-Galilei Ciriè (TO)
- Exploring Math: La bellezza delle curve parametriche
- Wednesday, 14 January 2026 at 15:00 right
- Aula Laboratorio FDS - tiny.cc/zoomfds
- Abstract
  
  Exploring Math è il titolo di un libro che raccoglie l’esperienza del La.M.Po. (Laboratorio di Matematica del Politecnico di Torino) attraverso la descrizione di nove attività di laboratorio, inizialmente pensate per il primo anno di università e facilmente adattabili alla scuola secondaria. Queste attività sono state ideate per stimolare l’interesse per la matematica e per incoraggiarne lo studio: rendono la classe attiva mettendo al centro oggetti concreti e problemi reali. Pensiamo al problema di tracciare curve nel piano: non riguarda solo i matematici, ma anche, ad esempio, gli ingegneri meccanici e i costruttori. Questo è lo spunto per discutere di meccanismi che tracciano curve, interpretate come curve parametriche. Parleremo in particolare di come tracciare una retta. Non è facile come sembra.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
jan 21 wed 2026

Seminar
Anita Pasotti, Navigando con la Matematica, 01-21-2026, 15:00 precise
- Seminar
- Anita Pasotti
- Università di Brescia
- Navigando con la Matematica
- Wednesday, 21 January 2026 at 15:00 right
- Aula Laboratorio FDS - tiny.cc/zoomfds
- Abstract
  
  In questo seminario si esploreranno alcuni aspetti applicativi della Teoria dei Grafi e dell'Ottimizzazione Combinatoria, due settori della Matematica che hanno avuto un grande sviluppo negli ultimi decenni grazie alla loro capacità di modellizzare e risolvere problemi
  reali. L'intervento, che non richiede prerequisiti specifici, avrà un taglio divulgativo e sarà ricco di esempi per mostrare come la matematica sia fondamentale nel nostro quotidiano.
  
  Nella parte introduttiva si mostreranno appunto esempi concreti di utilizzo dei grafi in ambiti diversi: dalle neuroscienze per lo studio di malattie degenerative quali l'Alzheimer, allo studio delle relazioni tra utenti di un social network. Poi l'attenzione si sposterà sul settore dei trasporti, ambito in cui la teoria dei grafi trova grandi applicazioni. In particolare, verrà spiegato, in modo semplice e intuitivo, l'algoritmo di Djikstra alla base dei navigatori GPS, facendo alcuni richiami sugli algoritmi e ricordando figure fondamentali dal punto di vista storico quali Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi e Ada Lovelace.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568

jan 28 wed 2026

Seminar
Annalisa Cusi, Francesco Contel, L'uso dell'IA Generativa per supportare i processi metacognitivi nel problem solving matematico: criticità e sfide, 01-28-2026, 15:00 precise

Seminar
Annalisa Cusi, Francesco Contel
Sapienza Università di Roma
L'uso dell'IA Generativa per supportare i processi metacognitivi nel problem solving matematico: criticità e sfide
Wednesday, 28 January 2026 at 15:00 right
Aula Laboratorio FDS - tiny.cc/zoomfds
Abstract

In questo seminario saranno discussi i risultati di recenti studi mirati a investigare potenzialità e criticità connesse all’uso dell’IA generativa come strumento a supporto dei processi metacognitivi nella risoluzione di problemi matematici. Gli studi condotti hanno riguardato, in particolare, l’uso di GPT4o, da parte di studenti del biennio della scuola secondaria di II grado, per affrontare problemi che coinvolgono processi di esplorazione in ambito aritmetico, lo sviluppo di congetture e la costruzione di dimostrazioni attraverso l’uso del linguaggio algebrico.
A partire dalla riflessione sui principali schemi d’uso sviluppati dagli studenti nel corso della loro interazione con GPT4o e sulle interpretazioni che gli studenti danno dei processi di genesi strumentale che li vedono protagonisti, si evidenzieranno elementi di criticità caratterizzanti l’interazione tra utenti umani e IA generativa. Si concluderà proponendo spunti sul ruolo che i docenti possono svolgere nel supportare gli studenti nell’adottare un approccio critico e riflessivo all’uso dell’IA generativa nel problem solving matematico.
Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568

feb 04 wed 2026

Seminar
Mirko Maracci, Quale preparazione in matematica per l'università? come valutarla?, 02-04-2026, 15:00 precise
- Seminar
- Mirko Maracci
- Università di Pisa
- Quale preparazione in matematica per l'università? come valutarla?
- Wednesday, 4 February 2026 at 15:00 right
- Aula Laboratorio FDS - tiny.cc/zoomfds
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
mar 05 thu 2026

