Cloud, Chaos & Contagion Lab

PI

Sungju Moon, PhD
	(CV) Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Nevada State University. My research interests include applications of nonlinear dynamics and chaos theory in the context of atmospheric research and epidemiological modeling. (…more about me)

Student Researchers

Ambar Buendia
	Hi, my name is Ambar Buendia, and I’m majoring in data science (BS) and minoring in mathematics at NSU. I enjoy sketching and working out in my free time. It was only recently that I started to get involved in the world of mathematics and I’ve been enjoying my time in it. I hope to learn as much as I can and I believe I will learn a lot being part of the research group. I am very grateful to be around others who feel the same.

Ambar Buendia

Hi, my name is Ambar Buendia, and I’m majoring in data science (BS) and minoring in mathematics at NSU. I enjoy sketching and working out in my free time. It was only recently that I started to get involved in the world of mathematics and I’ve been enjoying my time in it. I hope to learn as much as I can and I believe I will learn a lot being part of the research group. I am very grateful to be around others who feel the same.

Carlos Chavez
	Carlos is a dual major in Secondary Education and Mathematics at NSU. He enjoys gardening, reading books, and watching movies. Carlos would like to own a homestead where he can live off-grid and study mathematics once he retires. Carlos was accepted in Nevada State’s TRIO-McNair Scholar program in Summer 2025. Carlos’s project consists of modeling algae dynamics that will be later optimized for use in biofuel/biodiesel applications.

Carlos Chavez

Carlos is a dual major in Secondary Education and Mathematics at NSU. He enjoys gardening, reading books, and watching movies. Carlos would like to own a homestead where he can live off-grid and study mathematics once he retires. Carlos was accepted in Nevada State’s TRIO-McNair Scholar program in Summer 2025. Carlos’s project consists of modeling algae dynamics that will be later optimized for use in biofuel/biodiesel applications.

Elise Fernandez
	I’m a senior-standing mathematics student at NSU. My dream is to go into theoretical physics research with a focus on time dilation in black holes. I have explored various majors, including agricultural science, Japanese, and finance—but my passion has always been math! My project work will involve data assimilation using the Lorenz system for atmospheric modeling.

Mary Giles
	Mary is an undergraduate student in mathematics at Nevada State University. Mary has a passion for baking, music, fashion, and of course math! Favorite courses she has taken include Discrete Mathematics, Differential Equations, Number Theory, and History of Mathematics. Mary participated in the INBRE: iSURF-Flex undergraduate research program for Summer 2024. Her project aims to build a new agent-based model for emergence of new diseases or variants and test the model through “note-passing” experiments.

Mary Giles

Mary is an undergraduate student in mathematics at Nevada State University. Mary has a passion for baking, music, fashion, and of course math! Favorite courses she has taken include Discrete Mathematics, Differential Equations, Number Theory, and History of Mathematics. Mary participated in the INBRE: iSURF-Flex undergraduate research program for Summer 2024. Her project aims to build a new agent-based model for emergence of new diseases or variants and test the model through “note-passing” experiments.

Nigel Sherfield
	Nigel is pursuing a degree in Secondary Education with a concentration in Mathematics at Nevada State University. He enjoys teaching himself how to play instruments, staying physically active, and learning new math techniques. Nigel aspires to one day open his own educational institution. Nigel is a TRIO-McNair Scholar at NSU, having his Summer Research Institute proposals accepted for both 2024 and 2025. His current project focuses on developing and applying a dynamical model of learning.

Nigel Sherfield

Nigel is pursuing a degree in Secondary Education with a concentration in Mathematics at Nevada State University. He enjoys teaching himself how to play instruments, staying physically active, and learning new math techniques. Nigel aspires to one day open his own educational institution. Nigel is a TRIO-McNair Scholar at NSU, having his Summer Research Institute proposals accepted for both 2024 and 2025. His current project focuses on developing and applying a dynamical model of learning.

Ryllie Pate
	I am a junior at Nevada State University studying Mathematics. I am not originally from Nevada—I moved here in 2017, and I really love cats. More importantly, I participated in the INBRE: iSURF-Flex undergraduate research program for Summer 2024. My project specifically focused on parameter spaces and using the classification of variant types in order to look closer at the way diseases evolve.

Alumni

Rose Reasons (BS Mathematics ‘25, Summa Cum Laude)

INBRE iSURF-Flex, Summer 2024
Network-based agent-based modeling of an infectious disease