CSH Talk by Hildegard Meyer-Ortmanns “From a Mathematical Framework for Cognitive Processes to Unavoidable Fates of Dynamical Systems”

Hildegard Meyer-Ortmanns (Constructor University) will present a talk on Thursday, November 30, from 3 – 4 PM in the Salon.

Title: From a Mathematical Framework for Cognitive Processes to Unavoidable Fates of Dynamical Systems

Abstract: In the first part of the talk we discuss recent results from heteroclinic dynamics. Heteroclinic dynamics provides a mathematical framework for intrinsically transient processes such as cognitive processes in the brain. It reproduces switching statistics of metastable states, entrainment of resting units to coherent oscillations, and processing of information that is encoded in temporal patterns. The second part deals with the possible fates of dynamical systems when costs are taken into account for an essential production or fabrication process as well as for the maintenance of its accurate performance. Depending on the costs spent for production relative to those spent for repair,  the fate is aging in the sense of error accumulation, either kept below a tolerable error threshold or exceeding the threshold. We conclude with an outlook to further recent work.

Bio:  Hildegard Meyer-Ortmanns is a professor of physics at Constructor University in Bremen, Germany. She works on complex systems with tools from statistical physics and nonlinear dynamics. She received her diploma in general relativity theory, and her PhD in particle physics and later switched to complex systems and network science. Her current interest is in the role of stochastic fluctuations in nonlinear dynamics and on fundamental trade-offs between precision, costs, and speed.