Math Goes Hollywood for the 2005 Marden Lecture at UWM

From Laura Hunt, MILWAUKEE — What’s driving today’s fully digital films, such as “Finding Nemo” and “The Incredibles”? A leading computer scientist and head of research at Pixar Animation Studios says it’s math.

Tony DeRose will give a free public lecture on the topic on Thursday, March 10 at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM). “Math in the Movies,” the 16th annual Marden Lecture on Mathematics, begins at 4 p.m. in room 150 of Bolton Hall (map), 3210 N. Maryland Ave.

Filmmaking is undergoing a digital revolution brought on by advances in areas such as computational physics and computer graphics. DeRose’s talk will provide a behind-the-scenes look at digital filmmaking with particular emphasis on the role that mathematics – from algebraic algorithms to chaos math – plays in the revolution.

The event is co-sponsored by the UWM Department of Mathematical Sciences, the College of Engineering and Applied Science and the College of Letters and Science. A reception will follow the talk in room E495A of the Engineering Math Sciences Building, 3200 N. Cramer St.