USAMO Winners Feted Common Core Matters New Writing Award from the Editor

MAA FOCUS nEWSMAGAZINE of the mathematical association of america, Vol. 35, No. 5, October/november 2015

USAMO Winners Feted Common Core Matters New Writing Award From the Editor

his issue comes on the heels of the centennial MAA FOCUS is published by the celebration at MAA MathFest in Washington, Mathematical Association of America in T February/March, April/May, June/July, D.C. I found myself coming back from that August/September, October/November, and meeting feeling as if I had just been to an amazing, December/January. long, and exciting birthday party—which, of Advertising inquiries: [email protected] course, I had! Much cake was eaten, and a great MAA FOCUS Staff time was had by all! This issue of MAA FOCUS Director of Publications: Jim Angelo continues that celebration with our coverage of Editor: Jacqueline Jensen-Vallin, those events and of upcoming events at the 2016 Joint Mathematics [email protected] Meetings in Seattle, Washington. Managing Editor & Art Director: Lois M. Baron, Any significant anniversary provides a chance not only for merriment, [email protected] but also for reflection. The centennial celebration allows us to contem- Staff Writer: Alexandra Branscombe plate our history as mathematicians, as an organization, and as indi- MAA Officers viduals. It is also important to look into the next century and evolve. On President: Francis Edward Su this anniversary, the team at MAA FOCUS has been considering what Past President: Robert L. Devaney we have done well and looking for changes we can make as we move into First Vice President: Jenna Carpenter Second Vice President: Karen Saxe the next century of the MAA. Secretary: Barbara T. Faires As changes are made, MAA FOCUS will keep many favorite columns, Treasurer: Jim Daniel including the “President’s Message,” “Dear MAA,” “Puzzle Page,” and Chair, Council on Publications and Communica- “MAA Books Beat.” We will also continue running features of interest to tions: Jennifer J. Quinn our readers—look for more articles in our series on the Common Core Executive Director State Standards for Mathematics (the second of which appears in this Michael Pearson issue); a series of reports from CRAFTY about teaching across the first MAA FOCUS Editorial Board two years; and a series on the state of calculus in the United States. Donald J. Albers, Janet L. Beery, David M. We hope you enjoy the coverage of MAA MathFest in this issue, and Bressoud, Susan J. Colley, Brie Finegold, Joseph note that there is more content online and many more photos to see A. Gallian, Jacqueline B. Giles, Fernando Q. (look for Mathematical Association of America on flickr.com). We will Gouvêa, Colm Mulcahy, Adriana J. Salerno, Amy continue this trend, increasing our social media presence (follow Shell-Gellasch, Francis E. Su, Laura Taalman, @maanow on Twitter, maa_photo on Instagram, and the Mathematical Gerard A. Venema Association of America on Facebook) to give you more up-to-date infor- Letters to the editor should be addressed to Jac- mation than this bimonthly publication can provide. Also, look online queline Jensen-Vallin, Mathematical Association under your member profile for extended versions of articles appearing in of America, 1529 18th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036, or by email to [email protected]. this publication—in particular, the interview with Loren Larson is much longer than what we could include in our pages. Subscription and membership questions should be directed to the MAA Customer Service As the team at MAA FOCUS looks forward to the next century, we Center, 800-331-1622; email: will be introducing several columns and features. For example, we’ll be [email protected]; 301-617-7800 (outside turning the spotlight on SIGMAAs; offering suggestions and ideas for U.S. and Canada); fax: 301-206-9789. MAA teaching, technology, and recruitment in “Professional Toolkit”; and Headquarters: 202-387-5200. providing MAA member profiles. Copyright © 2015 by the Mathematical Associa- It is a great time to be part of the MAA, and I am thrilled that as editor tion of America (Incorporated). of MAA FOCUS, I get to be part of that transition to the next century! Educational institutions may reproduce articles As always, the team at MAA FOCUS wants to hear from members. We for their own use, but not for sale, provided welcome questions for “Dear MAA,” as well as articles about what is the following citation is used: “Reprinted with happening in your department, your MAA section, and your research permission of MAA FOCUS, the newsmagazine area, and your classroom. Please submit these to [email protected]. of the Mathematical Association of America.” Our strength comes from the interests and diversity of our membership, Periodicals postage paid at Washington, D.C., and I am delighted to have so many MAA members on board for this and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send journey! I look forward to hearing from you. address changes to MAA FOCUS, Mathematical Association of America, P.O. Box 90973, Wash- ington, DC 20090-0973. ISSN: 0731-2040 (print). ISSN 2161-704X (online). Printed in the United States of America. MAA FOCUS nEWSMAGAZINE of the mathematical association of america • Vol. 35, No. 5 • October/November 2015

Spectacular Centennial Draws Record Crowd . . . 5 Centennial Lectures: Echoes . . . 9 Speakers Explore Mathematical Identity and Equity . . . 13 A Math Dash: Student Activities . . . 15 A Round of Applause for Mathematical Theater . . . 16 Report of the MAA Secretary . . . 17 MAA Awards and Prizes Given . . . 19 Core Info about the Common Core in Mathematics . . . 22 Katharine Merow

A Centennial Gift: Annual Appeal . . . 29 Francis Edward Su

Interview: Loren Larson . . . 38 Deanna Haunsperger and Stephen Kennedy 5

Joint Mathematics Meetings 2016 . . . 42 Seattle, Washington, January 6–9 PDF of MAA program: maa.org/maa-focus-supplements Complete program online: jointmathematicsmeetings.org/jmm

About the Cover Departments News

2 From the Editor 25 Empowering with IBL 18 Fall Section Meetings 27 The Wrong Door, or Why Math Gets 26 Dear MAA | a Bad Rap Prepping for the Putnam Exam 28 For Inclusion: “In Memoriam” 35 Puzzle Page 30 USA Takes First in International August/September Solutions Mathematical Olympiad 36 President’s Message | 33 How Geometry Has Influenced JMM will take place in Francis Edward Su Everything Seattle, Washington. Mathematical Microaggressions Photo courtesy of Tim Thompson/ 41 Ken Ono Named Pólya Lecturer VisitSeattle.org.

MAA MATHFEST 2015 5

Spectacular Centennial Draws Record Crowd

n August 6, more than 2,500 mathematicians in the Project NExT workshop for the 80 new Red ’15 or Ogathered in Washington, D.C., at MAA MathFest last year’s Gold ’14 fellows, most people started with the 2015, where we celebrated 100 years of advancing math- first Centennial Lecture, given by Erik Demaine (MIT), ematics. This was the largest MAA MathFest ever, and “Replicators, Transformers, and Robot Swarms: Science the attendees were greeted by a festive feeling that lasted Fiction through Geometric Algorithms.” See page 9 for throughout the conference. If you need evidence of this, coverage of his lecture and the five others: http://bit.ly/1gZFcoN check the photos at and notice the • Jennifer Chayes (Microsoft Research): “Network Sci- number of people smiling! ence: From the Online World to Cancer Genomics” In addition to participating in MAA’s centennial, mathematicians took advantage of all that D.C. has • Ingrid Daubechies (Duke University): “Mathematics to offer, including trips to the Smithsonian Institute, for Art Investigation” the Washington Monument, the Lincoln and Jefferson • Carlos Castillo-Chavez (Arizona State University): Memorials, Arlington National Cemetery, and Mount “The Role and Function of Mathematical Models Vernon. Most common, however, seem to have been in Interdisciplinary Mentorship through Research: visits to the zoo, just up Connecticut Avenue from the Lessons from the World of Epidemics” Marriott Wardman Park and the Omni Shoreham, • Karen Parshall (University of Virginia): “ ‘We Are our meeting headquarters. MAA sponsored a Math Evidently on the Verge of Important Steps For- Walk (photos at http://bit.ly/1IC3ZZz) and a tour of the ward’: The American Mathematical Community, association’s headquarters. The Association for Women 1915–1950” in Mathematics, meeting in conjunction with MAA MathFest, also sent representatives to the U.S. Capitol to • Manjul Bhargava (Princeton University): “Recent discuss the representation of women in STEM fields. Results toward the Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer Although some people began their experience on Conjecture” Monday or Tuesday with the Executive Committee or These lectures complemented the always-amazing MAA Board of Governor’s meetings, or by participating slate of invited addresses at MAA MathFest: the

Many of the MAA members gathered for the group photo during the summer meeting.

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Hedrick Lectures, given this year by Karen Smith; the celebration—Cirque de Mathematique on Wednesday Chan-Stanek Lecture for Students by Joe Gallian; the evening, Mathematicians by Day, Musicians by Night AMS-MAA Joint invited address by Jeff Lagarias; the on Thursday, and Albert’s Bridge on Friday. MAA also AWM-MAA Falconer Lecture from Erica Walker; the served up cake for the formation of MAA Press, which NAM Blackwell Lecture by Terrence Blackman; and the unites the magazines, journals, and books published by MAA Leitzel Lecture given by David Bressoud. More on the association. many of these events can be found in this issue. People got a chance to look back, with two sessions of Students were also lauded at this MAA MathFest. In “Presidential Reminiscences” and the AWM-sponsored addition to the MAA and PME student talk sessions, “Contributions of Women to Mathematics: 100 Years and the MAA undergraduate student activity led by Art and Counting” (among others), and look forward in Benjamin in a packed ballroom, the MAA sponsored an the Project NExT Lecture “Reducing Stereotype Threat ice cream social (during which awards went to the best in the Mathematics Classroom.” There were 10 sessions undergraduate student talks), and the MAA sponsored about the history and philosophy of mathematics, and a a new event: the Radical Dash—an Instagram scavenger panel on “Finding Your New Niche: Staying Fresh.” Our hunt for student teams! annual event concluded with the traditional banquet, at MAA kicked off the celebration with the Centennial which 25-year and 50-year members were honored. Reception (with cake and a rousing rendition of “Happy This MAA MathFest gave us a chance to honor where Birthday to Us!” led by President Francis Su) and we’ve been, personally and professionally, individually, Mathematical Carnival, featuring Colm Mulcahy’s math- and as an organization; and provided us with enthu- ematical card tricks, Jason Rosenhouse’s Monty Hall siasm, excitement, and knowledge to keep going. We Interactive Game, Susan Goldstine’s Flexigons, Dominic hope you’ll join us for the Centennial+1 celebration next Klyve’s juggling and math, and Karl Schaffer’s string summer in Columbus, Ohio, back where it all began. polyhedral. Artistic events each evening continued the —Jacqueline Jensen-Vallin

Left: About 320 people presented talks in the contributed paper sessions. Top right: Discussing the movie about Ramanujan were Manjul Bhargava, Robert Kanigel (biographer), Matthew Brown (director), and Ken Ono (consultant on the film). Bottom right: The MAA Players helped bring MAA MathFest to a rousing conclusion.

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus MAA MATHFEST 2015 7

By the Numbers

People attending (including 610 students—118 grad 2,501 students, 464 undergrads, and 28 high school students)

People seen knitting/embroidering/crocheting during a session: 5 Percentage of people who responded to the postconference survey: 20 Percentage of people who gave a positive rating to the conference: 99 Centennial T-shirts sold: 110 Small boys in matching orange Math-minded people wearing white stocks with sandals: 289* 80 shirts dancing in People sporting beards: 289* New the aisle to cel- Project Next Fellows ebrate their mom See list of Red’15 cohort Talithia Williams’s online (maa.org/ teaching award: maa-focus-Supplements). 3

39 Exhibitor booths Times that people asked why there was no coffee: 1,000,000*

2 Putnam fellows 98 who spoke 7 Age of Speakers who had Richard 1 previously given Fields *Figure constitutes Guy, oldest Hedrick Lectures medalists who a wild estimate speaker (he spoke 3 and may have no turned 99 in Speakers who are connection with (Manjul September) Bhargava, right) members of the National reality. Academy of Sciences

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Overheard at MAA MathFest

“There are no current “We want to have people “It’s super! That’s all I can “Left #MAAthFest all problems in biology that will with more problems.” think to say about it, over charged up, which is good be solved without the use of —Ingrid Daubechies and over! Super!” because I’ve also left with a mathematics.” —Exhibit hall attendee looking reading and to-do list as long —Carlos Castillo-Chavez “There are two theories at Torroid, a möbius band in as my arm.” —Sara Malec on about Saturn’s rings: They red oak and maple by Peter Twitter “I had to ruthlessly cut have been there a long time. Sittner, one of the entries slides here in order to make And, they haven’t.” on display in the Bridges art “This is the most fun I’ve this part of the talk incom- —Jeff Lagarias exhibit.  had at a conference, and prehensible.” I’ve been to a lot of —Jeff Lagarias “Powerful afternoon. ‘Life is conferences!” mathematics. Mathematics —on Twitter “There are three kinds of is Life.’ ” mathematicians. Those who —J. Staley on Twitter during “Always read your can count, and those who session honoring Abdulalim axes!” can’t.” Shabazz —Victor Piercey on —James Tanton Twitter

MAA provided a centennial backdrop for people to pose in front of. See more on Flickr.com (“MAA MathFest 2015”). Below: Mathematicians by Day, Musicians by Night showcased the instrumental and vocal talents of many MAA members. The choir was conducted by Matthew DeLong.

