Welcome to Applied Mathematics

The 2026 Cecil Graham Doctoral Dissertation Award provided by the Canadian Applied and Industrial Mathematics Society (CAIMS) is awarded to Dr. Melissa Stadt for her work on the mathematical modelling of electrolyte homeostasis in vertebrates. Dr. Stadt completed her PhD in the department of Applied Mathematics in 2025, under the supervision of Prof. Anita Layton.
Dr. Stadt’s work is an important contribution to our understanding of how multiple physiological systems interact to achieve robustness and adaptability. Her modelling efforts highlight the delicate balance of transfers of ions between organs including, in the case of calcium, into and out of bones. In addition to baseline physiological conditions, Dr. Stadt considered the particular stresses associated with pregnancy and lactation, as well as various pathological conditions that affect electrolyte homeostasis, and therefore important parameters of health such as bone density.

Professor Brian Ingalls of the department of Applied Mathematics co-led a research team that presented promising proof-of-principle results in the development of a live biotherapeutic product approach to treating cancerous tumors. The research, executed by Dr. Bahram Zargar and Dr. Sara Sadr, as PhD students in the department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Waterloo, involved introduction of novel functions to the bacterium Clostridium sporogenes, enhancing its potential as an anti-cancer therapeutic.

Dr. Ruikun Zhou was announced as a co-winner of the Faculty of Mathematics Graduate Research Excellence Award for the paper "Resolven-Type Data-Driven Learning of Generators for Unknown Continuous-Time Dynamical Systems". Dr. Zhou completed a PhD in the department of Applied Mathematics under the supervision of Prof. Jun Liu in 2025 . Dr. Zhou is joining the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at MIT as a Postdoctoral Associate. Congratulations Ruikun!