Category Archives: people in math

Alan Turing on Stage and Screen

It was a big week for Alan Turing dramatizations. On Monday, the UK and US trailers for the Turing biopic The Imitation Game, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, were released, and on Wednesday, the 102nd anniversary of Turing’s birth, the Pet Shop … Continue reading

Posted in Mathematics and the Arts, people in math | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Mathematician Presents Flawed Proof – in a work of fiction

Following Evelyn’s last post about the new Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics, I will now discuss the opposite of wild mathematical success. Depending on how excited you are about public speaking, the moments before giving a talk at a math conference may be … Continue reading

Posted in History of Mathematics, Mathematics and the Arts, people in math, Publishing in Math, Recreational Mathematics, Theoretical Mathematics | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Inaugural Breakthrough Prizes in Mathematics

Last month, the inaugural Breakthrough Prizes in mathematics, founded and partially funded by internet billionaires Yuri Milner and Mark Zuckerberg, were awarded to five people: Simon Donaldson, Maxim Kontsevich, Jacob Lurie, Terence Tao, and Richard Taylor. The prize is $3 … Continue reading

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Summer Reading List

My Summer Reading List   Having an industry job, I will not have any real change in my routine as summer hits. But I still think of summer as the season of reading for pleasure. So what are some new … Continue reading

Posted in Applied Math, Mathematics and the Arts, people in math, Recreational Mathematics, Theoretical Mathematics | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Narrowing The Gender Gap

This 3-minute clip of Astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson is the kind of thing that might provide just the right bit of encouragement to someone struggling to express their passion for STEM. Neil DeGrasse Tyson Said What He Thinks About Race … Continue reading

Posted in Issues in Higher Education, people in math, women in math | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Mathemagical Thinking

So maybe you’ve seen the Flash Mind Reader.  If not, go ahead and try it!  I wouldn’t dream of depriving you (especially as this is year’s MAM theme is mathematics, magic, and mystery awareness).  What you are asked to do … Continue reading

Posted in Mathematics and Computing, Mathematics and the Arts, people in math, Recreational Mathematics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Awesome K-12 Math Teachers Exist! And they have blogs.

I sometimes get tired of hearing about how “teachers (meaning K-12 teachers) just don’t understand this or that, or won’t try doing something new,” or are deficient in some way or another.  We often advise teachers to let go of … Continue reading

Posted in K-12 Mathematics, Math Education, people in math, Theoretical Mathematics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

My Top Ten Issues in Mathematics Education

What are your “top ten”?  Sue VanHattum, a full time faculty member at Contra Costa College inspired me with her wonderful top ten list . Below are my top ten Issues in Mathematics Education.  While this is my opinion, I do … Continue reading

Posted in Issues in Higher Education, K-12 Mathematics, Math Education, people in math, women in math | 9 Comments

Why Should We Fund Math Research?

As my co-blogger Brie Finegold mentioned last month, Cathy O’Neil of mathbabe.org has been writing about how MOOCs might change the face of math departments and, ultimately, how math research gets funded. O’Neil is concerned that without calculus classes to … Continue reading

Posted in Applied Math, Issues in Higher Education, people in math, Theoretical Mathematics | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Job Security Calculus: Reasoning about our futures

Most academics have a love/hate relationship to teaching, and especially teaching Calculus.  Prior to the first exam of the semester, it seems that everyone in the class is there for learning’s sake, discussing ideas, engaging in problem-solving.  But we worry … Continue reading

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