From Graduate School Records to Vinyl Records. Meet our PDF at the University of Calgary, Jordan Culp.
Ruth A. Situma. PIMS Programs and Communications Manager
If you ask Jordan about life in Calgary, he’d probably let you know that he is enjoying everything the city and its surroundings have to offer — hiking, collecting vinyl records, and going out for pizza are amongst his favorites. He lived in Eastern Washington before moving to Calgary (about a day’s drive north) and is settling into his new surroundings and daily routine. “The most difficult part was definitely moving all my stuff. I was unable to rent a truck to move my things so I had to settle for shipping them, which, during the pandemic, took over a month for them to get here,” he says. He was already accustomed to working from home, as his final year at Washington State University was remote. All that was needed, at this point, was to re-establish a good work-from-home routine. Things have opened up in Alberta and he has been able to return to the office full-time. “I really enjoy being able to be around my co-workers and collaborators in person, and believe it really helps to improve my quality of work” he notes. In many ways, his new research position has enabled him to look back and use many of the tools (and records) he learned while in undergraduate and graduate school. We connected with Jordan to see how his research was progressing.
Tell us about your academic journey: What field are you in and how did you get there?
I completed my Bachelors in Applied Mathematics in Spring 2014 from Murray State University. I also received my Master of Science from Murray State University in Spring 2016 under the supervision of Dr. Tan Zhang and Dr. Kelly Pearson. While working on my Master's degree, I did research in the area of multi-linear algebra, in particular, that of higher-order Markov chains.
I then moved to Washington State University, and completed my Ph.D. in Mathematics, with a graduate minor in Statistics, in Spring 2021 under the supervision of Dr. Xueying Wang. While at Washington State I worked on three main projects in mathematical biology. For my main research topic, I developed and analyzed an ordinary differential equations model to predict the types of cluster solutions that should be expected in a network of weakly coupled oscillators on a lattice network topology with periodic boundary conditions. In addition, I worked on a secondary project where I modeled the effects of varying Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) on our circadian rhythms. In this model, intercellular mechanisms relating the photic input to the suprachiasmatic nucleus and cyclic intercellular BDNF content were modeled using a system of ordinary differential equations and fit to laboratory data. Finally, I worked on a third project where a deterministic ordinary differential equations model and stochastic branching process model were developed and fit to COVID-19 case data. This model was then used to predict the severity of second wave outbreaks based on a varying contact rate. Some publications from these projects include:
- B. Bush, J. Culp, and K. Pearson. Perron–Frobenius theorem for hypermatrices in the max algebra. Discrete Mathematics 342.1 (2019): 64–73.
- J. Culp. Cluster solutions in networks of weakly coupled oscillators on a 2d square torus Mathematics. Applied Sciences and Engineering 2.3 (2021): 194–218.
- D. Olabode, J. Culp, A. Fisher, A. Tower, D. Hull-Nye, X. Wang. Deterministic and stochastic models for the epidemic dynamics of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China. Mathematical Biosciences and Engineering 18.1 (2021): 950–967.
I learned of my current postdoctoral position when I found it listed on the Mathjobs.org job-posting board. The position description sounded like a very good fit for me, so I applied, and the rest is history. I am now working on a collaborative project under the co-supervision of Dr. Wilten Nicola and Dr. Alex McGirr.
In this project a Markovian model is used to describe the underlining temporal dynamics of the mesoscale neural imaging recordings from the McGirr lab. In addition to our Markov model construction and subsequent statistical analysis, these mesoscale recordings suffer from many big data problems, so dimension reduction techniques are used in our analysis. In this project, I use a mixture of techniques from all across my academic background; I use my knowledge of Markov chains from my time at Murray State University, my modeling knowledge in mathematical biology acquired during my time at Washington State University, and the statistical analysis skills I learned at Washington State also.
Were you teaching this semester? Do you think your time at MSU and WSU prepared you for this?
I am not teaching this semester, nor was I teaching last semester. I did teach every semester that I was a graduate student at Murray State and Washington State though, so it was a little odd not having to teach this academic year. I find teaching to be a very enjoyable, enlightening, and fulfilling experience, but also very challenging. I do hope to be able to get back into the classroom at some point soon and continue to work on improving my abilities in the classroom.
How do you balance your research and life?
I believe that staying physically active has been particularly invaluable for my mental health and a good work-life balance. I make a strong effort to hit the gym every day or even a long hike on the weekend. I also enjoy reading popular science and history and collecting vinyl records. On Saturday afternoons, you can usually find me at one of Calgary’s local record shops trying to find a hidden gem. I have been on the lookout for more Fela Kuti records — I am a pretty big fan of Fela, and Afrobeat in general.
My wife and I also have two Labrador Retrievers that are always ready for an adventure and serve as a healthy distraction from a long day at the office.
What does a typical Sunday look like for you? What is your best discovery since arriving at UC and what do you miss most from the US?
My typical Sunday is a pretty low-key event. I usually spend my time on Sunday catching up on household duties and getting myself organized for the upcoming week. I will usually meal-prep my lunch for the week, get caught up on backlogged emails, and get a list compiled of things I need to accomplish for the week.
I do fashion myself as a bit of a pizza connoisseur and I believe that Connie and John’s Pizzeria here in Calgary has a Margherita that might be my favorite discovery in the city so far. On the flip side, I do miss my friends and family across the US the most, especially due to the limited amount of traveling that I have been able to do over the last few years. Hopefully, now that things are opening back up, I will be able to make up for lost time and get to visit some friends and family.
Jordan Culp completed his Ph.D. in Mathematics, with a graduate minor in Statistics, from Washington State University in Spring 2021, under the supervision of Dr. Xueying Wang. His area of research focused on the development and analysis of an ordinary differential equations model to predict the types of cluster solutions that should be expected in a network of weakly coupled oscillators on a lattice network topology with periodic boundary conditions and a von Neumann neighborhood connectivity structure. In his current post-doctoral position at the University of Calgary, he works on a collaborative project under the co-supervision of Dr. Wilten Nicola and Dr. Alex McGirr. In this project a Markovian model is used to describe the underlining temporal dynamics of the mesoscale neural imaging recordings from the McGirr lab. This project brings together analytical and numerical techniques from linear algebra, data science, and statistics.
Jordan will be speaking at the PIMS Emergent Research Seminar Series, on May 4, 2022, at 9:30 AM Pacific. Details on his talk, Mesoscale Imaging Reveals the Markovian Dynamics of the Brain can be found here
