Brittany Gelb
I am a first-year PhD student in mathematics at Rutgers University, interested in topological data analysis and artificial intelligence alignment.
Email: brittany.gelb@rutgers.edu
Research
I'm currently pivoting my research career towards topological data analysis and machine learning. I'm broadly interested in artificial intelligence (AI) alignment. Starting in September 2022, my research will be supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program under Grant No. DGE-1842213.
Below is a selection of my previous projects from undergrad. In the past I have worked on interactive theorem-proving, number theory, hyperbolic geometry, graph theory, and mathematical modeling.
- Jointly with Lisa Cenek, I wrote formal computer-verified proofs using the software Lean and formalized elementary results on Pythagorean triples. Here is a link to our GitHub.
- At Muhlenberg College, I was advised by Byungchul Cha, and I worked with Heather Chapman and Chooka Weiss on instrinsic Diophantine approximation. Our paper, Lagrange Spectrum of a Circle Over the Eisensteinian Field, was published in Monatshefte für Mathematik. It is available from the journal for view only here and also available on arXiv.
- At the DIMACS REU, I was advised by Alex Kontorovich, where I developed a computer algorithm using Python, Sage, and Mathematica to generate circle packings from combinatorial data. Here is more about that project.
- At the Lafayette College REU, I was advised by Megan Cream, and I worked with Kathryn Beck and Lisa Cenek to characterize conditions that guarantee chorded cycle properties in claw-free graphs. We submitted a paper to the Australasian Journal of Combinatorics, which is currently under revision. Here is a poster that we presented at JMM.
- At Muhlenberg College, I was advised by Erika Iyengar, and I analyzed growth rate data for a marine snail and determined probable lifespan and seasonal and site-specific growth patterns.
Resources for Undergraduates in Mathematics
- 80,000 Hours is a great organization for learning about careers for positive impact.
- Here is some advice about applying to REU programs, written by myself and the other OURFA2M2 organizers.
- I help write a monthly newsletter with OURFA2M2. Subscribe to hear about career-building opportunities.
- Here is some advice about doing your own organizing and DEI work in the mathematics community.
- Feel free to contact me to ask about my experiences doing anything mentioned on this website.
Caption: Participants of the 2019 Lafayette College REU. Back row (l to r): Charles Kulick, Adam Hodapp, Alvaro Carbonero, Maxwell Auerbach, Kathryn Beck. Front row: Rebecca Whitman, Brittany Gelb, Beth Anne Castellano, Lisa Cenek, Karie Schmitz. The front row is holding Iñaki Minondo.