Short Programs

Data and Models in Engineering, Science and Business, Part II [12.16s]

Date: July 21-22, 2010 | Tuition: $1,500

Overview  |  Learning Objectives  |  Course Materials  |  Who Should Attend  |  Schedule  |  Participants' Comments  |  On-Site Courses  |  Instructors  |  Updates

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Overview

Part II of a course for anyone wanting to fit data to models. Topics include grid search, random (Monte-Carlo) search, simulated annealing, genetic algorithms, neural networks and parameter error estimation. Introduces principles leading to rapid application of methods. Includes pre-programmed computer exercises.

Learning Objectives

• Describe how to fit data to models.
• Appreciate grid search, random search, simulated annealing, genetic algorithms, neural networks, and parameter error estimation.
• Examine principles leading to rapid application of methods.
• Evaluate the results of pre-programmed computer exercises.

Course Materials

Lectures will be accompanied by copies of all presented material and additional published reviews. Participants are encouraged to study a basic text prior to attendance. Two suggestions are:

Data Reduction and Error Analysis for the Physical Sciences, P. R. Bevington and D. K. Robinson, McGraw-Hill, Inc., 2nd ed., 1992.

Applied Regression Analysis, N. R. Draper and H. Smith, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2nd ed., 1981.

Who Should Attend

Anyone who fits data to models. This course is truly broad-based and participants from vastly differing fields are envisioned and encouraged to attend. Some of these fields are engineering, business, natural sciences, geoscience, medicine, statistics, and economics. Familiarity with computing, linear algebra, and statistics is desirable.

Recent and past participants in this course have come from: Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR), Amgen Inc., AT&T, BAE Systems, Bank of America, Boeing, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, BP America, Cox Communications, Delphi, Dupont, Environmental Protection Agency, ExxonMobil Chemical, General Motors, Hitachi (Japan), Intel, Johnson & Johnson, Korea Power Co., Kraft Foods, Los Alamos Labs, Mathworks, Mayo Clinic, Merck & Co Inc, Motorola, Naval Research Laboratory, NTT (Japan), Nokia Research Center, Phillips Exeter Academy, Pioneer Investments, Polaroid Corporation, Sandia National Labs, Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (Saudi Arabia), University of Pennsylvania, University of West Indies (West Indies), US Air Force.

Course schedule and registration times

Class runs 9:00 am - 5:00 pm every day.

Registration is on Wednesday morning from 8:15 - 8:45 am.

Participants' Comments

Senior Mechanical Engineer, BAE Systems
“The lab portions of the class were thoughtfully planned and very instructive.”

Program Manager, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
“The instructors were excellent, and the in-lab reviews with other participants were enlightening.”

Quality Manager, Polaroid Corporation
“I was very pleased with the quality of the teaching, the hands-on experience offered, and the facilities.”

Associate Professor, University of the Pacific
"The course gave a terrific overview of a broad topic. The relevance to real-world problems was well illustrated."

On-site Courses

We can also offer this course for groups of employees at your location. Please contact the Short Programs office for further details.

Instructors

Frank Dale Morgan obtained his BSc (Math/Physics, 1970) and his MSc (Theoretical Solid State Physics, 1972) from the University of the West Indies, Trinidad, where he was a Lecturer in Physics, 1970-1975. From 1975 to 1981, he completed a PhD in Geophysics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He returned to the University of the West Indies, Trinidad, as a Research Fellow in the Seismic Research Unit. From 1983 to 1985 he was a Research Associate in the Geophysics Department at Stanford University. In 1985 he joined the faculty of the Geophysics Department at Texas A&M University. He is now a Professor of Geophysics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences and associated with the Earth Resources Laboratory. His current interests are in rock physics, geoelectromagnetism, applied seismology, inverse theory, environmental and engineering geophysics, electrochemistry and electronic instrumentation. He teaches courses on the physics and chemistry of rocks, environmental and engineering geophysics, alternative energy and inverse theory. He is the organizer and principal instructor for the course.

Updates

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