Dr. Illya Hicks 
Professor & Chair
Computational Applied Math & Operations Research
Rice University
Friday, September 16, 2022
2:15-3:15pm
Tickle 500
ABSTRACT:
Zero forcing is a dynamic graph process in which an initial set of vertices in a graph is colored and, through a set of color-changing rules, may cause additional vertices to become colored through a series of iterations. Zero forcing sets are vertex sets that (when initially colored) cause all remaining vertices to become colored; the zero forcing number of a graph is the minimum cardinality of the graph’s zero forcing sets. The zero forcing number is of particular interest as it provides a bound for the minimum rank problem for graphs; the minimum rank problem has applications to recommender systems. In this talk, we will explore zero-forcing and its variants as well as their corresponding obstruction sets which we call forts. In the end, we will explore how forts are related to the minimum rank problem.
BIO:
Illya V. Hicks is the professor and chair of the Computational Applied Mathematics & Operations Research Department at Rice University. He received a BS in mathematics (1995) from Texas State University and both an M.A. and Ph.D. in Computational and Applied Mathematics (2000) from Rice University. Before returning to Rice, Illya was a faculty member in the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department at Texas A&M University (2000-2006). Illya also served as the faculty advisor to the president of Rice University from 2016 to 2019.
In terms of research, his interests are in combinatorial optimization, graph theory, and integer programming with applications in big data, imaging, social networks, political redistricting, energy, and logistics. Illya is the recipient of the 2005 Optimization Prize for Young Researchers from the Optimization Society of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS) and the 2010 Forum Moving Spirit Award from INFORMS. Illya was also named an INFORMS Fellow in 2020 and an INFORMS Minority Issues Forum Fellow in 2021.
Join URL: https://tennessee.zoom.us/j/96327677336