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus MAA MATHFEST 2015 9

Centennial Lectures: Echoes

By Katharine Merow

n choosing Centennial Lecturers to speak at MAA Network Science: From the Online IMathFest, the Planning Committee focused on the World to Cancer Genomics criteria central to the MAA’s identity and raison d’être: Large-scale networks—technological, social, economic, interesting mathematics and masterful exposition. and biological—are everywhere, Microsoft Research’s “We made a serious effort to represent the diversity of Jennifer Chayes reminded her MAA MathFest audi- the MAA’s membership and our members’ wide-ranging ence. Analysis of these networks relies on graph theory, mathematical interests,” said committee cochair Steve combinatorics, probability, and game theory. Kennedy. Kennedy added that he could not have been Chayes and her colleagues, for instance, have used happier with how the six lectures played out. a formulation of the Steiner tree problem (http://bit. ly/1WoVHeV)—combined with an algorithm that can Replicators, Transformers, and Robot solve such problems quickly—to reconstruct gene regu- Swarms: Science Fiction through latory networks. Problems with these networks, which Geometric Algorithms govern gene expression levels of mRNA and proteins, Haven’t seen a car shape-shift into an ambulatory giant are linked to many diseases. yet? Don’t despair. Phenomena straight out of Trans- MIT’s Fraenkel Lab used Chayes’s Steiner tree tech- formers, The Matrix, and Star Trek could become reality niques, initially deployed on reconstruction of a yeast in the none-too-distant future. pheromone response pathway, to identify a previously In his Centennial Lecture, MIT’s Erik Demaine unknown participant in the pathway for the brain covered, among other sci-fi–flavored advances, cancer glioblastoma multiforme (GBM): the estrogen DNA origami-ing itself into smiley faces (http://bit. receptor. This result not only established the first link ly/1TkYNBu), self-folding sheets of prestressed poly- between GBM and gender, but also suggested a possible styrene (http://bit.ly/1P3N2sN), a distributed boundary drug therapy. detection algorithm for multirobot systems (http://bit. Using mathematics to advance medicine is gratifying, ly/1UALMkB), and a biology-inspired theoretical model of course, and not just for the obvious reasons. “You of self-assembly that permits both joining materials and don’t want to tell your mother you’re working on yeast,” splitting them apart (http://bit.ly/1f5tA2h). Chayes quipped.  “Join me in the quest of making all science fiction come true,” Demaine invited his MAA MathFest audience. “What could go wrong?”

Erik Demaine, Jennifer Chayes

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Mathematicians Helping Art Historians end of September 2014 in the millions, a paper (http:// and Art Conservators bit.ly/YbsSrQ) by Sherry Towers, Oscar Patterson- If you’re near Raleigh, North Carolina, in the fall of Lomba, and MAA MathFest speaker Carlos Castillo- 2016, you’ll want to pay the North Carolina Museum Chavez (Arizona State University) predicted 6,800. The of Art (NCMA) a visit. There you’ll find an illustration actual infections by that date? 7,000. of just how much, to quote the refrain of the Centen- In his Centennial Lecture, Castillo-Chavez cited results nial Lecture by Ingrid Daubechies (Duke University), in mathematical epidemiology to argue for the effective- “mathematics can help.” ness of interdisciplinary research in finding solutions to Help art historians and art conservators, that is. societal ills. The NCMA exhibition will feature an altarpiece by Castillo-Chavez credited much of the work he sur- Italian painter Francescussio Ghissi, its eight extant veyed to affiliates of the Mathematical and Theoretical panels—many on loan from other museums—reas- Biology Institute (https://mtbi.asu.edu/), which aims to sembled and the lone missing one re-created by artist provide support and research-based education to popu- Charlotte Caspers. lations underrepresented in the mathematical sciences. Although the panel Caspers meticulously painted, In a project completed mere days before MAA gilded, and embossed initially stood out from the others, MathFest, Castillo-Chavez and his collaborators mod- it no longer outshines its 14th-century neighbors. That’s eled a “hypothetical Ebola situation” to investigate the thanks to work Daubechies did—studying crack pat- effectiveness of restricting movement into and out of an terns and pigment fading and darkening—to virtually infected area. The verdict? age it. “As you allow people to move, you reduce the number “But then I also realized,” Daubechies said at Math- of cases of Ebola,” Castillo-Chavez said. “Cordoning Fest, “that, with this information, we can also virtually these areas is really a way of making epidemics worse, rejuvenate old panels.” and in fact allowing the movement of people to places The NCMA exhibition will include a slideshow of where they could get isolated and treated would be virtually rejuvenated paintings along with snippets of beneficial for the overall community.” video explaining the processes by which mathematics can restore artwork to its original glory. “We Are Evidently on the Verge of Important Steps Forward”: Role and Function of Mathematical The American Mathematical Community, Models in Interdisciplinary Mentorship 1915–1950 through Research: Lessons from the In a Centennial Lecture that was also the CSHPM Ken- World of Epidemics neth O. May Lecture, Karen Parshall (University of Vir- When, in the early days of the recent West African Ebola ginia) explored the changes in the mathematical land- outbreak, projections put the number of cases by the scape that gave mathematicians in mid-20th-century

Ingrid Daubechies, Carlos Castillo-Chavez

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America the sense that, since the time of the MAA’s (http://bit.ly/1N85kLJ), Manjul Bhargava (Princeton founding in 1915, the balance of mathematical power University) told his MAA MathFest audience, the Birch had shifted from Europe to the United States. and Swinnerton-Dyer conjecture “is fairly explainable in Parshall covered efforts in the 1920s to get the National an hour.” Research Council and the Rockefeller Foundation to The Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer conjecture involves fund mathematical research, the initiative in the early finding rational solutions to polynomial equations, 1930s that resulted in the establishment of the Institute and Bhargava methodically laid out the mathematics for Advanced Study, and the exodus of mathematicians needed to understand the yet-unproven statement. He from Europe in the 1930s and 1940s. began with the rational root theorem familiar from Parshall quoted from the congratulatory letter then- high school, walked through the location of rational president Franklin Delano Roosevelt sent on the occa- points on the unit circle, introduced elliptic curves and sion of the AMS’s semi-centennial celebration in 1938. the group law on them, defined the notion of rank, and “It is sometimes difficult to comprehend the values marveled at the computer code Birch and Swinnerton- accruing to society from mathematics,” FDR wrote. Dyer wrote to perform the computations that led them Yet it is deeply rooted in social progress as a large part to formulate their now-famous conjecture. of the technological advance made in recent centuries Working with a paltry 4K of memory, Bhargava said, would have been impossible had it not been for the the researchers were compelled to devise an algorithm constant refinement of the essential tool of technology, so clever that it gave future mathematicians insight into mathematics. Social scientists also owe a large debt to related problems. mathematics. Future advances in the social sciences will “We don’t have that phenomenon as much anymore, be largely dependent on mathematical treatment of their that theory gets inspired by an algorithm,” Bhargava data. said. “But at that time the algorithms had to be so clever Roosevelt’s letter must have been gratifying, Parshall because they had to fit in such a tiny amount of said, since it “reflected a level of awareness that Amer- memory. Now we have so much memory that we don’t ican mathematicians had been trying to achieve since at even try to optimize it.” least the 1920s.” Katharine Merow is a freelance writer and editor in Recent Results toward the Birch and Washington, D.C. Swinnerton-Dyer Conjecture Unlike many of the Clay Millennium Problems

Karen Parshall, Manjul Bhargava

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Top, left: David Kung, on violin, spearheaded the Thursday evening concert. Right: Jennifer Galovich, one of the MAA Players. Middle, left: This year’s new Project NExT cohort. Right: The popular student center in the exhibit hall offered games and freebies. Below, left: Sessions and performances drew varied crowds. Right: Noam Elkies (three-time Putnam winner) demonstrating a rhythm.

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus MAA MATHFEST 2015 13

Speakers Explore Mathematical Identity and Equity

oven through this year’s range of mathematical role models, spaces, but a mathematical space Wsummer conference was a or showing “multiplicity” (someone must create an opportunity for concern for fostering diversity and with many identi- people to see themselves equity. In addition to panels and ties, including as mathematical doers, A mathematical space paper sessions, two of the invited mathematics), can said Walker. One addresses explored these themes. challenge this belief. must create an oppor- example is after-school “So often young people decide Walker pointed to tunity for people to see tutoring programs for early on they are not math people,” the example of Balti- themselves as high school students, said Erica Walker, addressing a more Ravens football where high-achieving crowded ballroom. National data player John Urschel, mathematical doers. students help other show that young people’s attitudes a 24-year-old with students. The primary toward math become less positive bachelor’s and master’s degrees in focus is to create experiences that the longer they are in school, which mathematics from Pennsylvania are affirming and positive, but also affects their aspirations of becoming State University. As a national challenging, she said. math majors in college, she said. athlete and mathematician, Urschel’s Many of those in the audience— identities upend the common narra- Reaching Goals professors, instructors, and tive about a singular math identity, Once someone develops a math- students—were familiar with the said Walker. ematical identity and chooses to struggle to draw more people into Where mathematical identity is pursue higher education, challenges mathematics. As the 21st Etta Z. cultivated is important too, she persist—especially for students Falconer Lecturer, Walker focused said. Many people believe that of color, who face a dearth of role on two key concepts she has ex- mathematics happens only in the models. The NAM (National As- plored in relation to mathematical classroom, but during her research, sociation of Mathematicians) David learning: multiplicity (or identity) Walker found that mathematicians Harold Blackwell Lecturer, Terrence and mathematical spaces. describe learning math outside Blackman, discussed challenges in the classroom: at home, at work, mathematical equity and suggested A Math Identity and at play. She said, “I define how the community can change it. Frequently, young people shy away mathematical spaces as sites where Blackman pointed out that in from a mathematical identity mathematical knowledge is shared 2011, only 21 African Americans because they believe that a “math and disseminated—a site for a received PhDs in mathematics. “I person” must act a certain way or relationship to contribute to the use doctorates because it is the tip that understanding mathematics development for a mathematical of the pyramid,” said Blackman, must come naturally to them, identity.” assistant professor of mathematics at Walker explained. But having a These can be physical or online the University of Denver. To earn a

Walker Blackman

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS MAA MATHFEST 2015

CAREERS at the NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY PhD, there are many, many stages that must be accomplished. What would be necessary for the number of African Americans receiving PhDs to reflect the population? “If we are genuinely serious about the challenge about creating and nurturing more African American mathematicians, then our aim has got to be to create and sustain local, research- driven mathematical communities that are oriented to the challenge within those communities,” he said. It is easier to expend on structures already in place, and emulate those, rather than devise a new system, Blackman said. Successful mathematical communities for minorities do exist, such as at historically black colleges and universities. For example, most African American mathematicians with a PhD have a connection to Howard University (in Washington, D.C.), one such school, Blackman pointed out. He also focused on increasing research and publishing opportunities for African American students to increase engagement and equity. “What EXTRAORDINARYWORK you also need,” he said, “is to effectively Inside our walls you’ll find the most extraordinary people doing integrate the available technological the most extraordinary work. It’s not just finite field theory, tools, artistic tools, literary tools, and discrete mathematics, algorithm analysis, or the opportunity to available cultural tools as a means work for the country’s largest employer of mathematicians. of enhancing the overall cultural engagement.” It’s all of these and more – rolled up into an organization that’s dedicated to an extraordinary cause – the safety and security of The future of mathematics relies on the United States of America. growing these tools and community because we need more mathematical talent and more diverse mathemati- U.S. citizenship is required for all applicants. NSA is an Equal Opportunity Employer and abides by applicable employment laws and regulations. All applicants for employment are considered without regard to age, color, disability, cians, Blackman said. “Losing people genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, or status as a parent. from mathematics because we don’t have the right structures, or because they don’t fit in, results in less diversity of mathematical thought.” —Alexandra Branscombe

See William Yslas Vélez’s article in the June/ July issue on suggestions for encouraging

Search NSA to Download underrepresented and first-generation

WHERE INTELLIGENCE GOES TO WORK® college students in mathematics. Log in to your member profile on maa.org to access the issue.

14BWNS-05_4.4375x9.3125.indd 1 8/18/15 11:39 AM MAA MATHFEST 2015 MAA MATHFEST 2015 15

A Math Dash: Student Activities

ust like professional mathemati- school year, then submitting them State University). Throughout the Jcians, undergraduate students are through their college or university event, students could receive points inspired by different kinds of math- math department. for creativity, such as writing a song ematics. That is the challenge for the “It is very different from what we or poem to go with their math- MAA Committee on Undergraduate normally do, [such as] proof-based ematical answer. Student Activities and Chapters problems. These are computational “Math students are challenge (CUSAC): to engage students with a and I like computational problems,” seekers,” says Bergner, but not range of interests at MAA MathFest. says Yijin Wei, a student from everyone likes to perform alone Here are just a few of the ways un- Smith College, who placed second under high pressure. So she decided dergraduate students participated at in the event. In her second year of to “create something that is very the centennial celebration. competing, Wei solved all seven open, that invites all undergraduate problems, finishing just behind the students to participate and feel first-place winner, Ian Cavey from comfortable doing mathematics.” Boise State University. “I enjoy the She wants it to be a way of building Students from Slippery process a lot, so I don’t feel too community—and this summer in Rock University. much pressure in this setting,” she the premiere of the Radical Dash, says. she saw that goal realized. Even though teams competed against The Challenge Seekers each other for total points, students Throughout the conference, a in the Radical Dash could be found rather different competition helping other teams complete clues was taking place. The Radical or solve the math problems. Garret Dash is a “mathematical Ins- Jones, a student at Slippery Rock, tagram scavenger hunt,” says said, “Even though we are all in a Jennifer Bergner, a math competition, we are still all here to professor from Salisbury do math, and if we can help each University who designed the other do more math, then in the event. “I want students to actually end, it is a win.” ‘dash’; there needs to be a physical Several teams received prizes, in- The Speedsters aspect to it.” cluding Judges’ Choice and People’s Students who love solving compu- On each day of the conference, Choice, at the awards ceremony. tational mathematics quickly and students solved clues, cracked The overall winner, with an almost- under pressure participated in the codes, and completed math prob- perfect score for every challenge, Student Problem Solving Competi- lems posted by the Radical Dash was the Disney Dashers team (Lisa tion. Nineteen students had an hour organizers on the social media site Mueller, Stina Nyhus, Muhammad to solve seven problems without a Instagram (@mathfestdash). El Gebali, and Theresa Marlin), who calculator; further, each problem Working in teams of three to five won MAA T-shirts and books. had to be solved in order—no skip- people, 110 students solved the Now that the Radical Dash orga- ping around. multistage clues to reveal a series of nizers have a successful template, Richard Neal, creator of the locations throughout the conference says Bergner, it will be easier to competition, has been running it venue. Then they posted pictures implement at upcoming meetings, since 1997. A former college athlete, of themselves at each location on including the 2016 Joint Math- Neal wanted to design a national Instagram to prove they had solved ematics Meetings in Seattle. championship for star mathletes the puzzles and earned their points. who enjoy performing in a stressful The Dash also included daily group The Researchers situation, similar to competition activities, such as a mathematical art Under a different kind of pressure sports. Students qualify for the project with the Bridges Organiza- were the 181 students involved competition by completing Neal’s tion and a book embedding problem in 134 presentations during the preliminary problems during the with Robin Blankenship (Morehead Continued on p. 16

