CHILE January 2015 Chile - Harvard Innovative Learning Exchange Overview ● ● ● ● Two weeks in Chile Two partners: IACS and CMM Two cities: Santiago and La Serena Two teams with members from two or more countries ● Problem based on a cutting-edge astronomical endeavor Goals of the Program This innovative learning exchange will provide students with the following opportunities: ● ● ● ● Wrestle with a computationally challenging real-world problem Apply classroom learning to messy, incomplete data sets Follow data “end to end” (from collection to processing to analysis) Visit the observatory and meet with scientists who are gathering the data and conducting research ● Collaborate on intercultural and international teams ● Experience the Chilean culture, landscape, and attractions Program Sponsors Harvard University ● Institute for Applied Computational Science (IACS) ● Trip leader: Pavlos Protopapas (IACS Scientific Program Director) Center for Mathematical Modeling (University of Chile) ● Eduardo Vera University of Chile ● Pablo Estevez, Mario Hamuy Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile ● Karim Pichara Baksai Eligibility Students enrolled at Harvard: ● ● ● ● Seniors at Harvard College Students in the final year of the AB/SM program Master’s programs Doctoral programs Possess skills in at least one of the following areas: ● ● ● Programming Statistics and Machine Learning Mathematics Astronomical background not required! Moderate knowledge of the Spanish language helpful, but not required. Research Problem ● ● ● ● ● The expansion of the universe is speeding up According to Einstein's theory of General Relativity, gravity should lead to a slowing of the expansion Two possibilities: ○ Either 75% of the universe exists in an exotic form, now called dark energy, that exhibits a gravitational force opposite to the attractive gravity of ordinary matter, or ○ General Relativity must be replaced by a new theory of gravity on cosmic scales. The Dark Energy Survey (DES) is designed to probe the origin of the accelerating universe Scientists from 23 institutions in the United States, Spain, the United Kingdom, Brazil, and Germany are working on the project Research Problem ● Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory high in the Chilean Andes ● Blanco 4-meter telescope ● DECam, an array of 74 CCDs - 570 Megapixels ● 400 images per night or approximately 1 TByte/night Bonus: Empanadas! Research Problem: Event detection, early warning Type Ia Supernovae. Type Ia supernovae are nearly “standard candles.” Exploding stars of this type all have nearly the same absolute brightness or luminosity when they reach their brightest phase. Looking at the light curve (light vs time) we can determine the distance and by looking at redshift we can estimate the acceleration of the universe. ● ● ● Early detection of such events Inference of characteristics of the underlying physics Model comparison using Bayesian inference Research Problem: Inverse problem The number of galaxy clusters and mass is determined by cosmology. The concept is to count the number of galaxy clusters of a given mass within a given volume and determine how this quantity has changed over time - this depends on the dark energy and how the universe expands, and the interplay between dark energy and gravity. The challenge is to count the clusters and their masses. Infer masses through weak and strong gravitational lensing which affects the shape of the luminous galaxies. ● ● Inverse problem to infer masses Bayesian inference for model comparison Transferable Skills Handling large data (~20 Terabyte) Mathematical modeling Machine learning and statistical analysis ● Event detection and prediction ● Classification ● Bayesian inference Applications for fields beyond astronomy such as finance, surveillance, social network applications, etc. Program Schedule Week Zero ● ● December meeting to go over the data and additional background information necessary for the project Pre-trip reading of ~5 relevant articles Week One ● ● ● ● Saturday, Jan 3: Fly to La Serena, Chile (via Santiago) Sunday, Jan 4: Arrival and Orientation in La Serena Monday - Friday, Jan 5-9: Group work in La Serena, including one day tour of observatory Saturday, Jan 10: Exploration of La Serena Program Schedule cont’d Week Two ● Sunday, Jan 11: Travel to Santiago ● Monday - Friday, Jan 12 - 16: Work in teams; final days of project work and poster preparation in Santiago ● Saturday, Jan 17: Exploration of Santiago Program Schedule cont’d Week Three ● Sunday, Jan 18: Depart Santiago ● Monday, Jan 19: Arrive in U.S. ● Friday, Jan 23: Poster presentation at IACS’ Future of Computation in Science and Engineering Symposium in Cambridge Trip Cost Thanks to funding from IACS and CMM, student costs are minimal. ● Harvard covers the following expenses: ○ Airfare to La Serena and Santiago, Chile ○ Visa and entry fees ○ Transportation for program activities within Chile ○ Lodging in hotels and dormitories (two students per room) ○ Meals ● Students are responsible for the following expenses: ○ $300 program fee ○ Any additional expenses in Chile (meal costs exceeding per diem and program meals, souvenirs, tourism expenses on “off” days) Application Process Application includes: ● ● ● ● Google Form Application Resume submission to Natasha Baker ([email protected]) Application Opens: Tuesday, October 14 at 9am Application Deadline: Monday, October 27 at midnight Applicants will be selected based on responses to the essay questions and on the specific skills they bring to their team. Application Process cont’d ● Notification: All applicants will be notified of their status by Tuesday, November 4. ● We plan to accept 6 students, and place 4 students on the waitlist. ● A deposit of $150 is required upon acceptance of a place in the program or on the waitlist. (Deposit is refundable for those on the waitlist who do not go on the trip.) Questions? Scope Sheila Coveney Pavlos Protopapas Program Manager Scientific Program Director [email protected] [email protected]