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A granular material is the ultimate paradigm of a complex system in which simple units (i.e. two contacting particles) behave - collectively - in complicated ways (e.g. segregation and other pattern formation).There are unifying rheological features of complex materials: (a) structural evolution on a number of different spatial and temporal scales, (b) complex rheological properties which are not easily characterised as a solid, liquid or gas and which are governed by intermediate scale structure (between macro or continuum scale and the atomic scale), (c) long-range pattern formation, and (d) the build-up and relaxation of stress via structural reorganization, to name a few. Our research group has focused on developing mathematical techniques for the analysis of these multiscale phenomena in granular systems by weaving together both classical and contemporary techniques in Mechanics: Micromechanics, Thermomechanics, Statistical Mechanics, Elasticity, Plasticity and Contact Mechanics. Concurrent with these fundamental research studies, we have ongoing collaborations with the US Army Corps of Engineers and its associated research laboratories in the areas of geotechnical, pavements and vehicle-terrain interaction engineering (http://www.erdc.usace.army.mil/). These collaborations have given us access to resources and expertise that have enabled the calibration, validation and real-world application of our constitutive models. The applied component of our research program has ensured our position at the forefront of developments not just in Particulate Science but also its allied fields. An important example has been the implementation of our constitutive models by the US Army to virtual reality simulations of soil-structure/machine/vehicle interaction or contact systems. Therefore, our goal is to strengthen these existing international links and forge new partnerships with individuals and groups (from government, academia and industry, both here and abroad) with similar and/or complementary research problems on complex materials.