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 16 MAA MATHFEST 2015

A Round of Applause for Mathematical Theater

o cast a play on the first day of a conference and Tthen perform it three days later—anything could happen, says Steve Abbott, who did just that. Despite the logistical challenges, Abbott pulled together a cast and crew of 14 accomplished mathematicians to put on the mathematical and philosophical play Albert’s Bridge by Tom Stoppard for hundreds of their professional peers at MAA MathFest. “[The play] is very tailored for a mathematical audience in an accurate way,” says Frank Morgan, a mathematics professor at Williams College. The play follows a philosophy graduate student named Albert who gets a job painting a large bridge above his hometown. An algebraic angle appears early in the show: it takes Albert and three other painters two years to paint the entire bridge; once they are finished, they return to the beginning of the bridge to paint for Mathematicians enjoyed the play Albert’s Bridge. another two years. To save money, the city switches to a paint that lasts some inside jokes. For example, when Fitch is trying to eight years, needing only one painter—Albert. But a convince Dad (Joe Gallian, University of Minnesota– problem arises when Albert is only a quarter of the Duluth) to stay on as the solitary bridge painter, Abbott way through his eight-year job. After two years, the added a line so the character would say, “C’mon, just say rest of the bridge has fallen into disrepair and looks yes!” to Gallian. horrendous. “Anyone who knows Joe Gallian knows that ‘Just say “It was actually a logical mathematical flaw in the yes’ is his tagline for the Project NExT fellowship,” Ab- [play’s] argument,” says Morgan, who played Fitch, the bott explains. “I really wanted [Gallian] to play the part economic consultant for the bridge subcommittee. “Ev- as the painter because I really wanted to play that joke. eryone forgets about the gap between switching paints— I wanted to play into the fact that these are not actors, I have told mathematicians about the play’s argument they are people from the community.” and they don’t catch the mistake right away.” Abbot posted another Easter egg in the midst of the As the play’s director, Abbott, a mathematics professor images displayed on the projector screens flanking the at Middlebury College, catered to his audience with stage. “And here we are at a conference, so we thought— why don’t we use actual slides from Student Activities, con’t. from p. 15 a talk?” he says. This led to placing a slide from Richard Guy’s invited MAA undergraduate student paper the Environmental Mathematics talk into one of the scenes. sessions. All the presenters were SIGMAA Award; and Kinardi Isnata Choosing a Tom Stoppard play celebrated at the student ice cream (Duquesne University) was awarded wasn’t just about mathematics, says social on the conference’s final day. the Society of Industrial and Applied Abbott, but also the philosophy and At the social, several student Mathematics (SIAM) Award. physics all stewed together to create presentations related to particular Twenty-four MAA Outstanding a powerful script. That is typical of topics were singled out for special Presentation Awards went to Stoppard, says Abbott, to not view awards: Paul Diaz and Eric Jones students who gave particularly these different fields as separate (both from Colorado School of impressive presentations in any area parts of our humanity, but to see Mines) received the Anderson of mathematics. The winners can be everything we do as a single Prize for work in areas related to found on the association website: intellectual experience. mathematical biology; Becky Chen http://bit.ly/1NPVcrL. —Alexandra Branscombe (University of Richmond) received —Alexandra Branscombe

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus MAA MATHFEST 2015 17

Report of the MAA Secretary

By Barbara Faires

AA MathFest 2015 was indeed a celebration of Mthe association’s centennial! I hope you were one of the more than 2,500 who enjoyed the great talks and wonderful evening events at this Washington, D.C., meeting. The list of those who made this meeting such a huge success is long and includes planners, organizers, speakers, entertainers, and most of all, the two who led the charge—Deanna Haunsperger and Stephen Ken- nedy, cochairs of the Centennial Planning Committee. Thank you! New Governors The MAA Board of Governors met on August 4 before Past, present, and future MAA presidents: Henry Pollak, the four-day meeting opened, and, as is the norm, we Thomas Branchoff, Anne Watkins, Ron Graham, Ken Ross, welcomed new governors. Governors with terms that David Bressoud, Joe Gallian, Carl Cowen, Francis Su, began February 1, 2015, are governors-at-large Elizabeth Paul Zorn, Deanna Haunsperger, and Bob Devaney. Burroughs (Montana State) for teacher education and Lloyd Douglas for business, industry, and government; on the discussion. Other members of the governance chair of the Committee on Sections, Betty Mayfield task force are Rick Gillman, Karen Saxe, Michael (Hood College); and chair of the Council on Publica- Pearson, and James Epperson. tions and Communications, Jennifer Quinn (University The membership discussion in the afternoon of the of Washington Tacoma). New section governors with board meeting was enriched by research and analysis three-year terms ending June 30, 2018, are as follows: that President Francis Su included in his report to the board. He shared information from a 2013 Project New Section Governors NExT survey as well as from his data collection and Seaway Jim Conklin, Ithaca College analysis of MAA membership at 61 colleges and univer- Ohio Bill Higgins, Wittenberg sities. Both membership and governance will be on the University JMM 2016 board agenda. Southeastern Charlotte Knotts-Zides, Wofford Prizes and Lecturers College The board approved prizes and awards that will be given Northeastern Jason Molitierno, Sacred Heart at the AMS-MAA Joint Prize Session on January 7, University 2016, as well as various lecturers. Dusa McDuff (Barnard New Jersey Hieu Nguyen, Rowan University College, Columbia University) has been selected as the Pacific Northwest Jennifer Firkins Nordstrom, 2017 Hedrick Lecturer for MAA MathFest in Chicago; Linfield College the 2016 Hedrick Lecturer is Hendrik Lenstra (Leiden University). Annalisa Crannell (Franklin & Marshall Missouri Mary Shepherd, Northwest College) was approved as the Leitzel Lecturer for MAA Missouri State University MathFest 2016 in Columbus. The board approved the MAA Executive Committee’s recommendation that Susan Colley (Oberlin College) be the next editor of Governance Structure the American Mathematical Monthly; Susan becomes This board meeting included good discussions on editor-elect on January 1, 2016, with her five-year term two important topics: governance structure and as editor beginning a year later. membership. The Task Force on Governance, chaired Each year the board elects one of its members to serve by Jennifer Quinn, submitted its final report and asked on the Audit Committee; Mary Shepherd (Northwest governors to consider proposed governance models, Missouri State) was elected to a two-year term. The with the understanding that these will be revised based board elected governors-at-large to three-year terms:

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 18 MAA MATHFEST 2015

Talitha Washington (Howard University) for minority interests and Gary MacGillivray (University of Victoria) for Canadian membership, as well as council chairs for four-year terms—Jenna Carpenter (Campbell Univer- sity) as chair of the Council on the Profession, and Elgin Johnston (Iowa State University) as chair of the Council on Outreach. These terms begin February 1, 2016. The Audit Committee, chaired by Al Hibbard (Central College) reported that the 2014 audit continues an ongoing record of the MAA having “gold standard” audit reviews. Treasurer Jim Daniel reported the MAA to be financially healthy in terms of total net assets. Although the board approved another deficit budget, it was noted that the size of the deficit has been decreasing in recent years. The board approved section bylaws for the following sections: Rocky Mountain, Ohio, and Allen Butler of Daniel H. Wagner Associates, North Central. Deanna Haunsperger, Steve Kennedy, and Walter Stromquist. The board approves electronically each year many of the prizes and awards as recommended by the various committees. This year board members also approved a new MAA award, the Daniel Solow Author’s Award (see MAA Section Meetings article in the August/September issue of MAA FOCUS), INDIANA to be given first at MAA MathFest 2016. The primary October 17, Purdue North Central, Valparaiso, IN criterion for selection of an author or authors for the IOWA Solow Award will be their material’s impact on under- October 2–3, Graceland University, Lamoni, IA graduate education in mathematics and/or the mathematical sciences. Nominations for this award are due to NORTH CENTRAL me ([email protected]) by October 15. MAA has October 23–24, Bemidji State University, Bemidji, MN wonderful programs, including our awards; these are OHIO made possible by the work of many volunteers. Thank October 23–24, Capital University, Bexley, OH you to all!

Sections were encouraged to celebrate the association’s 100th birthday. Shown here: Members doing just that in Texas.

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus MAA MATHFEST 2015 19

MAA Awards and Prizes Given

Carl B. 2014): 12–15. the very concrete example that arose Allendoerfer Awards Citation Excerpt: “Familiar linear when the author’s ill cat required Made to authors of articles of algebra results work a bit differ- medicine with a dose of half a pill expository excellence published in ently when modular arithmetic is a day. . . . By the end we can feel Mathematics Magazine. involved, but that is exactly what satisfaction in both what we have is needed to solve the dial turning learned about random walks and on Daniel Heath (Pacific Lutheran challenge in an add-on to the video the recovery of the author’s cat.” University) game Call of Duty: Black Ops. . . . “Straightedge and Compass Con- This engaging article showcases that Allison Henrich (Seattle Uni- structions in Spherical Geometry,” ‘mathematics shows up in the most versity) and Louis H. Kauffman Mathematics Magazine 87, no. 5 surprising places.’ ” (University of Illinois at Chicago) (December 2014): 350–359. “Unknotting Unknots,” American Citation Excerpt: “An essential Paul R. Halmos–Lester Mathematical Monthly 121, no. 5 charm of the paper lies in the R. Ford Awards (May 2014): 379–390. clear organization, the engaging Recognize authors of articles of Citation Excerpt: “Unknots can writing style, and the broad array expository excellence published in the appear complicated; in particular, of mathematical methods and areas American Mathematical Monthly. a given unknot diagram may not employed. . . . This fine paper invites have any simplifying Reidemeister multiple readings.” Mario Ponce (Catholic University moves. The authors show an example, of Chile) and Patricio Santibanez Andrew Beveridge (Macalaster (Instituto Alonso de Ercilla in College) and Stan Wagon (Retired) Santiago de Chile) “The Sorting Hat Goes to College,” “On Equidistant Sets and General- Mathematics Magazine 87, no. 4 ized Conics: The Old and the New,” (October 2014): 243–251. American Mathematical Monthly Citation Excerpt: “Each year, at 121, no. 1 (January 2014): 18–32. Harry Potter’s school, Hogwarts, Citation Excerpt: Classical conics the incoming students are split have long been studied from diverse Allison Henrich equally among the houses and perspectives, for instance, as the and Louis H. apportioned evenly by gender. This curves of intersection of a cone and a Kauffman serves as an introduction to the plane or as the level sets of 2nd order analogous problem, very real in polynomials. This article develops a without simplifying moves, where the many colleges and universities, of quite different perspective by treating application of Reidemeister moves matching incoming students with a conic as the set of points equidis- to make a larger diagram allows the first-year seminars. . . . Beveridge tant from two given circles. reduction of that larger diagram to and Wagon recognize it as a con- . . . The authors rigorously develop the trivial knot. . . . The authors in- strained optimization problem, and the technical mathematical ideas troduce arc-presentations and Morse in this paper they show how they while also building the reader’s form with lucid examples, then solved it with mathematics.” intuition of the underlying notions. deftly obtain explicit bounds on the number of Reidemeister moves and Trevor Evans Award Daniel Velleman (Amherst the size of the larger diagram needed. Made to authors of expository articles College) . . . These authors have written an accessible to undergraduates and “A Drug-Induced Random Walk,” enjoyable article that invites signifi- published in Math Horizons. American Mathematical Monthly cant discussion.” 121, no. 4 (April 2014): 299–317. Heidi Hulsizer (Hampdon-Sydney Citation Excerpt: “Random walks Erwan Brugallé (École Polytech- College) appear in a variety of applications, nique ) and Kristin Shaw (Postdoc- “A ‘Mod’ern Mathematical Adven- from economics to physics. This toral Fellow) ture in Call of Duty: Black Ops,” paper further motivates us to learn “A Bit of Tropical Geometry,” Math Horizons 21, no. 3 (February about this important topic by using American Mathematical Monthly

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 20 MAA MATHFEST 2015

121, no. 7 (August-September 2014): David Joyner (U.S. Naval Henry L. Alder Awards 563–589. Academy) for Distinguished Citation Exerpt: “This lovely “The Man Who Found God’s Teaching by a Beginning and, as the authors explain in their Number,” College Mathematics College or University abstract, ‘friendly introduction to Journal 45, no. 4 (September 2014): Mathematics Faculty tropical geometry’ does a wonderful 258–266. Member job of motivating and explaining this Citation Excerpt: “David Joyner To honor beginning college or relatively new area of mathematics. splendidly recounts the tale of two university faculty whose teaching . . . Tropical geometry is clearly a problems—and the tale of two has been extraordinarily successful fascinating area of mathematics that triumphs. Hearing loss and God’s and whose effectiveness in teaching is full of deep and very compelling number. . . . Tom and his colleagues undergraduate mathematics is shown problems and this article provides an determined that God’s number in the to have influence beyond their own alluring pathway into the field.” face-turn metric is 20.” classrooms.

