Deena Schmidt

Deena Schmidt is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR). She also serves as the Faculty Director for the TechWise Program, a collaboration with Google and other institutions, and is affiliated with the Integrative Neuroscience Graduate Program. Her research focuses on mathematical biology, applied probability, networks in neuroscience, and evolutionary genetics. She develops stochastic models to study biological systems' dynamics, including complexity reduction in network models, contagion dynamics, sleep-wake regulatory networks, and carcinogenesis.

Education:

• Ph.D. Applied Mathematics, Cornell University (2007)
• M.S. Applied Mathematics, Cornell University (2005)
• B.S. Mathematics, Biology, and Dance, University of Akron (2001)

Research Interests: Her work integrates mathematics with biology to analyze stochasticity, structural complexity, and evolutionary processes. Key areas include:

• Stochastic network models in neuroscience
• Contagion dynamics on adaptive networks
• Mathematical models of sleep-wake cycles
• Population genetics and evolutionary processes

Grants and Advising: She has mentored numerous graduate and undergraduate students, supervising projects on topics ranging from cancer modeling to sleep dynamics. Her advising spans interdisciplinary collaborations, including work on homelessness statistics and psychomotor vigilance tasks.

Labs/Teams: Active in the TechWise Program and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams on projects like modeling amphibian pathogen dynamics and retinal degeneration.