In a recent edition of the Gazette, Graeme Wake [1] wrote of the success of indus- trial mathematics as something that, like the crest of a wave, is about to ‘break through’. In this article I would like to inform AustMS members of projects al- ready underway in industrial mathematics and statistics through MASCOS (the Australian Research Council’s Centre of Excellence for Mathematics and Statistics of Complex Systems). To extend the nautical metaphor — we are surfing down a wave now, and there are more waves coming!
Since 2008 MASCOS has conducted 14 projects in industry. Industry sectors include transport (NSW Roads and Traffic Authority, and Vicroads), defence (De- fence Science and Technology Organisation), coal mining (MSEC Consulting Group), medical devices (Cochlear), mental health (the Mental Health Research Institute) and nuclear science (ANSTO). For project details see MASCOS annual reports at www.complex.org.au.
MASCOS projects are not like typical consulting projects, where a specific problem is solved using existing mathematics, and recommendations are made. Rather, each project starts with an open problem set by the client. For example ‘design a new traffic control system to reduce congestion’, or ‘design a statistical model to predict the cost of road network simulations based on network complexity’ or ‘propose a new theoretical framework to improve the confidence in risk modelling of ground movement due to underground mining’. These projects require original applied research in a combination of mathematics, statistics and engineering to fill the gap identified by the open problem. Hence, in addition to the commercial value to the industry client, each project has research value to the professional mathematician or statistician. Research areas covered include statistical mechanics of non-equilibrium systems, extreme value theory, classification of high-dimensional data, risk modelling and more.