Merten M. Hasse Prize George Pólya Lecturer Allison Henrich (Seattle Designed to be an encouragement 2013–2015 University) to younger mathematicians to take Ruth Charney (Brandeis up the challenge of exposition and University) Patrick Rault (State University of communication. New York at Geneseo) Certificates of Charles Doran (University of Meritorious Service Talithia Williams (Harvey Mudd Alberta) and Ursula Whitcher For service at the national level or for College) (University of Wisconsin-Eau service to a section Claire) Mary P. Dolciani Award “From Polygons to String Theory,” George Bradley (Duquesne The Mary P. Dolciani Award recog- Mathematics Magazine 85, no. 5 University), Allegheny Mountain nizes a pure or applied mathemati- (December 2012): 343–360 Section cian who is making a distinguished Citation Excerpt: “This paper gives contribution to the mathematical a fresh and inviting treatment of the Carolyn Connell (Westminster education of K-16 students in the daunting topic of mirror symmetry.” College), Intermountain Section United States or Canada.

George Pólya Awards Sister Helen Christensen (Loyola Sybilla Beckmann Made to authors of articles of College Maryland), Maryland– expository excellence published in the District of Columbia–Virginia Citation Excerpt: “Given in College Mathematics Journal. Section (1927-2012) recognition of her unique career as a mathematician Michael Brilleslyper (U.S. Air Bonnie Gold (Monmouth Univer- whose contribu- Force Academy) and Lisbeth sity), New Jersey Section tions to math- Schaubroeck (U.S. Air Force ematics education, Academy) Lee Turner (Southern Nazarene particularly in the “Locating Unimodular Roots,” Col- University), Oklahoma-Arkansas elementary grades, lege Mathematics Journal 45, no. 3 Section have been extensive and ground- (May 2014): 162–168. breaking.” Citation Excerpt: “This article is Richard Katz (California State intriguing and very accessible. It will University at Los Angeles and ignite the imaginations of readers Michael Hoffman (California State and inspire them to investigate University Los Angeles), Southern variations of this classical family of California–Nevada Section problems.”

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus AMERICAN MATHEMATICAL SOCIETY

New Series

Probability through Algebra Bowen Kerins, Education Development Center Inc., Waltham, MA, Benjamin Sinwell, Pendleton High School, Anderson, SC, Al Cuoco, Education Development Center Inc., Waltham, MA, and Glenn Stevens, Cambridge, MA

This book introduces readers to the algebraic properties of expected value and variance through a collection of problem sets designed to develop interconnected mathematical themes. IAS/PCMI–The Teacher Program Series, Volume 1; 2015; approximately 175 pages; Softcover; ISBN: 978-1- 4704-1925-7; List US$29; AMS members US$23.20; Order code SSTP/1

Applications of Algebra and Geometry to the Work of Teaching Bowen Kerins, Education Development Center Inc., Waltham, MA, Benjamin Sinwell, Pendleton High School, Anderson, SC, Darryl Yong, Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, CA, Al Cuoco, Education Development Center Inc., Waltham, MA, and Glenn Stevens, Cambridge, MA

This book uses a collection of problem sets to develop the use of complex numbers to investigate some questions that are at the intersection of algebra and geometry. IAS/PCMI–The Teacher Program Series, Volume 2; 2015; approximately 205 pages; Softcover; ISBN: 978-1- 4704-1924-0; List US$29; AMS members US$23.20; Order code SSTP/2

Famous Functions in Number Theory Bowen Kerins, Education Development Center Inc., Waltham, MA, Darryl Yong, Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, CA, Al Cuoco, Education Development Center Inc., Waltham, MA, and Glenn Stevens, Cambridge, MA

This book introduces readers to the use of formal algebra in number theory. Through numerical exper- iments, participants learn how to use polynomial algebra as a bookkeeping mechanism. IAS/PCMI–The Teacher Program Series, Volume 3; 2015; approximately 216 pages; Softcover; ISBN: 978-1- 4704-2195-3; List US$29; AMS members US$23.20; Order code SSTP/3

Presented by IAS/PCMI and the AMS: The Teacher Program Series

is series presents materials from the IAS/PCMI Secondary School Teachers Program, an annual professional development program for teachers specializing in mathematics teaching for grades 3-12. Books in the series are designed to facilitate the SSTP program’s goal of improving teacher knowledge via a problem-based approach to learning. Each volume includes a chapter on math concepts, a problem set, and facilitator notes, including solutions and practical tips for running a teacher training session. e series is invaluable for mathematics teacher training programs and for the continuing education of teachers already in practice.

Titles in this series are co-published with the Institute for Advanced Study/Park City Mathematics Institute. Members of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) receive a 20% discount from list price. www.ams.org/bookstore/sstpseries

facebook.com/amermathsoc (800)321-4267 (U.S. & Canada), @amermathsoc (401)455-4000 (Worldwide) plus.google.com/+AmsOrg 22

Core Info about the Common Core for Mathematics

By Katharine Merow

his is the second installment in a series of articles Then a team made up of mathematicians, math Tabout the Common Core State Standards for Mathe- education researchers, teachers, and representatives of matics. Read the first story in the August/September issue, state departments of education (http://bit.ly/1MotWQc) available online through your member profile page. worked backward from the college and career readiness standards to craft K-12 standards outlining grade-level Why expectations for elementary through high school. The Common Core State Standards owe their existence The three lead writers of the Common Core Standards to the perception that the American education system for Mathematics were William McCallum, chair of the must improve for the United States to stay competitive University of Arizona mathematics department; Jason on the world stage. Zimba, who had worked with evaluating state assess- In 2008, the National Governors Association (NGA), ments (http://n.pr/1Ns046l); and former high school the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), algebra teacher Phil Daro, who was a senior fellow at and the nonprofit education reform or- America’s Choice, a curriculum and ganization Achieve published a report The Common teacher-training company. called “Benchmarking for Success: En- Drafts of the college and career readi- suring U.S. Students Receive a World- Core aims to ness standards and K-12 standards were Class Education” (http://bit.ly/1dxxNs4). help build strong released for public review, and the NGA The report outlined five steps, the first and CCSSO received more than 10,000 of which urged states to “upgrade state mathematical comments from teachers, parents, school standards by adopting a common core of foundations by administrators, and other concerned internationally benchmarked standards citizens. For more insight into the role of in math and language arts for grades K-12 covering fewer feedback groups and validation commit- to ensure that students are equipped with topics in greater tees in building the standards, see the the necessary knowledge and skills to be detailed timeline on the Common Core globally competitive.” depth. website (http://bit.ly/1fMJOHG). Stark differences existed, the report The Bill and Melinda Gates Founda- warned, between the math and science standards of tion, which sees development and adoption of the top-performing nations and those adopted by most Common Core as aligned with its goal of ensuring that U.S. states. The report cited Michigan State University all U.S. students can receive a high-quality education, researcher Bill Schmidt’s assessment that most state has contributed upwards of $170 million to the effort. standards lacked the focus, rigor, and coherence that characterize world-class standards. What State standards needed an upgrade, the reasoning Opponents and boosters alike encourage interested went, and a collaborative effort could bring a host of people to read the Common Core State Standards for benefits: It would be easier for students to transfer Mathematics for themselves. Here’s what to expect. between schools in different states. Development of text- The Standards for Mathematical Content make up the books and assessments could be streamlined. Student bulk of the document (http://bit.ly/QWH70y), but these performance could be more meaningfully compared grade-level expectations are preceded by the Standards from state to state. for Mathematical Practice. These eight standards, which include directives such as “reason abstractly and quan- Who and How titatively” and “attend to precision,” describe “ways in Development of the Common Core standards took place which developing student practitioners of the discipline in two phases. of mathematics increasingly ought to engage with the First, a team managed by the NGA and CCSSO and subject matter as they grow in mathematical maturity drawing members from the College Board, Achieve, and and expertise throughout the elementary, middle and the nonprofit testing company ACT produced a docu- high school years.” ment titled “College and Career Readiness Standards for The subsequent content standards are divided, for each Mathematics” (http://bit.ly/1LDvnZf). grade, into groups of related standards called domains.

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus 23

Domains, which span multiple grade levels, include Op- What Now erations and Algebraic Thinking, the Number System, The Common Core standards are but the first step, of and Probability and Statistics. Introductory texts specify course (see box). Their effect—good or ill—will depend priorities for each grade level. on how they are implemented in classrooms across the Such priorities are part of the Common Core’s promise 40-odd states and territories (http://bit.ly/PiGYUF) that to deliver the focus, coherence, and rigor Michigan have adopted them. Future installments of this series State researcher Schmidt identified as desirable in a set will examine the standards for mathematical practice of mathematics standards. The Common Core aims to more closely, explore how the Common Core relates to help students build strong mathematical foundations by issues of equity in mathematics education, and discuss covering fewer topics in greater depth. The standards are professional development efforts aimed at better also designed to connect learning across grades. And the equipping educators to teach to the new standards. Stay authors of the Common Core hope that, by promoting tuned. conceptual understanding, procedural skills and fluency, and the application of mathematics, the standards will Katharine Marow is a freelance writer and editor in come to undergird a mathematics education that leaves Washington, D.C. students with a deep, authentic command of mathematical concepts. Standards vs. Curriculum: An Analogy To the Editor: “Standards by themselves don’t do anything,” says William McCallum, one of the lead writers of the appreciate that the MAA is planning to take a closer Common Core State Standards for Mathematics. At a Ilook at the Common Core, which is indeed a centrally forum held in conjunction with the National Math Fes- important topic for college faculty, and I look forward tival in April, he laid out the distinction between stan- to your coverage of the Common Core getting beyond dards and curriculum, often conflated in discussions of he-said, she-said sound bites. the Common Core. I have been working on Common Core implementa- “Standards are expectations for what we want students tion, in particular as a content leader at Illustrative to learn,” he said. “Curriculum is how we help students Mathematics led by Bill McCallum. My motivation is meet those expectations.” that I see the Common Core as a basis for a much more Suppose a scout leader says, “Today we’re going to faithful reflection of what I do as a mathematician. For climb up to Finger Rock.” (Finger Rock is a distinctive example, according to the Common Core students rock formation in Arizona.) That’s what a standard is: a should not only learn the standard multidigit multiplica- goal, an expectation. tion algorithm, but they should see the roles of place value and distributivity in that algorithm, and before How you get there is different. The leader doesn’t think that even proofs of the commutative and distributive that one size fits all, a criticism commonly leveled at properties. I explain further in a piece aimed in part at people who espouse standards. Some kids might leap http://pages.uoregon.edu/ up this mountain. Others might struggle. higher-ed colleagues here: dps/corerigor.php. The leader might accommodate different abilities or It is very interesting to work closely with teachers make everyone hike together. There are different peda- to understand what good age-appropriate reasoning gogical strategies for how to achieve this standard. But (proofs) looks like. And it is exciting to see that rea- how the leader conducts the hike, these are choices soning become a part of classrooms across the country. about curriculum. The standard is the goal. The cur- At this point, I’ve presented to over 2,000 K-12 riculum is how you get there. educators here in Oregon and have worked closely with McCallum also noted that much of the controversy many teachers and teacher leaders nationwide. These around the Common Core concerns neither the stan- mathematician–K-12 partnerships have come about dards nor the curricula, but the new assessments being only because Common Core aspires to more authentic developed. mathematical experiences for all students. “The assessment, I suppose, is how you decide whether Dev Sinha Associate Professor of Mathematics the scout troop did in fact climb the mountain and get University of Oregon to Finger Rock,” he said. Letters to the editor should be addressed to [email protected].

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS MAA Ad Competions FOCUS_Layout 1 6/17/15 2:42 PM Page 1

MAA American Mathematics Competitions Middle School and High School Levels

The MAA American Mathematics Competitions provides: Register for the MAA American Mathematics s Great math problems that engage your students and Competitions (AMC), the oldest, connect with the Common Core State Standards largest, and most prestigious

s mathematics competition in the Print and video teaching resources found in Curriculum United States. Inspirations by award-winning mathematics teacher and scholar James Tanton

s AMC 8 Contest Date MAA K-12 teacher membership — electronic subscriptions Tuesday, November 17, 2015 to Math Horizons and MAA FOCUS magazines, AMC Math Messenger and MAA Math Alert monthly electronic newsletters plus discounts on national meetings, books AMC 10 and AMC 12 Contest Dates and videos Tuesday, February 2, 2016 Wednesday, February 17, 2016 Students use words like “fun,”“challenging,”“great math,” and “bringing math to life” when describing the MAA American Mathematics Competitions.

