Shaun Ceci, Ph.D.

  • Associate Professor Mathematics

Contact

Location

RH 220

As a mathematician, my research involves the use of a combination of techniques pulled from both applied and pure branches of mathematics to explore problems in fluid dynamics. Central to the study of fluid dynamics are the Navier-Stokes equations (NSE) — which govern the motion of fluids under quite general conditions and are used to model everything from the air flow around an airplane’s wing to the movement of stars inside galaxies. Despite being essentially the simplest equations which describe the motion of a fluid, the NSE are fundamentally difficult to study from a mathematical perspective. This is evidenced by the long-standing open question, now a Clay Millennium Prize problem (where substantial progress towards a solution is worth a million dollars), of global existence and smoothness for solutions of the NSE in three-dimensional space.

Education

Ph.D. in Mathematical Sciences (2011), University of Memphis
B.S. in Mathematics with Highest Honors (2005), Montana State University
University Honors Baccalaureate with Highest Distinction (2005), Montana State University

Areas of Specialization

Open-access instructional materials in mathematics
Novel use of technology for visualization in calculus and differential equations
Flipped classroom models for calculus and differential equations
Increasing student engagement in the classroom
Student recruitment strategies for mathematics
Applied analysis
Partial differential equations
Fluid dynamics and computational issues

Awards and Honors

University of Memphis Society Doctoral Fellow (2010)
Montana State University Award of Excellence (2005)