AEM Seminar: Friday, March 27th - Dr Teresa Portone, Sandia National Laboratories

[Molly Schmitz]

University of Minnesota

Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics
Spring 2026 Seminar Series

Friday, March 27, 2026

209 Akerman Hall

2:30pm-4:30pm

AEM Seminar: 

Beyond parametric uncertainty: methods for model-form uncertainty quantification

Abstract: 

Uncertainty quantification (UQ) is critical for informing decisions because it provides a measure of confidence in model predictions, given the uncertainties present in the model. While approaches to characterize uncertainties in model parameters are well established, it is less clear how to address uncertainties arising when the equations of a mathematical model are themselves uncertain—that is, when there is model-form uncertainty (MFU). MFU often arises in models of complex physical phenomena where (1) simplifications for computational tractability or (2) lack of knowledge leads to unknowns for which appropriate mathematical forms are undefined or may not exist. Left uncharacterized, MFU can lead to errors in the governing equations (model-form error) and inconsistencies between model outputs and experimental data (model discrepancy). In this talk, I introduce several approaches that have been developed to address MFU. I then present recent work developing a hybrid physics-data MFU representation of a reduced gas-surface chemistry model for hypersonic ablation. SNL is managed and operated by NTESS under DOE NNSA contract DE-NA0003525. 

Bio: 

Teresa Portone is Principal Member of the Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, NM. She holds a Ph.D. in Computational Science, Engineering, and Mathematics from the Oden Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin and a B.S. in Mathematics from the University of Alabama. She joined Sandia as a staff member in 2020. Her research focuses on developing and deploying methods to quantify uncertainty in computational models used for national security applications, with a particular focus on methods to quantify model-form uncertainty and model prediction reliability.

*Refreshments to follow in 209 Akerman Hall   

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For more information regarding current or future seminars and speakers, or other AEM events, please visit https://cse.umn.edu/aem/aem-events-0  

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Molly Schmitz (She/Her/Hers)

Principal Accountant, Purchasing & Payroll Specialist

Department of Aerospace Engineering & Mechanics, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

[Molly Schmitz]

University of Minnesota

Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics
Spring 2026 Seminar Series

NO SEMINAR, April, April 10th, 2026

There is no seminar this week - Good luck to everyone taking the WPE!

 

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For more information regarding current or future seminars and speakers, or other AEM events, please visit https://cse.umn.edu/aem/aem-events-0  

If you would like to be removed from the AEM Seminar mailing list, please send an e-mail to aem-dep...@umn.edu

Thanks, 

Molly Schmitz (She/Her/Hers)

Principal Accountant, Purchasing & Payroll Specialist

Department of Aerospace Engineering & Mechanics, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

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Purchase requests should be made in ePurch or UMarket 

All purchasing questions should be sent to aem-...@umn.edu

[Molly Schmitz]

Hi all, 

There will be no AEM 8000 this Friday (April 3rd) due to the WPE. 

We will host Midwest Mechanics Speaker, Prof Daniel Chung, for Seminar on April 10th. 

Apologies for the confusion!

Thanks, 

Molly Schmitz (She/Her/Hers)

Principal Accountant, Purchasing & Payroll Specialist

Department of Aerospace Engineering & Mechanics, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities