UAA's Complex Systems Group is comprised of faculty from a wide spectrum of disciplines including: Art, Physics, Chemistry, Public Policy, Nursing, Biology, Mathematics, Philosophy, Computer Science, Logistics, Political Science, Psychology, and other disciplines.
Jerzy Maselko, Professor of Chemistry, received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the Technical University in Wroclaw, Poland. Dr. Maselko served as Chair of the International Conference on Chemical Emergence which was held in Anchorage, Alaska, from June 20 - 22, 2002. His research interests include chaos and complex oscillations, multicellular chemical systems, chemical waves and pattern formation, complexity in chemical systems, and smart materials. Dr. Maselko and Dr. Kim Peterson are the co-founders of UAA's Complex Systems Group.
Kim M. Peterson
Kim M. Peterson received his Ph.D. in Botany/Ecology from Duke University in 1978. Dr. Peterson is currently a Professor of Biological Sciences and Associate Dean of Research in the College of Arts and Sciences. His research includes the dynamics of vegetation and landscape patterns, permafrost-vegetation interactions, and soil-plant-atmosphere processes. His interests in complex systems extends well beyond his research to include the philosophy of science, the nature of mind, and the evolution of complex systems. Dr. Peterson and Dr. Jerzy Maselko co-founded UAA's Complex Systems Group.
Kenrick J. Mock
Kenrick J. Mock received his Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of California, Davis in March 1996, completing a dissertation entitled "Hybrid Techniques for Intelligent Information Filtering: Genetic Algorithms, Case-Based Reasoning, and Statistical Approaches." Dr. Mock's primary research focus is artificial intelligence; other areas of study include psychology, algorithms and complexity. He is interested in the computational aspects of agent-based modeling, artificial life, fractals, Lindenmayer Systems, and models of machine learning and machine intelligence and is currently working on methods of heuristic search for multi-player games, agent-based techniques to manage email, and efficient ways to electronically access an Arctic Ice Atlas.
Don E. Spalinger
Don E. Spalinger, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, received his Ph.D. in Zoology from Washington State University. His Master's degree in Wildlife Biology was conferred by the University of Nevada Reno. His research focuses on the ecology, chemistry, and physiology of plants and herbivores, and he is particularly interested in the nutritional ecology of large herbivores in northern ecosystems, including moose, caribou, and black-tailed deer. Dr. Spalinger's research explores a diversity of topics to understand how habitats and plant communities influence the survival and productivity of these animals. These include studies of nutritional qualities of plants, plant defensive chemistry, plant architecture and its influence on foraging behavior and food intake rate of herbivores, the digestive physiology of herbivores, foraging behavior, and biological simulation modeling.
Charles E. Licka
Charles E. Licka's involvement with the Complex Systems Group at UAA was initially sparked by his dissertation on Joseph Cornell and the need to integrate his increasing interest in the interplay between the sciences and visual arts. Known as Sean, he is a Professor of Art History, and his research into the art of Joseph Cornell began with an exploration of popular scientific as well as scientific concepts and sources and how he and other artists incorporated various scientific ideas to visually express their world from the 19th century through the present-day. As a result, Sean has continued to engage in researching and developing interdisciplinary pedagogical strategies expressive of those interests. Currently, his interests address the manner in which artists have engaged in using complex systems to address ecological issues related to the environment as well as using complex systems as a visual tool. Sean received his Ph.D. at the University of Washington in Seattle and his M.A. and B.A. from the University of Colorado in Boulder.
Mary Odum Logan
Mary Odum Logan received her Ph.D. in Nursing from George Mason University in 1998, where she completed a dissertation on "A Simulation Model of the System of Health Care in the United States." This model simulated workforce dynamics in order to provide a better understanding of the relationships between physician and nursing workforce supply and shortages, and the healthcare industry. She currently works with the Alaska Native Tribal Heath Consortium in Anchorage, Alaska, and formerly served as an Assistant Professor at the University of Alaska Anchorage, where she taught baccalaureate and graduate nursing students. She learned most of what she knows about natural and human ecosystems and modeling from her father and uncle, both of whom are ecologists.
Jim Pantaleone is a Professor of Physics. He received his B.S. in Physics from the University of Illinois in1979, and his Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics from Cornell University in1985. His research interests include oscillations in chemical structures, unsteady fluid forces, oscillations, and the phenomenology of neutrino masses. He is currently working on a National Science Foundation grant concerning the "Formation of Complex Precipitation Structures".
Dr. Martin Cenek - Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering. Research interests include complex systems, cognition, artificial intelligence and artificial life, networks, machine learning, evolutionary computations, and biologically inspired machines and computations. He received his PhD from Portland State University in artificial intelligence and complex systems, working under Dr. Melanie Mitchell on complex problem solving.
The Complex Systems Group