Dr Mark McGuinness
School of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science
Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand

I come to applied mathematics from a PhD in Physics at the University of Canterbury (NZ) in 1978, via a postdoc in Mathematical Physics at University College Dublin, an Instructorship in Applied Maths at Caltech (1981-1983), and a research position with the Applied Mathematics Division of the NZ Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), Wellington, from 1983-1991.

My interests began in conservation laws and Lagrangian field theory, particularly in nonlinear pde's with soliton solutions. Then via chaotic dynamics and the Lorenz equations, to modelling heat and mass transport. In the DSIR I worked on geothermal reservoir modelling. After joining Victoria University (Vic), I got hooked on Math in Industry Study Groups, working on cooking crispy cereals, hot dip epoxy coatings, tall tapered feeders in iron castings, stabilising washing machines, modelling lead-acid batteries, and weighing fast heavy fruit while they are still bouncing on the scales. I also enjoy working with Masters and PhD students on modelling Antarctic sea ice, delayed feedback control of blood pressure, and coal volatilisation.

I regularly visit the Division of Applied Mathematics at KAIST in South Korea to teach and research (as one of a team of Visiting Foreign Professors), and Oxford University in the UK to work with a colleague in OCIAM.