Amandine Aftalion (born 1973) is a French

applied mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History One ...

, known for her research on

Bose–Einstein condensate In condensed matter physics, a Bose–Einstein condensate (BEC) is a state of matter that is typically formed when a gas of bosons at very low Density, densities is cooled to temperatures very close to absolute zero#Relation with Bose–Einste ...

s and on the mathematics of footracing. She is a director of research at the

Centre national de la recherche scientifique The French National Centre for Scientific Research (, , CNRS) is the French state research organisation and is the largest fundamental science agency in Europe. In 2016, it employed 31,637 staff, including 11,137 tenured researchers, 13,415 eng ...

(CNRS).

Education and career

Aftalion studied at the

École normale supérieure (Paris) The – PSL (; also known as ENS, , Ulm or ENS Paris) is a ''grande école'' in Paris, France. It is one of the constituent members of Paris Sciences et Lettres University (PSL). Due to its selectivity, historical role, and influence within F ...

from 1992 to 1996, earning her

agrégation In France, the () is the most competitive and prestigious examination for civil service in the French public education A state school, public school, or government school is a primary school, primary or secondary school that educates all stu ...

in mathematics in 1994 and

Master of Advanced Studies A Master of Advanced Studies (MASt or MAS), or Master of Advanced Study, is a postgraduate degree awarded in various countries. Master of Advanced Studies programs may be non-consecutive programs tailored for "specific groups of working professio ...

numerical analysis Numerical analysis is the study of algorithms that use numerical approximation (as opposed to symbolic computation, symbolic manipulations) for the problems of mathematical analysis (as distinguished from discrete mathematics). It is the study of ...

in 1995. She defended her doctoral dissertation, ''Quelques problèmes d'équations aux dérivées partielles elliptiques non linéaires et applications à des modèles en supraconductivité et en combustion'', in 1997 at

Pierre and Marie Curie University Pierre and Marie Curie University ( , UPMC), also known as Paris VI, was a public research university in Paris, France, from 1971 to 2017. The university was located on the Jussieu Campus in the Latin Quarter of the 5th arrondissement of Paris, ...

, under the direction of

Henri Berestycki Henri Berestycki (born 25 March 1951) is a French mathematician who obtained his PhD from Université Paris VI – Pierre and Marie Curie University in 1975. His Dissertation was titled ''Contributions à l'étude des problèmes elliptiques non ...

. In 2002 she earned a

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and some other European and non-English-speaking countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excelle ...

with the thesis ''Equations aux dérivées partielles elliptiques non linéaires : propriétés qualitatives et modèles en physique des basses températures''. She has been a researcher with

CNRS The French National Centre for Scientific Research (, , CNRS) is the French state research organisation and is the largest fundamental science agency in Europe. In 2016, it employed 31,637 staff, including 11,137 tenured researchers, 13,415 eng ...

since 1999, and was promoted to director of research in 2008. Since 2010 her position with CNRS has been associated with

Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines University University of Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (, ; UVSQ), also known as Paris-Saclay University (), is a French public university created in 1991, located in the Departments of France, department of Yvelines and, since 2002, in Hauts-de-Sein ...

Contributions

Aftalion is the author of the book ''Vortices in Bose–Einstein Condensates'' (Birkhäuser, 2006). The book studies

quantum vortex In physics, a quantum vortex represents a quantized flux circulation of some physical quantity. In most cases, quantum vortices are a type of topological defect exhibited in superfluids and superconductors. The existence of quantum vortices was ...

and

superfluid Superfluidity is the characteristic property of a fluid with zero viscosity which therefore flows without any loss of kinetic energy. When stirred, a superfluid forms vortex, vortices that continue to rotate indefinitely. Superfluidity occurs ...

behavior in

s, using the Gross–Pitaevskii equation to model the energy in these systems. In her research on the mathematics of sports, Aftalion uses differential equations to model both the motion and forces on a runner, and the aerobic and anaerobic fitness of the runner as a race progresses. She has used the theory of

optimal control Optimal control theory is a branch of control theory that deals with finding a control for a dynamical system over a period of time such that an objective function is optimized. It has numerous applications in science, engineering and operations ...

to show that long-distance runners can achieve greater endurance by small variations in speed, contradicting earlier research by

Joseph Keller Joseph Bishop Keller (July 31, 1923 – September 7, 2016) was an American mathematician who specialized in applied mathematics. He was best known for his work on the "geometrical theory of diffraction" (GTD). Early life and education Born i ...

suggesting that runners should keep their speed nearly constant throughout a race. In follow-on work, she showed that, although long-distance runners should speed up in the final sprint of a race, the optimal strategy for a short footrace involves slowing down towards the end of the race.

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Aftalion, Amandine 1973 births Living people 20th-century French mathematicians French women mathematicians Research directors of the French National Centre for Scientific Research 21st-century French mathematicians École Normale Supérieure alumni Pierre and Marie Curie University alumni French applied mathematicians