Analytic Combinatorics,  Modular  Forms,   and  Number  Theory  REU
June 22 - July 24, 2026.
The 2026 Palmetto ACMFNT REU is a five-week research experience for undergraduates, held in Columbia, South Carolina (Cola City). Participants will work in small groups exploring topics in analytic combinatorics, modular forms, and number theory. These include problems in arithmetic functions, combinatorial sequences, modular form congruences, and related research areas.
As a participant, you will join the research program of a faculty mentor, working alongside graduate students and engaging in regular discussions with your mentor. The program is designed to provide a collaborative and immersive research experience, fostering close mentorship and meaningful academic interactions.
Each summer, 2-3 plenary speakers will be invited to share insights from their research and their experiences with REU programs. The program also features a weekly professional development seminar series, enrichment activities, and social events with other REU students. Participants may also engage with broader university initiatives related to artificial intelligence.
Participation & Program Details
|   Rezza Hadian   |   Purdue University   |
|   Vanessa Medina   |   St. Mary's University   |
|   Shayna Wilson-Spiro   |   University of Pennsylvania   |
|   Zongshu Wu   |   Princeton University   |
|   Wei-Lun Tsai   |   University of South Carolina   |
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(July 7) |
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Title: Conjectures of Andrews on partition-theoretic $q$-series Abstract: In a famous 1986 paper, Andrews made a number of conjectures on the signs and growth rate of $q$-series arising from partition theory. Andrews made these based on computer experiments. The first of these functions, the famous function $\sigma(q):=\sum_{n\geq0}\frac{q^{\frac{n(n+1)}2}}{(-q;q)_n}$, had remarkable growth and vanishing behavior which was finally proven by Andrews-Dyson-Hickerson by tying this series to the arithmetic of the field $\mathbb{Q}(\sqrt6)$. Cohen further uncovered that the numerical phenomenon was due to the $q$-series being what we would now call, thanks to work of Lewis-Zagier, a period integral of a Maass waveform. This was also an early example of the new theory of Zwegers mock Maass theta functions, and of a quantum modular form. In the same paper, Andrews also made conjectures on remarkable sign behavior of partition theoretic functions, such as $v_1(q):=\sum_{n\geq0}\frac{q^{\frac{n(n+1)}2}}{(-q^2;q^2)_n}$. I will discuss recent work, joint with Folsom, Males, and Storzer, establishing some of these. I will also discuss recent work by Kalita, Kundu, Storzer, and Wang on related conjectures of Andrews and new conjectural infinite families. |
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(July 14) |
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Title: Integer partitions detect the primes Abstract: This talk presents a partition-theoretic approach to the idea of Diophantine equations motivated by the famous resolution of Hilbert’s Tenth Problem by Matiyasevich. We resolve questions of Schneider on detecting important sets of integers using ’Diophantine equations with partition function’. The Diophantine equations we consider involve equations of partition functions considered by MacMahon and their natural generalizations in the emerging theory of q-multiple zeta values. Here we explicitly construct infinitely many Diophantine equations in partition functions whose solutions are the prime numbers. We conclude that prime numbers can be detected from partitions and symmetric polynomials alone. This is joint work with Jan-Willem van Ittersum and Ken Ono. |
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(July 21) |
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Title: Integer partitions and random representations of Lie algebras Abstract: Choose a partition of a large integer uniformly at random. How big do we expect the largest part to be? How many 1’s are there? What does the Young diagram look like? For that matter, how can we generate large partitions efficiently, to collect data and make conjectures? In 1993, Fristedt introduced a statistical mechanics inspired approach to these sorts of questions that has proved widely useful in analytic combinatorics. Adapting Fristedt’s conditioning device to our setting, I will describe how a typical, large-dimensional representation looks for the family of complex Lie algebras, $\mathfrak{sl}_2(\mathbb{C})$. (The case r = 1 corresponds to integer partitions.) In particular, we give asymptotic probability distributions for the multiplicity of small irreducible representations, as well as the largest dimension, the largest height, and the total number of irreducible representations appearing in the decomposition of a representation sampled uniformly from all representations with the same dimension. This is joint work with Kathrin Bringmann and Caner Nazaroglu. |
|   Tapas Bhowmik   |   University of South Carolina   |
  The online application for summer 2026 is available now, and applications are due April 3, 2026, at 11:59 PM EST (after that time, you may not get equal consideration). To apply, please complete the following:
Additional Resources
Please feel free to e-mail us (uscntreu@gmail.com) if you have any questions.
Research Highlights
The following papers, based on research conducted by REU participants, highlight recent advances achieved through our five-week summer program.
Asymptotic moments of the reciprocal sum of distinct parts in $t$-regular partitions
Vanessa Medina and Shayna Wilson-Spiro
Submitted for publication.
Asymptotics and modularity of reciprocal sums for families of partitions
Rezza Hadian and Zongshu Wu
Submitted for publication.
Rademacher-type estimates for moments of reciprocal sums of $t$-distinct partitions
Zongshu Wu
In preparation.
This REU program is made possible through the generous support of the following sponsors. Thank you!
Last updated: 7/24/2026