To register and for more information visit amc.maa.org. Questions: Email [email protected] or call 800 527-3690. 25

The 2015 Empowering with Inquiry-Based Learning Legacy of R. L. Moore–IBL By Jacqueline Jensen-Vallin Conference

d Burger, president of South- “Self-Assessment of Failure and Angie Hodge (University of Ewestern University, called for Success,” during which he chal- Nebraska–Omaha), Eric Stade, and attendees at the 18th annual Legacy lenged each audience member to David Webb (both of University of of R. L. Moore–Inquiry-Based answer two questions: (1) What is Colorado Boulder) kicked off the Learning Conference to practice your greatest strength as a teacher? theme of empowerment in their education that has an impact. He (2) What is your greatest weakness opening plenary address, “Inquiry- urged participants to ask, “What as a teacher? Based Learning, Mathematics will your students remember in 20 Parker noted that frequently one’s Teacher Education Partnership, years?” As we all know, students greatest strength, either within a Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, will likely forget the mathematics, specific class or throughout one’s and Me.” They had conference but can be taught in such a way as career, is strongly related to one’s participants attempt an activity the to develop autonomy and creativity, greatest weakness. For instance, speakers use in their Calculus I and those lessons will be carried for while focusing time and effort on classes: groups of three were given life. one bright yet struggling student, packets of blue, green, and salmon Burger said IBL is the right vehicle you might neglect students who papers. The only instruction was for getting students to think through seem more confident. In so doing, that the groups had to make sense of mathematics instead of about you might miss an opportunity the activity. mathematics. This process will instill to help another equally bright (or In the end, groups gathered the habits of living, such as persever- brighter) student. Determining if slips of papers into piles containing ance, curiosity, and intellectual your strength and weakness are class one blue paper (a function), one passion. These will in turn empower specific or situation specific can green paper (a derivative), and one students and be lasting lessons. “The increase your effectiveness in the salmon paper (a verbal description) Southwestern Experience: An Insti- classroom. that were related to each other. This tutional Commitment to Engaged Brian Katz (Augustana College) served two purposes—it had faculty Student Learning,” Burger’s banquet provided other considerations for explore as their students would, and address, fit in well with the theme of classrooms—he gave attendees a it give faculty a chance to discuss this year’s conference: “Empowering cognitive frame of reference for the methods used during this with Inquiry-Based Learning.” the challenges facing students. In exploration. G. Edgar Parker (retired, James particular, the students are trying The latter demonstrated that Madison University) followed to learn not only mathematics but students will have many different, this theme with his presentation also the social norms specific to but equally valid, problem-solving mathematics. We strategies. For instance, some need to ask how people matched the functions and students experi- derivatives first, saving the verbal ence mathematical descriptions for last, while others development within approached the salmon sheets (“the the social context most challenging”) first. of the mathematical These samples are just a few of the classroom. Teachers ways that faculty at the conference can help students discussed empowering students in internalize the socio- their classrooms. Do you have other mathematical norms examples or memories from the by posing the correct conference? Contribute them to questions, such as [email protected] for possible “What do we know addition on our website. about this situation?” David Webb, left, Eric Stade, and Angie Hodge spoke and “Is an example Jacqueline Jensen-Vallin is editor of about how they brought IBL into Calculus I. enough for a proof?” MAA FOCUS.

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 26

Dear MAA» Prepping for the Putnam Exam

Dear MAA, to the director no later than mid-October. The local I’m a new faculty member in my department. The senior supervisor must be a faculty member. faculty told me that they used to have students take the In terms of preparing your students—the best thing Putnam exam, but it hasn’t happened in years. They to do is to have them solve problems. The MAA has “convinced” me to run the Putnam preparation group, published three books of old Putnam problems—but, and I really don’t know what I’m doing. I never even took really, any sort of problem solving will help students. the Putnam as a student! Can you help? Please? And encourage your students to attempt problems if Needing Putnam Help they have a good approach—they will be surprised at how much they can do on a problem even if it seems Dear Needing, foreign at first. The William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition Lastly, remember that historically the median score on runs the first Saturday in December each year—this year the exam runs in the low single digits, so many students the competition will be on Saturday, December 5. Start will not make measurable progress on the problems times are staggered by time zone so that all students are during their first attempt, but it is a great experience and taking the exam at the same time, regardless of their the MAA is pleased to sponsor the Putnam exam. location in the country. Additional information is at http://math.scu.edu/ The competition consists of two three-hour sessions— putnam. Good luck to you and your students. one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. During these sessions, students are given sets of questions testing original thinking as well as technical competence. These problems assume some knowledge of undergraduate mathematics courses, including group theory, set theory, graph theory, lattice theory, number theory, and cardinal arithmetic. Each problem is worth up to 10 points. All the necessary work to justify an answer and all the necessary steps of a proof must be shown clearly to obtain full credit. Partial credit may be given, but only when a contestant has shown significant and substantial progress toward Students sitting for the Putnam competition at MIT. a solution. Registration material can be requested from

Leonard F. Klosinski Putnam Mathematical Competition Department of Mathematics and Computer Science Santa Clara University 500 El Camino Real Santa Clara, CA 95053-0374 The William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition 1985-2000: Problems, Solutions and Commentary is

Any college or university desiring to compete should the third in a series. It places problems in the context of MIT of t e s y mathematical themes. Find it at http://bit.ly/1J5yfKs. complete the registration material and and have it back Cour

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus 27

The Wrong Door, or Why Math Gets a Bad Rap

By Katharine Merow

magine, says Adrián Paenza, someone who has never use this?” And their mother and father, they don’t know Iheard a piece of music. Not Beethoven. Not the either because they didn’t know when they were taught Beatles. Not so much as “Happy Birthday.” that. So what do they answer? “You’ll see later.” But when Now suppose you have the privilege of initiating this does “later” arrive? People have been waiting and waiting person into music appreciation. What would you play? for that “later” to come and it never comes. Vivaldi? Madonna? Eminem, perhaps? The possibilities abound, of course, but Paenza Paenza quickly eliminates some of them: “You wouldn’t start with a military march, right?” Paenza believes that introducing students to mathematics by drilling them on arithmetic facts is comparable to beginning someone’s exposure to music with the likes of “Yankee Doodle.” Or take this homier analogy: “You wouldn’t invite someone over to your house and say, ‘Okay, right here: This is the bathroom.’ But that’s what we do. We show students the wrong side.” Or “The Wrong Door,” as Paenza titled the talk he gave at the Embassy of Argentina in Washington, D.C., on July 7 in an event cosponsored by the MAA and the Georgetown University Center for Latin American Studies. An Argentine mathematics professor and jour- nalist, Paenza received the International Mathemat- ical Union’s prestigious Leelavati Prize in August 2014 in recognition of his contributions to changing the public perception of mathematics. Paenza hosts two weekly television shows, and his children’s book They Don’t Know What It Is series, Matemática . . . ¿estás ahí? or Math . . . Are You Misconceptions about mathematics are widespread, There?, has popularized mathematics throughout Latin Paenza noted. Ask a passer-by what a mathematician America and Europe. (See Paenza’s full Leelavati Prize does, and you’re more likely to hear speculation about citation at http://bit.ly/1q8iXKG.) speedy completion of long calculations than an accurate explication of mathematical proof. Questions They Didn’t Ask Paenza told a story about an unwed princess courted “Assume I came here and told you how to collect stamps by all the eligible bachelors in her father’s kingdom. from Thailand,” Paenza said to his embassy audience. They formed a queue at the palace on an appointed “How long would you stay?” day, and each in turn attempted to impress the royal Most listeners would stick around for a few minutes daughter. An acrobat, a bodybuilder, a magician—each out of politeness, Paenza predicted, but would then strutted his stuff. But the princess remained unmoved. begin to drift away, uninterested. Event attendees don’t Finally the throng of contenders had dwindled to want to listen to the answers to questions they didn’t ask, one, a short man wearing a backpack. This unassuming after all. And neither do students. beau removed from his backpack a pair of eyeglasses So here’s what happens (in Paenza’s words) when kids and handed them to the princess. She put them on and are compelled to endure the unmotivated mathematics smiled at her future husband. force-fed them at school: “The problem is not that she didn’t appreciate,” Paenza stressed. “She didn’t see. People reject something that n Em b ass y Argen ti n ia of t e s y They go home and they speak with their father and they don’t know. People reject mathematics only because

Cour mother and say, “Let me ask you: When am I going to they don’t know what it is.”

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 28

We Have to Share the Knowledge Paenza had a man from a pizza shop—call him José—on his television show once. To illustrate a point he was For Inclusion: “In Memoriam” making, Paenza wanted José to cut a pie in a non- The “In Memoriam” (maa.org/news/memoriam) standard way. In describing the orientation and relative page on the MAA website features citations for position of the desired cuts, Paenza used the word MAA members or other prominent mathematicians “perpendicular.” who have passed away. In the past year, since I José froze. was appointed editor of the page, over 70 new Paenza rephrased using “90 degrees.” Still nothing. citations have been added going back to 2010, Telling José to “make a cross” finally got the job done, based on what has been reported to me. Citations, but the interaction made Paenza ponder the power while short, typically include information about dynamic at play when there’s a knowledge imbalance the person’s career, his or her connections to the MAA, and links to longer articles if available. MAA between two people. staff members have been incredibly helpful with research on MAA history and edits of my drafts. Let the uninitiated in on your process. I want to highlight information from one of the ci- Show them the intermediate steps by tations: Kathryn Baker was a member of the MAA since 1932—a remarkable 82 years. She passed which you reach your final answer. away in 2014 at the age of 101. She was a profes- Entice your audience with math’s sor at Baylor University and was known for her twin passions for mathematics and art. She also playful side. founded the Baylor Children’s Theater. You can learn more about Baker from her “In Memoriam” citation. “Knowledge is power and, when you know something, you have power over the other person,” Paenza said in Please send relevant information to me at: his lecture. “You own him or her at least in that partic- [email protected]. ular circumstance. You have something that he doesn’t.” —Ed Aboufadel, Grand Valley State University And it’s not fair. “If you know something, you have to share it,” Paenza said. “We have to socialize the knowledge.” Clarifications Where the Weird Things Are So if you know mathematics, don’t keep it to yourself. n the August/September issue, the teaching award Let the uninitiated in on your process. Show them the Iwinner for the Southern California–Nevada Section intermediate steps by which you reach your final answer. should have been listed: Daphne Liu Entice your audience with the subject’s playful side. from California State LA. We apologize Admit that you make mistakes. for the oversight. If a student asks whether you’ve committed the 15 times table to memory (this happened to Paenza), sit down (as he did) and help him or her work it out. Encourage a pair to exchange encrypted messages and try to decode them. n the August/September interview with Robert Derive the counterintuitive result that, as long as there IGibbs, the problem highlighted on page 24—which are 23 people, there’s a more than 50 percent probability Gibbs provided the solution for early in his career— that two of them share a birthday. Test this in a crowded was posed by the man who later became known room. as the Unabomber. Readers may have missed the Tell kids about game theory. reference in the text explaining this amusing historical “Show them where the weird things are,” Paenza coincidence. entreated. “Challenge them because we are challenged.” —Katharine Merow

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus 29

A Centennial Gift Thank you for your

y now you may have heard about the resounding success of our generous support! Bcentennial MAA MathFest. Outstanding talks during the day Cornerstone Circle ($25,000 and above) coupled with a rich evening slate of mathematical entertainment made Recognition: Six guests and podium for a celebration worthy of our centennial. The electricity in the air opportunity at the USAMO Awards was palpable. A large number of people told me the event was the best Ceremony; option to weigh in during an math conference they had ever attended. annual conference call with the MAA MAA MathFest was a gleaming example of what professional president and executive director on future organizations do best—mobilizing the talent within our community to directions for the association, in addition to contribute to the advancement of teaching, learning, research, joy; and Leadership Circle benefits. amplifying such talent for the benefit of all with resources that only an Leadership Circle ($10,000–$24,999) association can provide. Recognition: Four guests at the USAMO We unite people around a common passion for mathematics in a Awards Ceremony, as well as President’s welcoming community. We publish high-quality journals and books, Circle benefits. provide outstanding resources for professional development, and President’s Circle: ($5,000–$9,999) nurture interest in mathematics in middle and high schools through Recognition: Two guests at the USAMO our competitions program. You may have heard about the U.S. team Awards Ceremony and limited-edition, z t z that won the International Mathematical Olympiad recently; it was

a r 3D crystal representation of the Helaman MAA that cultivated and trained this talent! We advocate for bringing Ferguson sculpture Umbilic Torus, N.C., in . S c hw . mathematics to a wider circle than ever before, including underserved addition to Grand Benefactor benefits.

yer D yer constituencies. We can do still more, but only with your additional a Grand Benefactor ($2,000–$4,999) support. Recognition: Recently published MAA book e; by M by v e; I’d like to ask you to make a special gift toward the MAA Second of the donor’s choice, as well as Benefactor Century Campaign. Your contribution will help us strengthen and benefits. modernize the valuable services we provide to you, your colleagues ed c ur ed p l at and students, and future generations of mathematicians and math- Benefactor ($1,000–$1,999) ematics educators. Recognition: Name inscribed on the Honor If you’ve never made a tax-deductible donation to MAA, would you Roll of Donors displayed in the lobby of on ti nuou s be willing to make a gift of any amount in this centennial year? If MAA headquarters in Washington, D.C., in you’ve given in the past, would you be willing to double your contribu- addition to Partner benefits. tion this year, in anticipation of our Second Century? I will. Would Partner ($500–$999) you consider making MAA part of your annual giving budget? I have. Recognition: Listing on the Honor Roll of Whether you are making a donation for the first time, doubling the Donors published annually in MAA FOCUS, usual size of your annual contribution, or increasing your usual giving, the MAA MathFest program, and donor I encourage you to put a “2” in your amount ($120, $200, $1,200, recognition boards at the Joint Mathematics and so on) in anticipation of the Second Century. Then let me know Meetings; invitations to the President’s [email protected] Reception at national meetings; guaranteed on #10: A Two-d c im en si on a l A #10: on bul ati am by sending me an email ( ). I’d like to thank you advance mailing of MAA MathFest Per personally for investing in MAA’s Second Century Campaign. 2016 badge and lanyard if registration is completed online by July 1, Thank you! as well as Supporter benefits. Supporter ($100–$499) Recognition: Gift with MAA logo.

