Tracks

Each track offers a structure for engaging with computation in a different context, from uncovering the principles of fundamental science to applying computational thinking to real-world domains, or reimagining how people learn and create with technology. Tracks don’t limit the kinds of projects that students can pursue; rather, they provide a framework for your project and support your work as you explore new directions. Whatever direction you take, you’ll be part of pushing the frontier of what computation makes possible.

All tracks assume a working knowledge of Wolfram Language. Pre-program training provides students with extra preparation where needed.

Foundational Science

Learn to use the computational paradigm to explore foundational questions across science.

Contribute to the Wolfram Physics Project, its core structure, its connections to mathematical physics and its experimental implications. Or work on new approaches to the foundations of mathematics, biology, machine learning and other areas.

The Foundational Science track is best for participants drawn to the big questions in physics, mathematics or other sciences who want to build or test ideas at the most fundamental level. As students in this track complete demanding projects that often require advanced programming skills, applicants should be familiar with the Wolfram Physics Project and comfortable programming in Wolfram Language. Additionally, they are expected to be available for virtual meetings during Week Zero where they will begin defining their projects before the program officially begins.

Ruliology & Pure Computation

Study the computational universe of simple programs and their rich behavior.

From cellular automata to Turing machines, substitution systems, combinators, hypergraph rewriting and more, simple rules can produce immensely complex behavior. Learn to use computer experiments and ruliological methods to explore the phenomenology and structure of pure computational systems, with potentially broad practical applications and theoretical implications.

This track is ideal for those curious about how simple rules generate complexity, and who enjoy hands-on computer experiments and abstract exploration. Applicants to the Ruliology & Pure Computation track should be familiar with A New Kind of Science. If needed, Week Zero provides an opportunity to strengthen programming skills and prepare for intensive projects exploring simple rules, computational universes and complex behaviors.

Applications of Computation

Use the computational paradigm to move forward your chosen area.

Learn how to apply unified computational thinking with Wolfram Language to science, technology and other applications. For any area X, computational X is destined to be its future. Learn the methods that will allow you to be a leader in your chosen computational X.

The Applications of Computation track is well-suited for participants who already have an area of focus and want to push it forward using computation as a unifying framework. Students in this track should be ready to apply computational thinking to real-world problems. Week Zero will be used to sharpen programming skills and explore project ideas, ensuring that students are prepared to dive into projects that move computation into new fields or applications.

Educational Innovation

Bring foundational thinking into the classroom.

Learn Wolfram’s approach to foundational thinking and its deployment in computational language, and develop your own way to bring these ideas into the classroom. Create educational material, build curricula or develop computationally powered educational technology.

This track is a good fit for participants interested in bringing computational thinking into classrooms or learning environments through student-centered projects or tools. Applicants to the Educational Innovation track should be prepared to consider educational practices through the lens of computational thinking. This track emphasizes discussion, collaboration and hands-on exploration over formal lectures, although students will have the chance to develop their Wolfram Language skills throughout the program in order to create educational materials, curricula or technology that help others learn computational thinking.

Philosophy & Strategy

Apply foundational thinking to an abstract or concrete problem.

Whether you are an academic philosopher, a historian of science or an entrepreneur developing a strategy for a startup, computational thinking is a powerful way to explore the nature of reality. Develop these thinking skills, leveraging the power of Wolfram Language to inform your insights.

The Philosophy & Strategy track is for participants excited to apply abstract, foundational approaches to practical questions in philosophy, business or other domains. This track is especially for philosophers who want to advance the field of metaphysics, building on foundations such as those laid by Leibniz, Kant, Heidegger and Husserl. While this track includes fewer formal lectures, students should be ready to engage rigorously with abstract ideas and complex reasoning through discussion, collaboration and exploration of deep ideas.

Projects

The central focus of the Wolfram Summer Research Institute is your individual research project. Most participants select or adapt a project from a curated list of ideas, each designed to be achievable within the three-week program while offering meaningful contributions to computation, science or applied research. You may also propose your own project idea, but these are evaluated carefully: self-proposed projects are often too ambitious for the program timeframe or rely on messy datasets that cannot be cleaned and processed into a usable form in just three weeks.

Project selection is a collaborative process. You will discuss your interests with the program directors and Stephen Wolfram, and together you will define a project that balances your curiosity and skills with the program’s goals and feasibility. The most successful projects reflect both your own creative vision and Stephen Wolfram’s guidance, often resulting in work that is novel, publishable and technically rigorous.

To see examples of previous projects and the kinds of work participants have done, visit the Project Gallery.

Program Schedule

Daily schedules in the Wolfram Summer Research Institute balance structured activities to develop content knowledge and Wolfram Language skills with unscheduled time for project work and networking and social events with other program participants.

Preparing for the Program

• 
  An Elementary Introduction to the Wolfram Language
• 
  A New Kind of Science
• 
  Hands-On Start to Mathematica
• 
  Wolfram Science Metamathematics
• 
  Wolfram U
• 
  Fast Introduction for Programmers
• 
  Things to Try
• 
  Wolfram Language Code Gallery
• 
  Wolfram Community
• 
  Wolfram Resource Library
• 
  Wolfram Video Gallery
• 
  Wolfram Programming Lab