PULLMAN, Wash. John Milton, holder of the Kenan Chair in Computational Neuroscience at the Claremont Colleges, will deliver the 2008 Ostrom Public Lecture in Mathematics on March 19 at Washington State University.
In “Legends of the Fall: from the fingertip to the foot’s sole,” Milton will address how the brain achieves feats like balancing long sticks standing upright on a fingertip. Results of such studies may help in minimizing falls among the elderly by changing the design of their walking shoes.
Milton’s address is intended for a wide audience and is open to the public without charge at 7:30 p.m. in Room 419 of the Center for Undergraduate Education.
“We are delighted to have a speaker of Milton’s caliber,” said Professor Robert Dillon. “Milton is a Ph.D. mathematician as well as an M.D. neurologist. He has brought the mathematics of dynamical systems to the study of neurology and made important contributions in both neuroscience and applied mathematics.”
The annual Theodore G. Ostrom lectures bring renowned mathematics scholars to the Washington State University campus for a series of meetings and lectures. The lectures honor emeritus Professor Ostrom who retired in 1981 after 21 years on the WSU faculty. Ostrom plans to attend the lecture.
Milton will also give a more technical address on Thursday, March 20 at 4:10 p.m. in Neill Hall Room 5W.