Donors who establish a bequest or other Francis Edward Su planned gift to benefit the MAA are MAA President recognized as members of the Continuum Society. Contact Lyn Soudien, director of development, at [email protected]. Your gift is tax deductible under Section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 30

U.S. Takes First in International Olympiad

By Mark Saul

merica loves winners. National media latched on USA IMO team. He was joined in Chiang Mai by Alex Ato the story in July when the U.S. team earned the Zhai and John Berman as assistant coaches. highest national score at the 56th International Math- ematical Olympiad (IMO) in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Not Just Six Students The six high school students on the team wrestled It is important for us to recognize the achievement of individually with six problems in 4.5-hour sessions over these six students. (See the problem and solution online two days. The U.S. team’s combined score of 185 edged for an idea of the high level of this competition: maa out the Chinese team’s score of 181 and the Republic of .org/maa-focus-supplements.) But it is equally impor- Korea’s third-place score of 161. (A perfect team score tant to recognize that this result is an achievement of the would have been 252 points.) entire mathematical community. The team was selected The winning team was drawn from schools all over the through a series of competitions organized by the MAA, country: culminating with the USA Mathematical Olympiad • Ryan Alweiss, Bergen County Academies, Hacken- (USAMO). This contest revealed more than 100 very sack, New Jersey talented students, from which the team was selected. • Michael Kural, Greenwich High School, Greenwich, (The top dozen students were honored by a cash award Connecticut from Robert Balles, a former math teacher.) • Allen Liu, Penfield Senior High School, Penfield, Through this contest, 48 younger talented students Ne w York were also identified and trained for the future. They • Yang Liu, Ladue Horton Watkins High School, joined the IMO team at Carnegie Mellon University last Ladue, Missouri June for three weeks of immersion in problem solving at • Shyam Narayanan, Blue Valley West High School, the Mathematical Olympiad Summer Program (MOSP). Overland Park, Kansas Established in 1974 to train the first U.S. team to the • David Stoner, South Aiken High School, Aiken, IMO, MOSP is organized by the MAA, which sustains South Carolina. the program each year with the support of donors, including the Akamai Foundation and the Simons Five team members were awarded gold medals at the Foundation. event, while a sixth earned a silver medal, just one point The 550 students who sat for the USAMO, already shy of the gold. on a high level, were selected from 7,791 students who Po-Shen Loh, a member of the mathematics faculty at took the American Invitational Mathematics Examina- Carnegie Mellon University, is the national coach of the tion, who were invited from the highest scorers on the

Po-Shen Loh (left), national coach, with the U.S. team, which placed first at the 56th IMO, held in Thailand.

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus American Mathematics Competition 10 and 12, given to more than 180,000 students. All these examinations were developed by panels of MAA members, who volunteer enormous amounts of time to hone and polish the content. Their hard work bears fruit in the discovery, recognition, and development of talented teens who will be the mathematical community of the future. The AMC competitions have been central in stimulating advanced mathematical study, both in school and after school. A network of mathematical circles, often offshoots of the competitions, is growing nationally. Our published and online literature for advanced elementary mathematics is beginning to rival that of the former Eastern bloc, where mathematicians and graduate students routinely wrote about their cutting-edge work in terms accessible to younger students. All these phenomena have conspired to support our six winners. This system, too, is the result of the work of our entire community. Our students need support even beyond this community. School personnel—both math teachers and others—act as cheerleaders for our gifted students’ accomplishments. And of course, parents and families put much effort into supporting them—and take pride in their accomplishments. It is a whole American Village that has raised this team. The team is in fact representative of young America. They eat at McDonald’s. They get their driver’s license at 16. They call each other “dude.” During the IMO festivities in Thailand, they made fast friends through mathematics with gifted students from all over the globe, playing table tennis, going shopping, and even riding elephants. One of the most pleasing side effects of the IMO is that it fosters connections among students who will soon form the international mathematical community. Improve a Strong System A wider analysis of IMO results shows that our national network of support for gifted students pays off. The U.S. team has not been lower than third place since the 2010 IMO, and the differences among teams have been small. This year’s IMO was by many measures the most difficult in years. For example, the cutoff score for gold medals was significantly higher than in the past. We have built a strong system of talent development in our field. But our work is not over. Many communities are not included in this system. High school girls are underrepresented at the higher levels of competition. Few students come from working-class or minority backgrounds. And we must work harder at finding ways for competition mathematics to influence regular school mathematics. We have much to do, but many resources to draw on.

Mark Saul is the MAA director of competitions. Publishing outstanding research by undergraduates in applied and computational mathematics

SIURO provides undergrads with a full review- process experience. Student authors submit their work, which includes the manuscript, cover letter, and a letter from their faculty advisor. If the submission goes into full review, the author: • corresponds with an associate editor, • receives reviews from academic or industry referees, and • responds to the reports and writes a revision.

Read articles or take a step toward getting your own publishing creds at: bit.ly/1NxkNSw

ISSN 2327-7807

Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics 3600 Market Street, 6th Floor • Philadelphia, PA 19104-2688 USA +1-215-382-9800 • Fax: +1-215-386-7999 • [email protected] 33

How Geometry Has Influenced Everything

By Katharine Merow

peaking at the MAA Carriage House on June 16, SJudith Grabiner (Pitzer College) noted the meeting space’s abundance of parallel lines. She drew her audience’s attention to the everywhere equidistant outlines of the wood paneling and the beams traversing the ceiling to hit the wall at equal angles. Remember the theorem from high school geometry about how two lines are parallel if and only if, when they are cut by a transversal, corresponding angles are equal? “If you counted how many times that theorem is in this room, you’d be here all night,” Grabiner quipped. “This is the kind of room you’d design if you wanted to brainwash people to believe that space is Euclidean.” In “Space: Where Sufficient Reason Isn’t Enough,” Gra- Publishing outstanding research by undergraduates biner argued that geometry subtly influences everything from art and architecture to physics, philosophy, and in applied and computational mathematics how people see and think about the world. The World of Sufficient Reason SIURO provides undergrads with a full review- Even before displaying Euclid’s five postulates, Grabiner observed that the Greek mathematician’s axiomatic process experience. Student authors submit their approach to geometry shaped conceptions of proof, work, which includes the manuscript, cover letter, truth, and certainty for centuries—and not just in and a letter from their faculty advisor. If the mathematics. Grabiner Spinoza capped a supposed proof of God’s existence submission goes into full review, the author: with “Q.E.D.” Newton called his laws of motion notion reinforced by art and architecture—and suscep- “axioms.” Thomas Jefferson gave the Declaration of tible to rational interrogation. • corresponds with an associate editor, Independence the flavor of a logical argument in the Geometry stood, in other words, as humanity’s Euclidean style, complete with “self-evident” truths and bedrock. “There are no sects in geometry,” said Voltaire. • receives reviews from academic or industry a conclusion introduced by “therefore.” “One doesn’t say, ‘I’m a Euclidean.’ ‘I’m an Archimedean.’ referees, and Grabiner described the 18th-century world—the world Demonstrate the truth, and the whole world will be of on the eve of the discovery (or, if you prefer, invention) your opinion.” • responds to the reports and writes a revision. of non-Euclidean geometry—as “the world of sufficient re a s on .” The Paradigm Shifts Dating back at least to Archimedes, the principle of But then Gauss, Lobachevsky, and János Bolyai came sufficient reason states that, for everything that is, there along and—Grabiner quoted Morris Kline—“knocked Read articles or take a step toward getting is a reason why it happens as it does and not otherwise. geometry off its pedestal.” your own publishing creds at: Archimedes used sufficient reason to argue that a Their breakthrough, said Grabiner, was recognizing lever with equal weights at equal distances from the that the seemingly absurd implications of negating fulcrum must balance. Giordano Bruno claimed that Euclid’s fifth postulate are not absurd at all, but rather the principle implies the infinitude of space. (There’s no “truths in some alternative, counterintuitive reality.” bit.ly/1NxkNSw reason for it to stop at any particular place, after all.) Recognition of this reality necessitated a paradigm shift. Even the math giant Lagrange appealed to the principle “Before non-Euclidean geometry, the laws of space of sufficient reason in an attempted proof of Euclid’s and motion implied an infinite space whose properties infamously nonintuitive fifth postulate. were always the same, so we knew what was infinitely far ISSN 2327-7807 The world of sufficient reason was symmetric, bal- away just as well as we knew the geometry in this room,” anced, and based on self-evident and necessary truths, said W. K. Clifford. “Lobachevsky has taken this away Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics Grabiner said, a world embedded in Euclidean space—a from us.” 3600 Market Street, 6th Floor • Philadelphia, PA 19104-2688 USA +1-215-382-9800 • Fax: +1-215-386-7999 • [email protected] maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 34

As intellectuals grappled with the new multiplicity of inferiority of provincialism to more broad-minded geometries, Poincaré declared that no geometry is more outlooks. For Ortega, Euclidean geometry was an un- true than any other, just more convenient. warranted extrapolation to the whole universe of what Hermann von Helmholtz used convex mirrors to argue was locally observed. Einstein’s relativity, on the other that we can, contrary to Immanuel Kant, order our hand, relied on the alternative geometry of Riemann perceptions in a non-Euclidean space. and promoted a harmonious multiplicity of all points of view. Ortega drew an analogy between mathematics and Grabiner argued that society: “There is a Chinese perspective that is fully as geometry subtly influences justified as the Western,” he said. Western culture was eventually infiltrated by non- everything from art and Euclidean geometry, Grabiner pointed out. From Man Ray’s helical Lampshade to the hyperbolic paraboloid of architecture to physics, a roof on London’s Olympic Velodrome, non-Euclidean philosophy, and geometric objects are, increasingly, in the public eye. And the mindset has changed along with the art and how people see and architecture. “Euclidean geometry and the principle of sufficient think about the world. reason came to mean that reason can figure out the whole universe, and it’s symmetric and it’s stable and it’s uniform and there’s a reason for everything and every- body who studies it will come to agree,” Grabiner said at (Doubtful of your ability to do this? Spend some time the close of her talk. “I trust you see that this is not the looking into your car mirror. “There’s a warning on it, world we live in now.” isn’t there?” Grabiner asked her Carriage House audience. “What it means is, ‘Warning: The space you see in Katharine Merow is a Washington, D.C., freelance writer. this mirror is not Euclidean!’”) Grabiner’s talk was part of the Distinguished Lecture Spanish philosopher José Ortega y Gasset used the Series funded by the National Security Agency. Videos of advent of non-Euclidean geometry to highlight the the lectures are archived online.

Williams College Department of Mathematics and Statistics Full-Time Visiting Postions

The Williams College Department of Mathematics and Statistics invites applications for two full-time visiting positions in mathematics for the 2016-2017 year. The teaching load is four courses. Preference will be given to candidates who will have a Ph.D. in mathematics by September 2016.

Applicants can apply electronically at http://mathjobs.org. Evaluations of applications will begin on or after November 15 and will continue until the position is filled. All offers of employment are contingent upon completion of a background check http:// dean-faculty.williams.edu/prospective-faculty/background-check-policy. For more information on the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, visit http://math.williams.edu/.

Williams College is a coeducational liberal arts institution located in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. The college has built its reputation on outstanding teaching and scholarship and on the academic excellence of its approximately 2,000 students. Please visit the Williams College website (http://www.williams.edu). Beyond meeting fully its legal obligations for non-dis- crimination, Williams College is committed to building a diverse and inclusive community where members from all backgrounds can live, learn, and thrive.

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus 35

Puzzle Page Solutions Modern Math Workshop n the August/September issue, October 29–29, 2015 ILaura Taalman presented three Suoku that come with no number The nine NSF-funded U.S.-based math institutes present the clues. Below are the solutions to annual Modern Math Workshop (MMW) on October 28–29 these naked puzzles. (Wednesday-Thursday) in the Washington, DC area. The MMW is part of the institutes’ Mathematical Sciences Diversity Initiatives 1: Product Sudoku and the workshop is a pre-conference activity of the SACNAS National Conference (Society for Advancement of Hispanics/ Chicanos and Native Americans in Science, see http://sacnas.org/ events/national-conf). The MMW includes two mini-courses for undergraduates and talks related to the research programs at the math institutes that would be of interest to graduate students and early career researchers. The workshop is intended to encourage minority undergraduates to pursue careers in the mathematical sciences and to assist undergrads, graduate students and recent PhD’s in building their research networks. The MMW culminates on Oct. 29 with a plenary lecture by Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, President of UMBC (The University of Maryland, Baltimore County). Minority undergraduates, graduate students, postdocs, and faculty are encouraged to attend the workshop. 2: Greater Than Greater Sudoku For more information and to register, please see 913865472 www.msri.org/e/MMW2015. 875241963 462397581 781432659 536179248 294658137 347926815 Do I want to 628513794 renew my MAA 159784326 membership

3: Division Sudoku today? Yes!

