Biography
I have been Stokes Professor at the University of Limerick since 2007. Before that I spent the bulk of my academic career at the University of Oxford, where I was a lecturer and tutorial Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Oxford. Corpus was actually my undergraduate and graduate college while at Oxford, and before going back there I spent time at Trinity College Dublin and M.I.T.
Research Interests
As an applied mathematician specialising in mathematical modelling, I consider myself prone to be interested in any problem which requires modelling, and that means almost any scientific problem at all. The main part of my research interests lies in mathematical geoscience, and stems from my doctoral research in glaciology: my thesis 'Glacier dynamics' was finished in 1977, back in the days before word processing, personal computers and the like, and I typed it on a typewriter with two keyboards, one Roman and one with Greek and mathematical symbols.
Since then I have become interested in many other areas of geophysics, geology, petrology, volcanology, as well as geomorphology and Earth surface processes in general.
The genuine applied mathematician is a multi-faceted creature, and I am no different. I have been interested in various parts of biology and physiology, and with a background in Oxford and a current post in MACSI, industrial problems also form a major part of my interests.
Teaching Interests
At Limerick I teach the following courses for the M.Sc. in Mathematical Modelling:
Mathematical biology and physiology, for which course materials are available: problem sheets and some (incomplete) lecture notes on enzyme kinetics, heart action, respiration and blood cell diseases.
Mathematical geoscience, for which course materials are available: problem sheets and lecture notes on modelling, climate, rivers, dunes, and glaciers and ice sheets.
The courses are assessed by 25% course work and 75% mini-project, completed after the end of the semester.
Together with Iain Moyles and Josh Duley, I teach the fourth year undergraduate course
Mathematical modelling of natural phenomena, for which course materials are available on sulis, otherwise (less accessible) there are problem sheets and some lecture notes.
The lecture notes and problem sheets may undergo revision during the semester, so keep an eye on them. There are also exam papers (mock/recent) on sulis. Together with Iain Moyles and Josh Duley, I teach the fourth year undergraduate course
Mathematical modelling of natural phenomena, for which course materials are available on sulis, otherwise (less accessible) there are problem sheets and some lecture notes.
The lecture notes and problem sheets may undergo revision during the semester, so keep an eye on them. There are also exam papers (mock/recent) on sulis.