MOX Colloquia
Tilmann Gneiting, Assessing Monotone Dependence, 03-05-2026, 14:00
- MOX Colloquia
- Tilmann Gneiting
- HITS Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies
- Assessing Monotone Dependence
- Thursday, 5 March 2026 at 14:00
- Aula Consiglio - VII piano
- Abstract
  
  The assessment of monotone dependence between random variables $X$ and $Y$ is a classical problem in statistics and a gamut of application domains. Consequently, researchers have sought measures of association that are invariant under strictly increasing transformations of the margins, with the extant literature being splintered. Rank correlation coefficients, such as Spearman's rho and Kendall's tau, have been studied at great length in the statistical literature, mostly under the assumption that $X$ and $Y$ are continuous. In the case of a dichotomous outcome $Y$, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis and the asymmetric area under the ROC curve (AUC) measure are used to assess monotone dependence of $Y$ on a covariate $X$. In this talk I demonstrate that the two thus far disconnected strands of literature can be unified and bridged, by developing common population level theory, common estimators, and common tests that apply to all types of linearly ordered outcomes. In case studies, we assess progress in artificial intelligence (AI) based weather prediction and evaluate methods of uncertainty quantification for the output of large language models. The talk is based on joint work with Eva-Maria Walz and Andreas Eberl.
- Tilmann Gneiting
  Tilmann Gneiting received a PhD degree in Mathematics from the University of Bayreuth in Germany in 1997. From 1997 to 2009, he held faculty positions in the Department of Statistics at the University of Washington in Seattle (United States), before moving to the Institute of Applied Mathematics at Heidelberg University in Germany. Since 2013, he has been serving in a joint position as Professor of Computational Statistics at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and Group Leader at the Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS). Tilmann's research focuses on two main areas, spatial and spatio-temporal statistics, and the theory and practice of forecasting. In 2011, he was awarded an ERC Advanced Grant in support of his research on probabilistic predictions. From 2016 to 2018 Tilmann served as Editor-In-Chief for the Annals of Applied Statistics, and in 2023 and 2024 he held the position of Scientific Director at HITS. Recent awards include the Ulf Grenander Prize in Stochastic Theory and Modeling (2024) by the American Mathematical Society and the Wald Memorial Award (2026) by the Institute of Mathematical Statistics.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
mar 19 thu 2026

MOX Colloquia
Sebastian Geiger, Modelling for understanding – old problems and new challenges for the energy transition, 03-19-2026, 14:00
- MOX Colloquia
- Sebastian Geiger
- Delft University of Technology
- Modelling for understanding – old problems and new challenges for the energy transition
- Thursday, 19 March 2026 at 14:00
- Sala Consiglio, Dipartimento di Matematica, Politecnico di Milano
- Abstract
  
  Geoenergy applications beyond hydrocarbons will play an essential role in accelerating the energy transition: Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is one of the most important approaches to mitigate CO2 emissions; approximately 50% of the energy consumed in the northern hemisphere is needed for heating and cooling, and the expanded use of geothermal energy could lead to significant CO2 reduction; the development of a hydrogen economy for power, transport, and production will rely on intermittent hydrogen storage in geological formations or salt caverns.
  
  All these low-carbon geoenergy applications need bespoke reservoir modelling approaches to estimate available pore volumes for storage, capture how fluids with vastly different properties (e.g. hydrogen vs. hot water) interact with multi-scale geological heterogeneities, and quantify possible operational risks (e.g., early breakthrough of cold water during geothermal energy extraction) while accounting for the uncertainties inherent to geological formations.
  