Go to MAA.ORG

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 36

Mathematical Microaggressions

By Francis Edward Su

enjoyed many things insulting in light of one’s identity in language is unintentional and the Iabout growing up in Texas. a stereotyped group. For example, offender is unaware. For such cases, President's People there are friendly, what Friendly Person said to me I prefer to use the term microslight. Message hospitable, and love to make would have sounded ridiculous if What are some examples of small talk with strangers. Neverthe- it were said to a white Texan, but microslighting language in math- less, as an Asian American in a Asian Americans are often viewed as ematics? Consider this joke: predominately white and Latino foreign. part of the state, I frequently had Microaggressions may not seem Professor: “We’ll skip the proof of encounters like this: like a big deal (they’re micro, so we the lemma, because it’s obvious. can just shrug them off, right?), but We’ll now use the lemma to prove Friendly Person: “Wow, your English if you get them repeatedly, their the theorem . . .” is so good. Where are you from?” cumulative effect reinforces the Student: “I’m sorry, I don’t think Me: “From here.” message that you don’t belong. They the proof of the lemma is obvious.” Friendly Person: “No, where are you have the strongest effect on those Professor: (stops to think about it really from?” who already doubt themselves. and, after a long pause, collects What I would like to discuss are herself)“I was right! The proof Though it wasn’t an intentional mathematical microaggressions: of the lemma is obvious. We’ll slight, each time I heard this, the in what ways do we communicate now use the lemma to prove the message conveyed was: You don’t to students “you don’t belong in theorem . . .” belong here. mathematics”? This can happen In today’s parlance, this is an because of our language, behavior, What Are We Saying? example of a microaggression: a and assumptions. Mathematicians are fond of using small but commonplace verbal In this column, I’d like to focus on terms such as “trivial” and “obvious” or behavioral slight that can be language. Often, microaggressive and “clear” to mean “straightforward o c k s hu tt er st

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus 37

Avoid unintentionally for someone who has already “There’s a trick for doing this.” mastered the material.” But some Unintended message: There’s a students may think: “I must not be discouraging students secret list of things that only insiders good at math if I can’t see that it’s know. obvious.” Those who doubt them- whom we wish to Better: “There’s a technique for selves are most prone to feeling this doing this.” way. Should we really worry so much inspire! Using sarcastic language to be funny. about hurt feelings? After all, we do For example, I once joked, “Hello! the best we can as teachers. Bending Is anyone out there?” when no one over backwards to avoid offense answered a question I posed to a may seem to be going too far in a Asking in class “Are there any ques- sleepy 8 a.m. class. Only later did I hypersensitive direction. And no tions?” and then quickly moving on. realize some students felt belittled. one wants to be judged by politically Unintended message: Questions Unintended message: You’re an correct zealots for word choices. are not normal or expected. idiot. So I want to be very clear that my Better: Show that questions are Better: Avoid sarcasm, or repeat- purpose in raising these issues is to welcomed. “It’s normal to have ques- edly remind students that your encourage thoughtful self-reflection, tions, and I’d love to hear yours. And humor has a sarcastic edge. not self-righteousness. As teachers, others in our class will thank you we should be cognizant of how for asking a question they’re also Using only male pronouns/European our actions may affect our most- thinking.” Pause to give students names in examples. vulnerable students. time to think of a question. Unintended message: Only Euro- By their unintentional nature, pean men can be mathematicians. microslights are hard to self- Saying in office hours “See me again if Better: Vary your use of pronouns, diagnose. So I’m grateful for friends, you have questions.” names, and cultural examples to including the Project NExT com- Unintended message (that could reflect the diversity we hope to see munity, who helped me compile be reinforced by tone of voice and in mathematics. These can provide this list of common mathematical body language): IF you have some positive associations that break microslights and suggested alterna- silly questions, you’ll be a nuisance; stereotypes. tives less likely to offend. I’d rather not be bothered. Better: “I hope you’ll visit again! Let Me Hear from You “It is obvious/clear/trivial that . . .” Questions are part of the normal Those are a few mathematical Unintended message: You’re process of learning this stuff.” microslights. I’m sure you can think stupid if you can’t see it right away. of more, and I would be interested Better: Explain the meaning of “Give the idea of the proof in plain in hearing them. In my next column, these phrases in mathematical English.” I will focus on mathematical micro- culture. Or say instead: “It is Unintended message (to interna- aggressions related to behaviors and straightforward, with some work, to tional students): You can’t succeed assumptions. show that . . .” in math if your English skills aren’t My hope is to spur thoughtful good enough. discussion about better ways to avoid Using the word “just,” as in “The rest is Better: “Give the idea of the proof unintentionally discouraging just algebra.” in your own words.” students whom we wish to inspire! Unintended message: You’re not cut out for math if you can’t do Discussing a proof based on a simple Francis Su, MAA algebra. (Beware especially how this insight: “You either get it, or you president, is the message gets conveyed in Lagrange don’t.” Benediktsson-Karwa multiplier problems, where the Unintended message: You either Professor of Math- nastiest part of the solution is the understand math or you don’t, and if ematics at Harvey algebra!) you don’t, you’ll never get it. Mudd College. Better: Remove the word “just” Better: “Once you see the main His email is [email protected], and and explain the difference between insight, the rest of the proof will he is on Twitter: @mathyawp. calculation and insight. make sense and fall into place.”

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 38

Interview » Loren Larson, The Inquisitive Problem Solver Professor Emeritus of Mathematics, St. Olaf College

Interviewed by Deanna Haunsperger and Stephen Kennedy

Loren Larson finds inexpressible beauty and delight in well-designed puzzles and well-crafted problems— ask him about one and his face breaks into a warm and endearing smile. This love has directed many years of his life, from 10 years as problems editor for the MAA’s Mathematics Magazine, to a long-time commitment as Convener of the Questions

Committee for the MAA’s Putnam La r s on oren exam, to writing The Inquisitive

Problem Solver with Paul Vaderlind L of t e s y our

and Richard Guy, and now more re- c o s

cently to designing and hand crafting t

wooden mathematical puzzles. We p ho sat down with Loren and two of his Liz and Loren Larson. colleagues, Matt Richey and Paul Zorn, a few years ago and asked him Game playing was a big part of our went to a state school instead. about his life with puzzles. family life, especially card games. Mathematics as taught at a small The complete interview and others My dad was an expert bridge player, college like Bethany was much will be online at maa.org/100. and I like to think I inherited some different in those days. We started of his math genes. I think card with a full year of algebra, analytical games go a long way toward de- geometry, and trigonometry. We veloping a sense of probability and learned these subjects very well; our strategy and memory. I remember manipulation skills were far beyond when Liz (my wife) and I first dated, what is now expected in this regard. we played a few games of Rook This was followed by calculus and with her family, but their interest differential equations, but not much wasn’t really in winning so much beyond that: teaching of math, his- We’re documenting the history of the as in seeing what would happen. tory of math, theory of equations, el- MAA’s first 100 years, and you’re part They would make outrageous bids ementary Euclidean geometry; very of the story. just for the fun of getting the bid, little theory and no proof writing. Yes, the MAA was influential for me. causing great laughter. I was considered a cut-throat player because What provoked you to go to graduate Can we start with your early life and I kept track of the cards that had school? work our way up? Do you want to tell been played and offered postgame Well, in the spring of my sophomore us about growing up and elementary analysis. I quickly learned that it year, I applied for a summer intern- school? wasn’t in my best interest to play ship in mathematics at the White I grew up in a small prairie town games with her relatives. Sands Proving Ground in New in the Flint Hills of central Kansas, Mexico. Through some stroke of in the region described in William What did you do in college? good fortune, I was accepted. There Least Heat-Moon’s book PrairyErth. I went to Bethany College in Linds- were eight students in the program, There were only eight kids in our borg and lived at home; tuition at most of them from large technical class, and we were together through that time was about $200 a term, but universities. We lived together in eighth grade. I have many happy even at that, some of my high school barracks on the base. memories. friends felt it was too expensive and We went to classes and staff

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus 39

seminars given by senior mathema- direction was to find something in with linear algebra. After that, there ticians and did computational work the area between logic and algebra. was a good chance we could offer that would now be done with a few It took a full year of reading seminal them attractive and meaningful strokes on a handheld calculator. works . . . before I was able to courses regardless of their major. Among other things, we talked formulate a question that seemed This philosophy of teaching, making about our studies, exchanged our approachable. Once I was able to it fun to be in the math department, favorite math problems (e.g., the articulate the problem, the rest was resulted in a huge increase in the snowplow problem), talked about easy and a huge emotional release. number of majors, from 25 per year our math courses (I learned about I should add that no matter how to over 100, about 15 percent of the group theory and topology and lots discouraged I became with my pros- graduating class. And we continued more) and our plans, and it kind of pects during this year, I could count to have students at the top end going raised the bar for me. on expository articles and problems to leading graduate schools. from the Monthly to bolster my What was graduate school like? spirits. Your mathematical contributions are The first year was a nightmare. Most in the area of problem solving rather of us were from small colleges, and Did you have a job waiting for you at than algebra. How did this happen? our professors fresh out of Cal Tech St. Olaf? Initially I was determined to keep had no idea how hopeless we were. I did. I had returned to graduate up-to-date in algebra and logic, All but two in our class (of 30+) school on a scholarship from the and in my first years at St. Olaf, I were on probation after the first Lutheran church on the condition attended the weekly ring theory that I would come back seminar at the University of Min- when I finished. nesota. But these sessions, led by Mel Hochster, were very advanced Is that when the interest and required more time than I could in majoring in mathematics spare. Furthermore, it wasn’t some- at St. Olaf was starting to thing I could share with students ramp up? because of their limited background. Partially yes, but the real So I gave up on algebra research, increase didn’t happen acknowledging my own limitations for another five years. Be- as well as my students’ best interests. cause of Sputnik and the Here is where the MAA made a public interest in space huge difference for me. I enjoyed exploration, students problem solving of the sort featured Paul Humke, Loren Larson, Ted Vessey, and Cliff realized there were lots in the MAA journals, and this was Corzatt, Swedish Midsommer Celebration, 1980. of jobs for math majors. something I could share with stu- term. After the first year, a lot of our For one thing, computers were just dents. It was a form of research that class dropped out and became pilots beginning to make an impact, and a was acknowledged as worthwhile in or computer scientists or joined math major was a tacit prerequisite our department, though of course it companies looking for math talent. to a career in computer science. wouldn’t have amounted to a thing The second year was better; the In the late 1970s we added a at a research institution . . . turning point for me was my year- number of master teachers who long course in group theory taught reached those students who weren’t Tell us about working with the by W. R. Scott, who was then writing being well served by our pre-grad- Putnam. his classic book on the subject. uate-school curriculum. As a result I acted as the convener of the of their leadership, we changed Questions Committee and was So what did you decide to study for the emphasis from teaching math- there to offer feedback on questions your PhD work? ematics to teaching students, and regarding problem selection: appro- We decided to return to Kansas this made all the difference.. A large priateness (in subject matter, level [from a temporary job at St. Olaf] percentage of our first-year students of difficulty, and ease of solution), where I could study commutative enrolled in calculus, so the idea was originality, understandability, acces- algebra. Because of my background that if we made these classes fun, sibility, attractiveness, gradeability. in mathematical logic, my thesis they could be enticed to continue I was deemed suitable for this task

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 40

because of being at an undergraduate We got up at 7:00, walked to his as a hobby, and I intended to make institution and because of my MAA- office a mile away, climbed the five time for that. related experience with problems. flights of stairs to his office, and worked steadily all day without a Why woodworking? Is there a secret for writing a good lunch break. Time passed quickly Through high school and college problem? and soon it was 5:00, and we’d walk I worked as a carpenter building If there is, I wish I knew it. A neces- back and Louise would have dinner houses. A couple years before I sary condition, but insufficient, is an ready. Then we’d clear the table and retired, three old-growth trees fell in appreciation, and a compelling desire continue working (that is, playing) our yard and I had the wood milled to think about it for long periods of until 10:00. On the weekends Louise, into boards. I took a few lessons in time. Well, at least that’s my experi- Richard, and I would go to the woodworking and acquired a few ence, but then I think some of the mountains for a full day of hiking necessary hand tools and power people who served on the Questions (and he was well into his eighties). equipment. This hobby has grown to Committee seemed to be able to In the preface, Richard writes, “Have the point where woodworking is my come up with good problems out of fun reading the book; we doubt if passion in the way mathematics used the blue whenever we needed one you’ll have more fun than we did in to be. In fact, I now have a website at whatever level. I suppose it’s like writing it!” (woodcraftedart.com) and sell crafts writing poetry or composing music: at local fairs. I like the challenge and it seems easy for some, impossible You were retired so you could work full precision that fine woodworking for others. time? requires and the outlet it offers for I was working on two problem creativity. How did you end up doing The books and the Putnam, and I simply Inquisitive Problem Solver with wanted to put all my energy into it. What does your wife think about your Richard Guy? It was a full-time commitment to obsessions with mathematics and I met Paul Vaderlind at the Univer- keep up with George Gilbert, Mark woodworking? sity of Stockholm in Sweden, and Krusemeyer, Richard Guy, and She’s gotten used to it. Fortunately, he gave me a copy of his problems members of the Questions Com- she also had an active life as a book. Because of my Swedish mittee. This was a once-in-a-lifetime librarian, with involvements in heritage, I was interested in learning opportunity and a way to make use numerous community activities. Swedish, and I thought translating of my unique background. It seemed Plus, she’s an inveterate reader. But his book would be a fun way to do important to me to make these she keeps telling me, “Oh, it’s so nice it. I submitted the translation to the problems available to a wider reader- when you’re just sitting here reading MAA, and Richard Guy was on the ship and was a way to contribute to in the evenings.” I should add that selection committee and thought the the MAA. [The book is still in print: our family has been the most book had potential. He recognized http://bit.ly/1FFN3Dm.] important thing in our lives—our that the problems were interesting In addition to this, I had also children and in-laws and grandchil- and that a good problem should recently taken up fine woodworking dren. They are our world, there’s suggest other good problems. So he nothing more to offered to work with me to rewrite say. it and make it suitable for the MAA, keeping in mind that asking good questions is just as important to the progress of mathematics as answering questions. That became one of our main objectives; hence the title. We worked on the book for a couple years, exchanging emails daily, and I often went to Calgary for a week or two at a time. These sessions with Richard were the Larson in his woodworking studio. Right: Wooden sculpture of a best times of my mathematical life. three-dimensional knight’s tour.

