Mathematica Trainer and Consultant: Ed Boss
Address
Sigma Solutions
PMB 412
6965 El Camino Real #105
Carlsbad, CA 92009
web: http://www.sigmasolns.com
email: edb@sigmasolns.com
phone: 760-445-2675
Background
Edward Boss, president of Sigma Solutions,
is a Mathematica trainer, consultant, advisor, and implementer. He has helped students
tap the power and potential of Mathematica, imparting a mastery of the software and
empowering them to increase their research and development productivity. This productivity
has resulted in:
- Reduced expenditure of time and money for their employers
- Reduced "time to market" for both in-house tools and user products
- The ability to understand and use the code left by previous employees
- The capacity to solve more difficult and sophisticated problems than could have been
managed previously
Mr. Boss has used Mathematica since 1992 when he started
applying its computational features to research in wave motion at the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's
Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory. Seeing the power and efficiency of Mathematica
compared to the legacy Fortran libraries currently in use, Mr. Boss started his own business,
Sigma Solutions, to bring the power of Mathematica to scientists and engineers worldwide.
He has had requests from as far away as the United Kingdom, Australia, and Brazil.
As part of Sigma Solutions' umbrella of services, Mr. Boss also provides advice and actual
coding for clients involved in high-technology research and development. He has applied his
software development expertise to diverse applications in the transportation, satellite
communications, and optical communications industries as well as in the oceanographic
research community. Sigma Solutions addresses clients' needs for:
- Simple, elegant solutions
- Readable, maintainable, extensible, and efficient code
- Timely delivery
Consulting Information
Mr. Boss has been a Mathematica user since 1992 and has been a Mathematica
consultant since 1997.
- Expertise
- Data acquisition and data modeling
- Applied physics
- Major Clients
- Battelle Memorial Laboratories
- Westinghouse Electric Company
- Motorola, Inc.
- Hewlett-Packard Company
- Honeywell International Inc.
- Lockheed Martin Corporation
- Schering-Plough Corporation
- The Boeing Company
- Education
- B.A. in Physics, University of California, Davis, 1974
- M.S. in Applied Mechanics and Engineering Science, University of California, San Diego, 1989
- Computer Language Experience in Addition to Mathematica
- C, C++
- Motorola Assembly--68332, 68338, 68HC05
- Platform Experience
- Languages Spoken
- Geographic Area of Operation
Consulting Case Studies
Consulting Case Study 1
Client
The client was a Fortune 500 company pursuing photonics research.
Situation
The client needed to solve quantum physics equations governing
the interaction of photons with electrons in a potential energy well. Solution of these
equations would dictate the structure of semiconductor devices to be fabricated for
use in optical communications. The client had a body of existing Mathematica code
that had been left behind by a previous employee and needed to make corrections
to the code and extend it to apply to a wider range of cases.
Solution
Sigma Solutions provided training for the chief scientist
and also follow-on support by identifying errors in the existing code,
restructuring the code to run more efficiently in finite memory space, and recommending
stylistic changes to increase the readability and reliability of the code.
Results
The client has successfully run code that was not previously working and has been able to
extend the applicability of the code to a wider range of semiconductor designs/geometries.
Consulting Case Study 2
Client
The client was a government laboratory pursuing oceanographic research.
Situation
The client needed to quantify the effects of calibration errors as they propagated
to measurements made in the field. Scientific publication requires the estimation of errors
in measurements on which conclusions are drawn. The client also needed someone to research
statistical techniques for calculating error propagation and to apply these techniques to a
pressure transducer used for measuring waves in the deep ocean.
Solution
Under contract to the client, Mr. Boss researched the statistical literature and developed a
Mathematica-based model to show how errors in calibration were propagated through a
nonlinear conformance equation to measurements made in the field. This work was
published in a peer-reviewed journal article.
Results
Client has found rigorous proof that the measurements it is taking are well within allowable
margins of error. In fact, the uncertainty due to calibration error is an order of magnitude
smaller than the resolution of the instrument.
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