Erik HÖrmann

Physics of complexity · statistical mechanics · network science · Transportation

I am a student of Applied Mathematics, coming from a physics backgrund, heading towards network science. I believe that rational thinking, mathematical insight and hard work are necessary conditions for having an impact in shaping the future.


Experience

Teaching assistant

Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford

B5.2: Applied PDEs, Michelmas Term 2020, Teaching Assitant

October 2020 - Ongoing

Research student

Max Planck Institute for intelligent systems

I have taken part to a six-months research experience at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Tübingen.

I have been working in the Intelligent Control Systems group on the development of a robust model for multi-agent system controls. The ultimate aim of the project was to create an exensible model that can perform reliably for different values of the perturbances of the system, and even in the case some input parameters differ from thier original values in the training phase.

October 2019 - April 2020

editor & SMM

international association of physics students

The International Association of Physics Students (IAPS) is the largest network of physics students and student associations worldwide.

The journal of IAPS - colloquially called jIAPS - provides science and technology divulagation as well as information on the association to all its members. The work of the editorial team culminates in August, with the publication of the yearly paper issue, which is then distributed at the International Conference of Physics Students.

As part of the editorial team, I participated in the reception, evaluation, and selection of the articles. I was also designated responsible for the social media channels of the journal.

December 2018 - December 2019

Intern student

Italian Institute of Technology

Stemming from the work of my master thesis in Theoretical Physics, the research I am conducting at the Italian Institute of Technology is focused on the simulation of highly complex systems with tools derived from both Statistichal Mechanics and Optics.

The main idea behind this project is to use an optical simulation to reduce the scaling order of  the problem by one, thus allowing a more efficent method and capable of studying systems  which are unapproachable by traditional computer-based simulations. 

March 2017 - July 2020

Research student

Roskilde University

Summer internship on GPU-based simulations.

The project relied on the CUDA-based RUMD framework, entirely developed by the Department of Science and Environment at RUK.

The project included the study of a threshold algorithm for Monte Carlo simulation, the creation of the relative intergating kernel and the performance comparision with respect to both other Monte Carlo algorithms and Molecular Dynamics simulations.

August 2018

Education

University of oxford

DPhil

Applied Mathematics - Network Science

Research project: Optimization problems on networks with statistical mechanics derived algorithms

October 2018 - July 2020

La Sapienza  University, Rome

Master of Science

Applied Mathematics - Major in Algorithm and Combinatorics

Equivalent GPA: 4.00
Final Grade: 110/110 summa cum laude

Thesis title: The capacity of the Hopfield networks: the Hebb rule and beyond

October 2020 - Ongoing

La Sapienza  University, Rome

Master of Science

Applied Mathematics - Major in Algorithm and Combinatorics

Equivalent GPA: 4.00
Final Grade: 110/110 summa cum laude

Thesis title: The capacity of the Hopfield networks: the Hebb rule and beyond

October 2018 - July 2020

La Sapienza  University, Rome

Master of Science

Theoretical Physics - Major in Statistical Mechanics

Equivalent GPA: 4.00
Final Grade: 110/110 summa cum laude

Thesis title: Optical spin glasses: a new model for glassy sytems

October 2016 - October 2018

La Sapienza  University, Rome

Bachelor of Science

Physics

Equvalent GPA: 3.75
Final Grade: 110/110 summa cum laude

Thesis title: Dyadic matrices and Hopfield neural networks

October 2013 - July 2016

Courses & certifications

  • National Research Council [CNR]: course on technological transfer
  • Lamaro-Pozzani University College: Business fundamentals
  • Lamaro-Pozzani University College: Global studies: economics, politics and culture
  • EdX: Intro to Traffic Flow Modeling and Intelligent Transport Systems
  • Cambridge ESOL: Certificate of Proficiency in English [CEFR C2]
  • GRE: VR 161, QR 165, AW 4.0

Skills

Programming languages and it

C, C++, Python, MATLAB®, Wolfram® Mathematica, R, RStudio, TensorFlow, KERAS, LaTeX

UNIX, Linux, bash, Windows, Adobe® CC, MS Office

Scientific
  • Monte Carlo simulations, high herformance computing, multi-spin coding
  • High dimensionality optimization, simulated annealing techniques
  • Data analysis and interpretation, jackknife and bootstrap methods, principal component analysis
  • Numerical analysis, singular values decompostion
  • Machine Learning: SVMs & ANNs based classification methods
  • Lyapunov-based methods, asymptotic analysis of complex systems

Interests

I have always been fascinated by public transports, and trains in particular have been my first and foremost interest. Afterward, I decided to apply for a different area during college, and I have little formal training on the topic. However, such interest is rapidly striking back and I have since decided to use the tools I have acquired from my graduate course in Physics and Mathematics to tackle real-world problems in traffic management and network optimization.

Despite my scientific attitude, I often found myself captivated by the beauty of some artistic productions: photography and classical music above all. I am an amateur photographer myself, and deeply passionate about opera, with the Italian composer Giacomo Puccini being the author of most of my favourite pieces.

I used to swim during my earlier years and I took part in many swimming competitions, up to national level. I have since abandoned regular training, but I am happy to hit the swimming pool whenever I can.

To know more about me, you can check out my blog [currently under renovation]. A little spoiler: Star Wars fan, empire sympathizer, GM Tarkin above all.


Awards & grants

  • Sapienza Università di Roma, Department of Physics: excellence program
  • Lamaro-Pozzani University College: full residential scholarship
  • Ermengildo Zegna Founder's scholarship
  • The US-Italy Fulbright Commission: Fulbright Scholarship a.a. 2020/2021 [declined]
  • Sapienza Università di Roma, Department of Mathematics: grant for graduate students
  • Silver Medal at Italian Mathematical Olympiad