  This talk will explore how mathematical techniques could be adapted to overcome limitations in existing modelling approaches for low-carbon geoenergy applications. Such new modelling approaches should help to ensure that we design meaningful reservoir models that can provide reservoir performance forecasts with reliable uncertainty bounds, which are needed for new geoenergy applications to advance our transition to a low-carbon energy future.
  
  Contatto:
  alessio.fumagalli@polimi.it
- Sebastian Geiger
  Prof. Dr. Sebastian Geiger, FREng, FRSE, FGS is the Professor of Sustainable Geoenergy and Energi Simulation Chair at the Department of Geoscience and Engineering at the Delft University of Technology. Before joining the Delft University of Technology in 2022, he spent 16 years at Heriot-Watt University where he held the Energi Simulation Chair for Fractured and Geothermal Reservoirs, was the Director of the Institute of Geoenergy Engineering, and was Director of Research for the School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure, and Society.
  
  Sebastian received a PhD degree in Computational Geology from ETH Zurich in 2004 and worked at ETH Zurich as a postdoctoral researcher. He holds an MSc degree in Hydrogeology from Oregon State University (2000) and a Vordiplom (equivalent to BSc degree) in Geology and Mineralogy from the University of Freiburg, Germany (1997). He joined Heriot-Watt University in 2006 as an Assistant Professor and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2009 and Full Professor in 2010.
  
  In 2017 Sebastian received the Alfred Wegener Award from the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (EAGE). In 2020 he was appointed as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland’s national academy of science and letters. In 2022 he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in the UK and in 2024 as a Fellow of the Geological Society of London. He has published over 200 reviewed conference papers and peer-reviewed journals and edited one book. He graduated over 30 PhD students, supervised over 100 MSc project theses, and trained over 10 postdoctoral researchers.
  
  Sebastian is the Editor-in-Chief for the journal Geoenergy and works closely with professional societies such as the European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers. He is also an instructor for HOT Engineering, is a Board Member for the Scottish Energy Forum, and a scientific advisor to NAGRA (Swiss National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste). Together with Dr Hadi Hajibeygi, he created the Geoscience and Geoenergy YouTube Channel, which broadcasts webinars to an audience of over 3700 subscribers across the world.
- Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568
jun 29 mon 2026

jul 03 fri 2026

WorkShop
Commutative algebra and algebraic geometry in milan
06/29/2026 - 07/03/2026
- WORKSHOP
- CAAG26
  Commutative algebra and algebraic geometry in milan
- organizers
  A. Constantinescu, A. D'Alì, P. Lella, A. Sammartano
- The conference will be focused on the interplay between topics in commutative algebra, such as syzygies and singularities, and topics in algebraic geometry, such as moduli spaces and rationality problems. Speakers Ayah Almousa (University of Kentucky) Benjamin Briggs (Imperial College London) David Eisenbud (UC Berkeley) Eleonore Faber (University of Graz) Gavril Farkas (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) Michele Graffeo (SISSA Trieste) Eloísa Grifo (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) Srikanth Iyengar (University of Utah) Joachim Jelisiejew (University of Warsaw) Patricia Klein (Texas A&M University) Margherita Lelli-Chiesa (Università degli Studi Roma Tre) Alex Massarenti (Università degli Studi di Ferrara) Irena Peeva (Cornell University) Claudia Polini (University of Notre Dame) Elisa Postinghel (Università degli Studi di Trento) Claudiu Raicu (University of Notre Dame) Ritvik Ramkumar (University of Notre Dame) Francesco Russo (Università degli Studi di Catania) Alexandra Seceleanu (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) Bernd Ulrich (Purdue University) Keller VandeBogert (University of Kentucky) Matteo Varbaro (Università degli Studi di Genova
- Monday, 29 June 2026 - Friday, 3 July 2026
  Politecnico di Milano
Politecnico di Milano, Dipartimento di Matematica ed. 14 "Nave", Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, 32, 20133 Milano, Telefono: +39 0223994505 - Fax: +39 0223994568