George Bard Ermentrout

G. Bard Ermentrout is an American mathematician and distinguished professor at University of Pittsburgh and a member of the Odor2Action research network.[2] He uses nonlinear dynamics for the mathematical modeling of problems in neuroscience. He explores patterns of activation in neural systems as they relate to biological problems such as olfaction.[3]

G. Bard Ermentrout
BornMarch 5, 1954[1]
CitizenshipUnited States of America
EducationPh.D.
Alma materUniversity of Chicago
Known forMathematical neuroscience
Scientific career
InstitutionsUniversity of Pittsburgh
Thesis Symmetry Breaking in Homogeneous, Isotropic Stationary Neuronal Nets  (1979)
Doctoral advisorJack D. Cowan
Websitewww.pitt.edu/~phase/

Bard Ermentrout is known for his contributions to computational and mathematical neuroscience. His joint work with Nancy Kopell derived the Ermentrout and Kopell canonical model,[4] He and David Terman wrote the book Mathematical Foundations of Neuroscience.[5] He helped to develop the dynamical systems software XPPAuto.[6]

One approach he uses in the study of olfaction is to program a virtual creature, implement various movement strategies for tracking scents, and examine their success rate under a different conditions. This enables researchers to better understand olfactory navigation strategies such as tropotaxis and klinotaxis and how they work in conditions such as high turbulence.[2][7]

Outside of work, he is fond of his many pets and has owned many pet parrots over the years. He most recently owns a galah and two corgis. He is also a lover of limericks.

References

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  1. ^ "Dr. Bard Ermentrout". Scholarpedia. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  2. ^ a b Mackenzie, Dana (6 March 2023). "How animals follow their nose". Knowable Magazine. Annual Reviews. doi:10.1146/knowable-030623-4. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
  3. ^ "G. Bard Ermentrout | Department of Mathematics". University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  4. ^ Ermentrout, Bard; Kopell, Nancy (1984). "Frequency plateaus in a chain of weakly coupled oscillators, i.". SIAM Journal on Mathematical Analysis. 15 (2): 215–237. doi:10.1137/0515019.
  5. ^ Ermentrout, Bard; Terman, David (2010). Mathematical Foundations of Neuroscience. Springer. ISBN 978-0-387-87708-2.
  6. ^ Ermentrout, Bard (2002). Simulating, analyzing, and animating dynamical systems: a guide to XPPAUT for researchers and students. SIAM. ISBN 978-0-89871-506-4.
  7. ^ Hengenius, James B.; Connor, Erin G.; Crimaldi, John P.; Urban, Nathaniel N.; Ermentrout, G. Bard (7 May 2021). "Olfactory navigation in the real world: Simple local search strategies for turbulent environments". Journal of Theoretical Biology. 516: 110607. doi:10.1016/j.jtbi.2021.110607. ISSN 0022-5193. PMID 33524405. S2CID 231755424.