Marni Mishna
About Me 
I am a professor in mathematics at Simon Fraser University, located in
Burnaby Canada, on the unceded traditional territories of the Coast
Salish peoples, including the səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), kʷikʷəƛ̓əm
(Kwikwetlem), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm
(Musqueam) Nations.
My main research interests lie in analytic and enumerative combinatorics. I strive to find algorithmic, and systematic solutions to problems that arise in combinatorics. One of my main projects is to find ways to characterize and classify combinatorial classes with transcendental generating functions. This has led to a detailed study of coefficient asymptotics and also of lattice paths in a variety of contexts. My recent focus has been on iterative functional equations that appear in the study of discrete systems, such as walks on fractals.
I am also interested in the role of art and design in mathematical communication.
Current Affiliations
- Associate Dean, Equity Diversity Inclusion, Simon Fraser University Faculty of Science
- Full Professor, Simon Fraser University Mathematics Department
- KRATER: A collaborative research group between the MATHEXP Team at Inria Saclay and Simon Fraser University.
News
The KRATER Associate Team has been officially formed! This is an SFU/Inria collaboraion at the interface of computer algebra and combinatorics, with a goal of mutually developing strengths, ultimately creating new tools for combinatorics and inspiring algorithmic problems for computer algebra. My Inria co-lead is Dr. Frederic Chyzak.
Congratulations to Juan Pulido and his paper accepted to Lattice Path Conference! LPC 2026
Hirotoshi Yuzawa defended his MSc thesis The Mathematics of Arrangement Puzzle Design. Way to go Hiro!
Congratulations to Dr. Seda Albayrak for being invited as a speaker to DART 2026!
Recent Publications
- The problem with Canada’s plan to buy scientific prestige, with Amanda Bates. Career Column, Nature, published March 13, 2026
- Differential transcendence and walks on self-similar graphs with Yakob Kahane. We extended the example of Sierpinsnki graphs from the paper below with Lucia and Gwladys to a large class of self-similar graphs. This gives strong evidence that the only self-similar graph with a Green function that is not differentially transcendental is an inifinite star centered at a single vertex. Accepted for publication in Canadian Mathematical Bulletin Arxiv link
- Differential equations satisfied by generating functions of 5-, 6-, and 7-regular labelled graphs: a reduction-based approach, with Frederic Chyzak. After 20 years of trying we finally found the linear differential equations satisfied by the generating function for 5-, 6-, and 7- regular graphs. Accepted for publication in Combinatorial Theory Arxiv link
- Inhomogeneous order 1 iterative functional equations
with applications to combinatorics with Lucia Di Vizio and Gwladys
Fernandes. We give a simple criterion for a generating function to be
differentially transcendental, and apply it to complete trees, walks
on self-similar graphs and a series related to the egf of permutations
avoiding the consecutive pattern 1423. Arxiv link
Upcoming/Recent Talks
- 10th International Conference on Lattice Path Combinatorics and Applications 2026 (LPC 2026), Vienna, Austria link (Plenary Speaker)
- FPSAC 2025, Sapporo, Japan July 21-25, 2025
- Workshop on Model Theory, Algebraic Dynamics, and Differential-Algebraic Geometry Fields Institute June 16 - 20, 2025
- CIRM Thematic Month on Singularities, differential equations, transcendence
Mini Biography
| 1993 - 1997 | BMath Waterloo (CO-OP; Honours joint Pure Math and Computer Science) |
| 1998 | TRLabs, Edmonton |
| 1998 - 2000 | MSc Simon Fraser University (Pure Math) |
| 2000 | Projet ALGO, INRIA, France | 2000 - 2003 | PhD Universite du Quebec a Montreal (Math fondamentales) | 2003 - 2005 | NSERC Post Doctoral Fellowship: Bordeaux (LaBRI) / Fields Institute Toronto | 2005 - 2012 | SFU Assistant Professor (NSERC University Faculty Award) | January 2008 | CNRS Poste Rouge Orsay (France) | 2012 - 2018 | SFU Associate Professor | 2018 - present | SFU Professor | Fall 2018 | CNRS Invited Professor Tours (France) |
| 2018 - 2020 | Visiting Professor, LaBRI, University of Bordeaux (France) | 2019-2021 | Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences (PIMS) Deputy Director | 2023-2026 | Associate Dean Equity Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), Faculty of Science, SFU |