Nora Youngs

Applied mathematician Nora Youngs works at the intersection of mathematics and neuroscience. She has helped create an entirely new subfield of mathematical biology by developing mathematical insight into how the brain encodes information that animals use to determine their location. Through her contributions to this area of research, she has established herself as one of the field’s leading experts. She has published numerous articles in top-tier journals and has several more in the pre-print stage.

As the Clare Boothe Luce Assistant Professor of Mathematics, she has organized the annual Runnals Dinner for Women in Mathematics, advised the Women in Math and CS student club since its inception, and served on the Davis Institute for Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee. She also does considerable service beyond Colby, as she participates in summer camps for mathematics, adjudicates contests, referees other scholars’ work, and organizes conference sessions.

Youngs joined Colby in 2016 following the completion of her M.S. and Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of Nebraska. She also earned a B.A. in mathematics from Smith College.