Fefferman Lab
424 Hesler Biology Building
University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996
Email: jmcalis6@vols.utk.edu

Degrees Held
M.S. in Mathematics, University of Tennessee
B.S. in Zoology, Ohio State University
B.S. in Mathematics, Ohio State University

John McAlister

Graduate Student CV

John McAlister, a mathematics graduate student at the University of Tennessee - Knoxville, brings a diverse academic background to his research in the Fefferman lab. After graduating from The Ohio State University with dual bachelor’s degrees in mathematics and zoology, John joined the lab in 2022 and studied game theoretic models with explicit spatial or relational structure for several years. As he nears the end of this degree program, John hopes to continue his research by using PDEs and non-local equations to investigate continuous extensions of game theoretic models inspired by a broad range of applications.

In discrete domains, John's work involves classifying equilibria of coordination games on small graphs, analyzing the behavior of strategy profiles under best-response replication dynamics, and describing equilibria on arbitrarily large graphs. In continuous domains, John uses PDEs and non-local equations to describe the regularity of coordination processes in time and to classify the limiting behavior of these systems. His work sheds light on the relationship between spatial structure and emergent cooperative behavior, offering valuable insights into coordination behavior within complex systems.

In addition to his work on structured coordination, John and his collaborators have worked on projects about pandemic ecology, game theoretic models of collective behavior, and graph theory. You can find a full list of these projects linked here.

Beyond academia, John enjoys a variety of hobbies, including rock climbing, running, powerlifting, and quilting. With his interdisciplinary approach and enthusiasm for exploration, John McAlister is a perfect fit for the research mission of the Fefferman Lab.