George Boole Mathematical Sciences Conference

17-28 August 2015.

As part of the celebrations of Boole’s bicentenary, the George Boole Mathematical Sciences (GBMS) Conference will be held in University College Cork (UCC) during the last two weeks of August 2015. This is the first in a series of conferences and events to promote the George Boole Focus Programme in Mathematical Sciences at the School of Mathematical Sciences (SMS) which aims at maintaining and improving UCC as a focal point of mathematical research in Ireland with global visibility.

George Boole (1815 – 1864) was the first professor of mathematics at Cork and his contributions to mathematical sciences have been far-reaching. They may serve as a paradigm for the national strategic relevance of high-risk long-term fundamental research in mathematics. Typically the results of such research are barely measurable in terms of immediate applicability, even though they may provide key tools for future innovations with enormous cultural, economic and technological relevance to society. In the case of George Boole, his efforts to mathematize logical thinking, in particular, caused a lasting paradigm shift in the 19th century which enlarged the scope and potency of modern mathematics, and provided a wealth of ideas for applications in diverse scientific areas resulting in path-breaking innovations during the 20th century and beyond.

In view of the occasion and of the role of mathematical research as described above, the goals of this conference are to:

• celebrate the mathematician George Boole;
• provide a forum for international experts in selected mathematical fields to discuss their research, and stimulate future work;
• give young Irish mathematicians the opportunity of interacting with world leaders in pure mathematics and its applications;
• improve the international standing of mathematical research being conducted in Ireland;
• build on the legacy of Boole at UCC by creating a focal point of mathematical research in Ireland which is capable of attracting world-leading researchers and international students.

This event will include more than 150 lectures on selected vibrant areas of modern mathematical research:

• Theme 1: Boole and Beyond in Quantum Information Theory, 17 - 20 Aug 2015
• Theme 2: From Boole's Algebra of Logic to Boolean Algebra, and Beyond, 27 - 28 Aug 2015
• Theme 3: Complex and Boolean Networks, 24 - 26 Aug 2015
• Theme 4: Geometry and Visualization, 26 - 28 Aug 2015
• Theme 5: Harmonic Analysis, 19 - 22 Aug 2015
• Theme 6: Invariants from Moduli Spaces, 24 - 27 Aug 2015
• Theme 7: Mathematical Financial Modelling Post-Crisis, 25 - 27 Aug 2015
• Theme 8: Quantum Probabilistic Symmetries and Quantized Boolean Algebras, 20 - 25 Aug 2015

Also the following events are embedded in and associated with the conference:

• 2015 Annual Meeting of the Irish Mathematical Society (IMS), 27-28 Aug 2015
• Domains XII, 25 - 28 Aug 2015, an international conference aiming at computer scientists and mathematicians alike who share an interest in the mathematical foundations and applications of computation.
• When Boole Meets Shannon, 01 - 02 Sep 2015,  an international workshop exploring the mathematical models, algorithms, and techniques fundamentally rooted in Shannon information theory to design reliable, low power Boolean circuits and systems.