Postdoc Takes Home the 2022 Householder Prize

Heather Wilber, postdoctoral fellow at the Oden Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences, has been awarded the 2022 Householder Prize for her dissertation, “Computing Numerically with Rational Functions.”

Established in 1969 in memory of numerical linear analyst Alston S. Householder’s outstanding contributions to the field, the prize is given to the author of the best numerical linear algebra dissertation produced within the past three years as determined by an international panel of judges.

In “Computing Numerically with Rational Functions,” Wilber developed numerical methods for a range of applications in computational mathematics where approximations by rational functions are useful. This includes theoretical and algorithmic advancements for low rank and rank-structured methods in numerical linear algebra, low rank spectral methods for solving certain partial differential equations, as well as data-driven univariate methods for computing with functions, signals, and nonlinear models. She also successfully translated ideas from approximation theory into computational tools for the wider scientific community.

As her work makes readily available the many benefits of data-driven rational approximation methods, Wilber hopes it will open new possibilities for tackling problems in regimes currently out of reach in areas ranging from biomedical monitoring to geophysics.

The award includes a cash prize, noteworthy less for its size than for the method by which it is financed.

“It's actually a fun tradition,” said Wilber.  “They pass around a hat and everybody puts money in - all different currencies and denominations. In principle, they give you all these different currencies because they want you to travel and research around the world and be able to use the money wherever you go. You know, ‘welcome to the research community.’”

Wilber’s welcome came not without some light hazing. 
 

“The conference was held in Italy,” she said. “They invited me, so it was clear at that point that I was at least a runner up for the prize. I had no idea if I had won or not, though. On Monday night, they told me I had won the prize and had to keep it a secret from everybody until the announcement. Then they said, ‘you’re giving a plenary lecture on your dissertation this Thursday.’” 

“I had to very quickly prepare a big talk for an audience of people who are, you know, basically all of my heroes and whose work I read consistently in the development of my thesis,” she said.  

Fortunately, she was well prepared. In the fourteen months since it was published, this is the second award that ‘Computing Numerically with Rational Functions’ has won - the first coming from the Association of Women in Mathematics. When awarding Wilber, both the AWM and the Householder Prize committee took note of the impressive breadth of her work.

Heather Wilber joined the Oden Institute in 2021 after graduating from Cornell University with her PhD in Applied Mathematics under the supervision of Alex Townsend. Prior to that, she earned her M.S. in Applied Mathematics at Boise State University under the supervision of Grady Wright.