The C&O department has 36 faculty members and 60 graduate students. We are intensely research oriented and hold a strong international reputation in each of our six major areas:
- Algebraic combinatorics
- Combinatorial optimization
- Continuous optimization
- Cryptography
- Graph theory
- Quantum computing
Read more about the department's research to learn of our contributions to the world of mathematics!
News
Three C&O faculty win Outstanding Performance Awards
The awards are given each year to faculty members across the University of Waterloo who demonstrate excellence in teaching and research.
Prof. Alfred Menezes is named Fellow of the International Association for Cryptologic Research
The Fellows program, which was established in 2004, is awarded to no more than 0.25% of the IACR’s 3000 members each year and recognizes “outstanding IACR members for technical and professional contributions to cryptologic research.”
C&O student Ava Pun receives Jessie W. H. Zou Memorial Award
She received the award in recognition of her research on simulating virtual training environments for autonomous vehicles, which she conducted at the start-up Waabi.
Events
Algebraic Graph Theory-Theo McKenzie
Title: : Precise Eigenvalue Location for Random Regular Graphs
| Speaker: | Theo McKenzie |
| Affiliation: | Stanford University |
| Location: | Please contact Sabrina Lato for Zoom link. |
Abstract:The spectral theory of regular graphs has broad applications in theoretical computer science, statistical physics, and other areas of mathematics. Graphs with optimally large spectral gap are known as Ramanujan graphs. Previous constructions of Ramanujan graphs are based on number theory and have specific constraints on the degree and number of vertices. In this talk, we show that, in fact, most regular graphs are Ramanujan; specifically, a randomly selected regular graph has a probability of 69% of being Ramanujan. We establish this through a rigorous analysis of the Green’s function of the adjacency operator, focusing on its behavior under random edge switches.
Tutte colloquium-Peter Nelson
Title:Two-coloured lines in finite geometry
| Speaker: | Peter Nelson |
| Affiliation: | University of Waterloo |
| Location: | MC 5501 |
Abstract: Given a colouring of the points of a projective plane, when is it true that every line contains at most two colours? I will discuss recent generalizations of classical results in this area, and a surprising link with a famous question in graph theory.
Algebraic and enumerative combinatorics seminar-Andrew Sack
Title: Operahedron Lattices
| Speaker | Andrew Sack |
| Affiliation | University of Michigan |
| Location | MC 5479 |
Abstract: Two classical lattices are the Tamari lattice on bracketings of a word and the weak order on permutations. The Hasse diagram of each of these lattices is the oriented 1-skeleton of a polytope, theassociahedron and the permutohedron respectively. We examine a poset on bracketings of rooted trees whose Hasse diagram is the oriented 1-skeleton of a polytope called th operahedron. We show this poset is a lattice which answers question of Laplante-Anfossi. These lattices provide an extremelynatural generalization of both the Tamari lattice and the weak order.
There will be a pre-seminar presenting relevant background at the beginning graduate level starting at 1pm,