Between Monday, February 21 and Friday, February 25, the XXIII International Symposium on Mathematical Methods Applied to Science, SIMMAC, was held online. This is the most important applied mathematics event in Central America, organized by the Center for Research in Pure and Applied Mathematics (CIMPA) of the Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR) with the collaboration of the School of Mathematics (EMat). 

This biannual meeting had, for the second time in a row, an important presence of researchers from the Center for Research in Mathematical Engineering, CI²MA, and graduates of the Doctorate Program in Applied Sciences with a mention in Mathematical Engineering, both from the Universidad de Concepción, UdeC. 

“In the 2020 version, I contacted the Organizing Committee to propose a Numerical Analysis session”, explained Dr. Manuel Solano Palma, CI²MA researcher, who presented the talk entitled Numerical analysis of PDE’s and their role in alternative energies modelling. Regarding the relation between UdeC and Costa Rican mathematicians, “a few years ago, the Costa Ricans Filánder Sequeira and Mario Álvarez went to specialize in the area of Numerical Analysis, graduating from our PhD Program in Applied Sciences with a minor in Mathematical Engineering. Both are currently professors at the Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica (UNA) and the Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR), respectively”, Solano explained. 

“Then Costa Rican Bryan Gómez also graduated from our doctoral program and is currently a professor at UCR. The three of them carried out their thesis work under the supervision of Gabriel Gatica. Isaac Bermúdez, also a Costa Rican, is currently a student in our doctoral program” the also academician at the Department of Mathematical Engineering of the Faculty of Physical and Mathematical Sciences at UdeC continued. “On the other hand, there is a personal connection since, for family reasons, I frequently visit Costa Rica”, he added. 

Meanwhile, Mario Álvarez, Eligio Colmenares, Felipe Lepe and Filánder Sequeira, respectively, presented the talks: A priori an posteriori error analysis of a semi-augmented mixed finite element method for double-diffusive natural convection in porous media; A fully-DG methos for the stationary Bousssinesq system; A virtual element approximation for the pseudostress formulation of the Stokes eigenvalue problem; and An Lp spaces-based mixed virtual element method for de two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations. 

“Participation in international events is at the very center of CI²MA's work. Thus, collaborations with colleagues from all over the world are generated, at the same time that we show the PhD program in which we participate. It is also very gratifying to see how some of our former students have inserted themselves into the international scientific community. Our congratulations go out to them and to Dr. Solano”, Dr. Rodolfo Araya Durán, Director of CI²MA, highlighted.