This event is a joint presentation of the University of New England and the Royal Society of New South Wales.

Join us for an intriguing discussion on the mathematics of species propagation.

Professor Yihong Du will delve into real-world examples such as ecological invasion and disease epidemics, exploring the success of simple partial differential equation models in understanding propagation. Professor Yihong Du will share insights into the inadequacies of classical models and present cutting-edge developments in mathematical modeling, complete with numerical simulation results.

This event will also be live-streamed via Zoom, so even if you can’t make it in person, be sure to register to receive your link to watch from wherever is most convenient.

Professor Yihong Du obtained his PhD in 1988 from Shandong University (China). After spending two years at Shandong University as a Lecturer (1988-90), and one year at Heriot-Watt University (UK) as a visiting fellow (1990-91), he joined the University of New England (UNE) in 1991, as a postdoctoral research fellow (1991-92) working with Professor E N Dancer on an Australian Research Council (ARC) supported project. Dr Du became a Lecturer at UNE in 1993 and was promoted to Professor in 2008. He is interested in mathematical problems arising from applications in other sciences, such as biology, invasion ecology and chemical reaction theory. Some of his recent works investigate mathematical models for propagation, such as the spreading of diseases, or the invasion of exotic species, which involve nonlinear elliptic and parabolic partial differential equations, often over a spatial domain with moving boundaries to represent the propagation front. For his research achievements in this and other areas, he was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science in 2021. In 2024, he was awarded an Australian Laureate Fellowship by the ARC.