2020

Branden Fitelson

Northeastern University

Areas: Computational Humanities, Education, Philosophy, Probability Theory, Software Development

Branden Fitelson is a distinguished professor of philosophy at Northeastern University, where he teaches logic and formal epistemology courses using Mathematica. He developed the PrSAT package (a user-friendly decision procedure for probability calculus), which is used by various researchers and teachers around the world. Branden has used Mathematica for computational research in philosophy since the early 1990s, and he consistently encourages and inspires others to do the same.

2019

Robert Rasmussen and Kirk Reinholtz

Senior Engineers, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Areas: Aerospace, Control Engineering, High-Performance and Parallel Computing, Probability Theory, Risk Analysis, Software Development, Systems Engineering

Robert Rasmussen and Kirk Reinholtz are systems engineers who have used the Wolfram Language to develop a set of methodologies for building complex control system applications. Their integrated mission operation systems utilize the Wolfram Language to provide live updates to local data stores, keeping information consistent throughout processes. Both have used Mathematica extensively for large probability and engineering computations—including hundred-day distributed computations and the processing of gigabyte-scale datasets. They evangelize Mathematica and the Wolfram Language to others in the aerospace field, encouraging them to use Wolfram Notebooks for exploration and the expression of ideas.

2018

Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Distinguished Professor of Risk Engineering, NYU Tandon School of Engineering
Scientific Advisor, Universa Investments

Areas: Authoring and Publishing, Financial Risk, Probability Theory

Dr. Nassim Nicholas Taleb is a world-renowned researcher and author with dozens of published papers relating to the philosophical, mathematical and practical issues with probability, especially in the fields of financial risk and decision making. His multivolume work Incerto, which covers broad facets of uncertainty, has been translated into 37 languages. He currently serves as Distinguished Professor of Risk Engineering at NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering, with a focus on properties of “antifragile” systems whose functioning improves with disorder. Dr. Taleb has used Mathematica extensively in his work, including for research into non-idealized probabilistic decision-making models and computational pre-asymptotics.

2014

Frank Scherbaum

University of Potsdam

Areas: Musicology, Probability Theory, Seismology, Signal Processing

Frank Scherbaum, a professor of geophysics at the University of Potsdam, has been using Wolfram technologies since Mathematica 1. He has developed packages for signal processing, seismology, and seismic hazard analysis, which are widely used in research and teaching. His most recent book on probabilistic seismic hazard analysis, developed with the help of his students Nico Kuehn and Annabel Hëndel, covers widely diverse areas such as probability theory, earthquake seismology, strong motion processing, and geotechnical engineering, and has been fully generated with Mathematica and CDF technology. In addition, he uses Mathematica extensively as a hobby musicologist to explore new ways to represent and classify polyphonic vocal music.

2014

Mark Kotanchek

Areas: Data Mining and Analysis, Economics, Financial Risk, Mathematica Consulting, Probability Theory, Risk, Risk Analysis

Mark Kotanchek left Dow Chemical in 2005 to form the startup Evolved Analytics. DataModeler, one of the largest Mathematica applications produced outside of Wolfram Research, handles data modeling via evolutionary programs. It also performs data analysis and makes sophisticated use of both user interface and kernel technology. At the 2014 Wolfram Technology Conference, Kotanchek revealed a GUI for DataModeler that makes it even easier to use Wolfram’s world-class analysis capabilities.