Mathematics to share in £350 million fund to train tomorrow’s engineers and scientists
Mathematics at the University of Southampton is to share in a £350 million fund, which will be used to train over 3,500 post graduate students in engineering and physical sciences just announced by Universities and Science Minister, David Willetts MP.
This is the UK's largest investment in PhD training in engineering and physical sciences. In all, it will fund over 70 new Centres for Doctoral Training (CDTs), spread across 24 UK universities.
Mathematicians will play a major part in the Southampton's CDT in Next Generation Computational Modelling (CDT NGCM), underpinning all sectors to improve numerical methods and ensure better, more efficient research. The £10million initiative involves academics involved in pure and applied mathematics working in cyber security and power networks, statistics and Operational Research working in collaboration with colleagues in engineering, computer science, physics and other disciplines.
"Mathematicians are key to the success of this centre," explains Dr Ian Hawke who is a co-Director of the CDT. "We will enable postgraduate research students to become more proficient in the way they use the latest computing techniques. They will exploit cutting edge new technologies to develop innovative simulation methods, which go beyond the state-of-the-art in order to address the most pressing scientific and engineering challenges of the 21st century."
Computational modelling is critically important across science and engineering. It is the driver for new technology, from the Airbus 380 to MRI scans, innovative science from climate change to drug design, and policy initiatives ranging from infrastructure to finance.
The CDT NGCM, led by Hans Fangohr, Professor of Computational Modelling, will work with world-leading industrial partners to train and support at least 11 PhD students per year.