A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was recently completed between the Geography Department and Los Alamos National Laboratory’s (LANL) Decision Applications Division, where graduate student Kriste Henson is a staff member. The MOU will facilitate the exchange of students and faculty and the joint development of programs in agent-based modeling of evacuation transportation, social systems, and the intersection of disaster events with engineered infrastructure systems. According to Professor Kostas Goulias, “LANL represents a worldwide pioneer in innovative research and technology. This agreement opens new opportunities and strengthens our programs [not only] within Geography but also UCSB wide. The transportation faculty and students are eager to expand the already fruitful collaborations with LANL in the areas of basic and applied research, education, and technology transfer.”
The Geography Department previously hosted a meeting between the two groups last summer, and in December Professor Goulias visited Los Alamos, NM to give a seminar on transportation issues and to discuss potential projects. We look forward to having future meetings and personnel exchanges which will allow us to learn more about the addictive nature of green chili (which Kriste can attest to) and which will allow LANL staff to experience palm trees and surf!
(Article contributed by graduate student Kriste Henson. A pdf of the complete text of the MOU can be found here)
