We want MoMath!

In this brief post I just wanted to share my excitement for the opening of the Museum of Mathematics (MoMath) in New York City tomorrow, December 15th.
The first I heard of this was way back in 2009, when I read that Glen Whitney had quit his hedge fund job to start a math museum. There were a few articles, and I don’t remember which ones I read, but a quick google search yields this New Yorker article and another on the New York Daily News. It all started with the Math Midway, which is a traveling math exhibit (and is still touring around the country). The plans to have a fixed museum became clearer last year, and for a while us math nerds have been holding our breaths for the grand opening. I know a few people who are lucky enough to be there this weekend and I am not ashamed to say I am very jealous.

I can’t write much about what’s in the museum, obviously, but reading this New York Times article got me really excited about visiting. It got me even more excited for the kids who will be visiting and getting to enjoy math in a hands-on and fun way, rather than the way in which it is traditionally presented in school (of course, some schools are starting to teach math in a hands-on fun way, but most still don’t).  I myself can’t wait to maybe take a field trip with my students (even though the museum is designed for kids from fourth to eighth grade, I think college students would get a kick out of this). There is also a cool interview with Whitney in an article in Nature you might want to check out.

So how about you, dear readers? Are you excited? Are you going to the opening or will you be going to the museum any time soon?

NOTE: If anyone is attending the Joint Math Meetings in San Diego, you can take a virtual tour of the Museum on Thursday from 6:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. at the Santa Rosa room in the 1st floor of the Marriott.