COURSE ANNOUNCEMENT 
                    MATH 527 Section # 55969
                          SPRING 1996

                     STOCHASTIC MODELING

Instructor:    Lou Gross, Professor of Mathematics and Ecology

Time:          1:25 - 2:15 Monday, Wednesday and Friday

Place:         Ayres Hall 309B

This course will provide an overview of the main areas of probability 
theory which have been useful in applications, with particular 
emphasis on the underlying mathematics associated with these 
applications. Goals are to develop expertise in the utilization of 
probabalistic techniques to analyze problems, to develop probabalistic 
intuition, and to develop a familiarity with the basic types of 
stochastic processes which have been most frequently applied. Topics 
will include: Markov chains, their limit theory, and applications; 
birth and death processes; renewal theory and applications to queuing 
problems; martingales and optimal stopping problems; Brownian motion 
and basic diffusion processes; branching processes; stationary 
processes and applications to time series analysis; and stochastic 
simulation techniques. Applications to a number of fields will be 
discussed, including population biology, genetics, operations research, 
signal processing and filtering, and waiting lines.

The course is oriented towards students with a strong undergraduate 
background in mathematics, including two years of basic calculus, some 
advanced calculus or analysis (i.e. similar to Math 341, 446) and some 
prior exposure to basic probability or statistics. Students unsure 
about the adequacy of their background for this course are urged to 
contact the instructor to discuss the matter (phone 974-4295 or 974-2461 
or e-mail to gross@math.utk.edu).

The text for the course is: 

A First Course in Stochastic Processes, 2nd ed.

by Samuel Karlin and Howard M. Taylor, with supplementary material 
provided by the instructor.