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Dr Richard Pymar

Positions held:
  • Senior Lecturer, School of Computing and Mathematical Sciences
Address

Room 731, Malet Street

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  • Overview

    Overview

    Biography

    I am a Senior Lecturer in the School of Computing and Mathematical Sciences at Birkbeck, University of London. My research is in probability theory, focusing on how systems with many interacting random components behave over time and are influenced by their environment. Key topics include mixing times, interacting particle systems (like exclusion and voter models), and the Parabolic Anderson Model.

    I completed my PhD and Master's degrees at the University of Cambridge, where I was based from 2004 to 2011. Afterwards, I held postdoctoral Research Associate positions, first at LAREMA (Université d'Angers, France) and then at University College London from 2013 to 2016. I joined Birkbeck in 2017.

    Qualifications

    • PhD, University of Cambridge
    • MMath, University of Cambridge
    • MA, University of Cambridge

    Administrative responsibilities

    • Undergraduate Education Lead (Mathematics & Statistics)
  • Research

    Research

    Research interests

    • Probability Theory

    Research overview

    My research interests lie within probability theory and stochastic processes, with a primary focus on systems involving interaction between randomly evolving particles. My work centers on several key areas:

    • Interacting particle systems: I'm interested in analysing the dynamics and long-time properties of models such as exclusion processes, voter models, and splitting processes defined on finite graphs. 
    • Mixing times of markov chains: A significant portion of my research involves quantifying the rate of convergence of stochastic processes to equilibrium as a function of the size and geometry of the state space.
    • Stochastic processes in random media: I investigate models where processes evolve in a random environment, notably the Parabolic Anderson Model (PAM) and related systems like the Bouchaud-Anderson model with the goal of understanding phenomena such as localisation versus delocalisation driven by the random potential.

    An interactive visualisation related to the chameleon process, a tool sometimes employed in this research, is available at: https://richardpymar.github.io/


  • Supervision and teaching

    Supervision and teaching

    Supervision

    Supervisions within Birkbeck:
    1

    I welcome enquiries from prospective PhD students who are interested in undertaking research in any of my areas of research interest.

    Teaching

    I teach on the MSc in Applied Statistics (modules Probability and Stochastic Modelling, Statistical Analysis) and the BSc in Mathematics (module Data Skills).

  • Publications

    Publications

    Article

    External Repositories