Homepage of
Edward S. Thomas 
Fall, 2013, webpage can be found as
follows: MAT314,
Analysis for Applications www.albany.edu/~et392/AMAT314.htm and MAT416/516, Partial Differential Equations
www.albany.edu/~et392/AMAT416.htm
If you don't
have other pressing matters and you want to keep going....read on!
Thomas received his Ph.
D. in Mathematics from the University of California at Riverside, taught for
five years at the University of Michigan, and has been at Albany since 1969... a long time. Here is a bite size
CV.
His mathematical
interests include dynamical systems, the dynamics of smooth flows, and, in
recent years, discrete dynamics with applications to difference equations.
Advances in Space Science Department:
A long time ago as a Visiting NASA Scientist at Johnson Space Center,
Houston, Thomas was involved in exercise
countermeasure studies aimed at reducing muscle-mass loss in prolonged
microgravity environments. That
project was handed over to the Russians, while, regrettably, Thomas himself
continues to lose muscle and gain mass at an alarming rate.
His most recent
Ph. D. students are Deborah Lawrence, who is Associate Professor and former
Head of the Mathematics Department at Russell Sage College, and Steve Bourgault,
who is a Research Mathematician with MapInfo.
Here are some pictures from the May, 2012, Graduation. Here are Will Braat, Kaz Kurihara,
Destiny Davis and Jessica Kim. 
FORMER STUDENTS
DEPARTMENT
At my wife’s suggestion, I’m going to start passing along
news from some of my old students just to give an idea of what some Math Nerds
do after graduating.
In early February, 2013, Josh Merlis dropped by.
After graduation, Josh taught High School for several years and then started up
a company that produces and times running events. There is quite a bit of
mathematics and computer programming involved in the timing aspect of a big race.
Josh is also the founder of the Albany Running Exchange, a large local running
club.
As of October,
2012, Kaz Kurihara ( pictured above) writes
that he has entered graduate school at Stony Brook for his Masters in Teaching
and has started observations at a local High School. He’s enthusiastic
about it.
On Friday,
October 12th, I hit pay dirt and had visits with several former
students. First, Matt and Amy Wright dropped by…she teaches Math at
Green Tech High School and he is a PhD candidate in Physics here at UAlbany. Man Kit Tse also stopped in to
say hello…he is finishing up a PhD in Physics this year to add to his
collection of advanced degrees. And
Jessica
Kim ( pictured above) was able to get loose from
her duties as a first year Physics grad student long enough for us to sit down
for a chat. Very nice day.
Maseeh Mukhtar dropped by on October 18th
for a visit. Maseeh graduated in Physics/Math about
four years ago. He just spent three
years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Africa and listening to his experiences was
not only interesting, but inspiring. He’s now applying to various
graduate schools. I hope to be like him when I grow up.
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One of Thomas's
principal stress-reducing ( or should that be
stress-inducing ?) activities used to be technical rock-climbing. Below is a
shot of the overhanging "Triple Bulges" ( a
name that refers to characteristic features of the climb, although it certainly
could apply to Thomas himself ) For some reason, the horizon is very often
tilted the wrong way in this shot. I think it's because the photographer/belayer is usually working quickly...multi-tasking, you
know?... and tends to get the tree vertical, when in
fact, it leans out from the cliff. And next to that is a picture of a seacliff climb called "Terrier's Tooth" in
Cornwall, England. I had wanted to do that climb for 25 years and finally was
able get there a several summers ago. 
Last tweaked
mid-May , 2013