MAA FOCUS • October/November 2015 • maa.org/focus 41

Ken Ono Named New Pólya Lecturer

uccessful mathematicians in 2016. Those chosen have con- identities were true—opening up Spossess myriad talents, but tributed to the public discussion of new mathematical territory. Ken Ono stands out for his range mathematics, something that Ono In 2014 he made world news of accomplishments. Specializing actively and creatively accomplishes again, this time with John Duncan in number theory, the Asa Griggs in his career. and Michael Griffin. They proved Candler Professor of Mathematics “In a way, I was meant to be a the Umbral Moonshine conjecture, at Emory University is also a journal mathematician. Everything about which extends the Fields Medal editor, member of the U.S. National my life has been dictated by the work of Berkeley mathematician Committee for Mathematics, a world of mathematics,” says Ono. Richard Borcherds. Their work is competitive triathlete, and a Hol- Ono’s father is Takashi Ono, a now being applied to string theory. lywood consultant and associate mathematician who emigrated from Ono also served as chief math- producer. Now Ono can add 2017- Japan before working as a professor ematical consultant (and associate 2018 George Pólya Lecturer to his at the Institute for Advanced Study. producer) for The Man Who Knew achievements. Now Ono is well on his way to Infinity, a Hollywood film about Ramanujan. Ono is deeply pas- sionate about both Ramanujan’s beautiful mathematics and his personal story—a mathematical genius who had little formal training and worked as a clerk in India before traveling to the University of Cambridge to publish his findings. Ono calls the idea of Ramanujan very important—particularly to mathematics students. “We often live life in a frenetic race, chasing random credentials,” he says. “In reality, we should be recognizing y and evaluating true achievement.” Ono finds many opportunities to train future mathematicians: he advises nine PhD students and ory U n iv er sit Em ory runs a summer research program (REU) on number theory for up Everything about my life has been dictated to 10 undergraduates. “Talent is “ by the world of mathematics. often found in unusual or even ” unforgiving circumstances,” he says. “As a professor, it is my job to first The MAA appoints a new Pólya building his own legacy. In 2013 recognize that talent and then to Lecturer every year, whose primary Ono and his colleagues Michael nurture it.” responsibility is presenting talks Griffin and Ole Warnaar made his- Now Ono is looking forward to at MAA section meetings. Each tory when they discovered four in- more opportunities to speak to his appointee serves a term of two aca- finite families of Rogers-Ramanujan peers, and young mathematicians, at demic years; the first year overlaps identities. Together, they solved a section meetings. “I am honored to with the second year of the previous century-old mystery of two famous be named a Pólya Lecturer,” he says. Pólya Lecturer. The current lecturer, identities first studied by the Indian His goals for his lectures, he adds, William Dunham (Muhlenberg mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan are twofold: to inspire young math- College), is in the middle of his in the early 1900s. What Ono and ematicians and to continue driving 2015-2016 term, and Erica Flapan his colleagues found was the frame- mathematics toward the future. (Pomona College) will begin hers work that shows how Ramanujan’s —Alexandra Branscombe

maa.org/focus • October/November 2015 • MAA FOCUS 42 | JMM 2016

Washington State Convention Center and the Sheraton Seattle Hotel

This is a summary of the Joint Mathematics Meetings 2016 program. The complete program is online at jointmathematicsmeetings.org/meetings/national/jmm2016/2181_intro. For your convenience, a PDF of the program is posted on the MAA FOCUS web page (maa.org/maa-focus-supplements ). For updated information, check the JMM homepage. MAA Invited Address MAA Invited Addresses Katherine Crowley / Washington and Lee University Mathematics and Policy: Strategies for Effective Advocacy Wednesday (1/6), 3:20–4:10 p.m. MAA Invited Address One day in the U.S. Senate, a team T. Christine Stevens / American Mathematical Society of political staffers took a sponta- Singing along with Math: The Mathematical Work of the neous break from writing legisla- Opera Singer Jerome Hines tion to request combinatorial Wednesday (1/6), 2:15–3:05 p.m. proofs on demand of their favorite For over 40 years, Jerome Hines mathematical identities from their (1921-2003) sang principal bass roles mathematician colleague (me). As at the Metropolitan Opera in New the barrage of job demands York and in opera houses around the implored us to disperse moments world. He was also a math major later, our legislative director chided who retained a lifelong interest in me for sneaking in the final answer by induction. What is mathematics. During the 1950s the level of understanding of mathematics among those Hines published five papers in who craft our national policies? What impact does a Mathematics Magazine that were mathematician have in a seat at the table of debate over our based on work done as a student, and country’s most pressing challenges? How can mathemati- he later produced several lengthy mathematical manu- cians inform policy, and how can policy support math- scripts about cardinality and infinite sets. I will discuss ematics? I will discuss the elements of effective advocacy some of Hines’ mathematical work, as well as the way in for our discipline. which his undergraduate experience at UCLA converted him from a student with no particular liking for mathematics into an aspiring mathematician. I also hope to MAA Invited Address explore the question of what mathematics meant to Hines Steven Brams / New York University and why, in the midst of demanding musical career, he felt Fair Division it important for him to develop and publish his math- Thursday (1/7), 9:00–9:50 a.m. ematical ideas. Ideas about fair division, including “I cut, you choose,” can be traced back to the Bible. But since the discovery 20 years ago of an n-person JMM 2016 | 43 algorithm for the envy-free division of a heterogeneous possible collapses. But beyond capturing the concepts, divisible good, such as cake or land, interest in fair division which itself should not be understated as an important has burgeoned. Besides envy-freeness, properties such as contribution to workers from diverse disciplines, we also equitability, efficiency, and strategy-proofness have been offer powerful tools for going deeper to mine important studied, and both existence results and algorithms to insights, resolve specific uncertainties, and guide future implement them will be discussed (some implementations actions. I will expand upon these ideas with examples from will be shown to be impossible). More recent work on the real world and with some mathematical gems that algorithms for the fair allocation of indivisible items, and many of us might not ordinarily encounter in our math- tradeoffs among properties, will be presented. Applications, ematical training or reading. I will also mention how this including those to dispute resolution, will be discussed. work grew out of an exhilarating interdisciplinary undergraduate seminar course. MAA Invited Address Alan Schoenfeld / University of California Berkeley MAA Lecture for Students What Makes for Powerful Classrooms—and What Can We Robert Devaney / Boston University Do, Now That We Know? The Fractal Geometry of the Mandelbrot Set Friday (1/8), 9:00–9:50 a.m. Friday (1/8), 1:00–1:50 p.m. We now understand the properties of In this lecture I describe several folk classrooms that produce powerful theorems concerning the Mandelbrot mathematical thinkers and problem set. While this set is extremely solvers. The evidence comes mostly complicated from a geometric point but not exclusively from K-12. The of view, I will show that, as long as question for us: What are the you know how to add and how to implications for the ways we teach count, you can understand this postsecondary mathematics? geometry completely. We will encounter many famous mathematical objects in the Mandelbrot MAA Invited Address set, like the Farey tree and the Fibonacci sequence. And we Charles R. Hadlock / Bentley University will find many soon-to-be-famous objects as well, like the A Mathematical Tour through a Collapsing World “Devaney” sequence. There might even be a joke or two in Saturday (1/9), 10:05–10:55 a.m. the talk. If you search the word “collapse” on MAA-AMS-SIAM Gerald and Judith Porter Lecture Google News on any given day, you Jennifer Chayes, Microsoft Research are sure to get thousands of hits, as Network Science: From the Online World to Cancer well as a healthy reminder that we do Genomics live in a world where a very wide variety of things are collapsing every Saturday (1/9), 3:00–4:00 p.m. day. When assessing the risk of Everywhere we turn these days, we collapse, one’s initial mind-set about find that networks can be used to its source can lead to insufficient describe relevant interactions. In the attention being paid to alternative high-tech world, we see the Internet, sources. That’s why financial auditors, accident investiga- the World Wide Web, mobile phone tors, and similar professionals follow systematic protocols networks, and a variety of online that attempt to ensure that a wide field of issues are social networks. In economics, we addressed, even in the presence of strong evidence pointing are increasingly experiencing both in a particular direction. This same mentality is important the positive and negative effects of a in more general and less structured treatments of risk and global networked economy. In possible collapse, whether to companies, currencies, epidemiology, we find disease spreading over our ever- species, governments, facilities, diseases, societies, or growing social networks, complicated by mutation of the almost anything else. Mathematics provides an ideal disease agents. In biomedical research, we are beginning to framework for capturing the essence of a wide range of understand the structure of gene regulatory networks, with common collapse dynamics that permeate many areas of the prospect of using this understanding to manage many application. After all, we customarily discuss subjects like human diseases. In this talk, I look generally at some of the probabilities, extrema, stability, nonlinearity, games, models we are using to describe these networks, processes networks, and others, all of which are closely related to we are studying on the networks, algorithms we have 44 | JMM 2016 devised for the networks, and finally, methods we are developing to infer AMS Invited Addresses Marta Lewicka / network structure from measured data. University of Pittsburgh I’ll discuss in some detail particular Prestrained Elasticity: applications to cancer genomics, Panagiota Curvature Constraints applying network algorithms to Daskalopoulos / and Differential suggest drug targets for certain kinds Columbia University Geometry with Low of cancer. Title to be announced Regularity Saturday (1/9), 9:00 a.m. Wednesday (1/6),10:05 a.m.

Alex Eskin / University Josiah Willard Gibbs Lecture Conference vs. of Chicago Daniel A. Spielman / Convention The SL(2,R) Action on Yale University Moduli Space Some sessions are being Graphs, Vectors, and held in the Washington Friday (1/8),10:05 a.m. Matrices State Conference Wednesday (1/6), 8:30 p.m. Center, which is across the street (by skybridge) Colloquium Lectures from the Washington State Timothy Gowers / AMS Retiring Presidential Convention Center. University of Cambridge Address Where this is the case, we are Generalizations of David Vogan / writing out Conference Center. Fourier Analysis, and Massachusetts Institute of Please pay attention! How to Apply Them Technology Wednesday–Friday Conjugacy Classes and (1/6–1/8), 1:00 p.m. Group Representations Thursday (1/7), 3:20 p.m.

Joint Prize Session Prize in Lie Theory, Levi L. Conant Prize, E. H. Moore Research Article Information on the JMM Prize, David P. Robbins Prize, Leroy P. To showcase the achievements of Steele Prizes, and the Oswald Veblen website is posted as it is recipients of the various prizes, the AMS Prize in Geometry. and MAA are cosponsoring this event The MAA will award the Chauvenet received. For updated at 4:25 p.m. on Thursday. A cash bar Prize, Euler Book Prize, Deborah and reception will immediately follow. All Franklin Tepper Haimo Awards for conference details: participants are invited to attend. Distinguished College or University Teaching of Mathematics, and the The AMS, ASA, MAA, and SIAM will jointmathematicsmeet announce the JPBM Communications Yueh-Gin Gung and Dr. Charles Y. Award winner. The AMS, MAA, and Hu Award for Distinguished Service to ings.org/jmm. SIAM will award the Frank and Brennie Mathematics. Morgan Prize for Outstanding Research The AWM will present the Louise Hay in Mathematics by an Undergraduate Award for Contributions to Mathematics Student. Education, the M. Gweneth Humphreys The AMS and SIAM will announce Award for Mentorship of Undergraduate the Norbert Wiener Prize in Applied Women in Mathematics, and the Mathematics. The AMS will announce Alice T. Schafer Prize for Excellence the winners of the Award for in Mathematics by an Undergraduate Distinguished Public Service, Chevalley Woman. JMM 2016 | 45

Steven M. Zelditch / dynamical models as well as combina- • Günter Törner, University of Northwestern University torial and algebraic models. Duisberg-Essen Chaotic Billiards and Organizers: Brian Walton, James Vibrations of Drums Madison University; and Maeve Mc- Fair Division Thursday (1/7), Carthy, Murray State University Thursday (1/7), 1:00–4:15 p.m., 2:15 p.m. Speakers: WSCC Room 607 • Joseph Felsenstein, University of This session accompanies Steven Washington Joint Invited Addresses Brams’s invited address on the • Suzanne Lenhart, University of same topic. The goal of the session Tennessee is to show how different types of AMS-MAA • David Murrugarra, University of mathematics can be used to address Kristin Estella Lauter / Kentucky questions in both theoretical and ap- • Ami Radunskaya, Pomona College Microsoft Research plied aspects of fair division. Although How to Keep Your • Brandilyn Stigler, Southern Meth- a relatively new field, fair division Genome Secret odist University now encompasses a wide variety of Sponsor: BIO SIGMAA Friday (1/8), 11:10 a.m. approaches (analytic, combinatoric, geometric, and axiomatic) to address

What Do We Know about both discrete and continuous prob- AMS-MAA University Mathematics lems. Fairness criteria can be applied Xiao-Li Meng / Teaching, and How Can It Help Us? to such diverse applications as cake Harvard University Friday (1/8), 1:00–5:00 p.m., WSCC cutting, the establishment of priority Statistical Paradises and Room 607 lists, and resource allocation. Paradoxes in Big Data Research on university-level math- Although the talks will be research Friday (1/8), 11:10 a.m. ematics teaching and learning has oriented, speakers will include an grown over the past few decades expository overview to introduce AWM-AMS Noether Lecture from a cottage industry into a robust fair division to a diverse audience Karen E. Smith / enterprise, both in general (with find- including students. University of Michigan ings on problem solving, “powerful Organizers: Michael A. Jones, Math- Title to be announced teaching,” and understanding how and ematical Reviews; and Jennifer Wilson, Thursday (1/7), why teachers make the choices they New School 10:05 a.m. do while teaching) and with regard to Speakers: specific courses (e.g., developmental • Julius Barbanel, Union College mathematics, linear algebra, proof). In • Jonathan Hodge, Grand Valley State MAA Invited Paper Sessions turn, the research has led to applica- University tions to teaching. This too is in general • Michael A. Jones, Mathematical (with professional development Reviews Current Trends in Mathematical framed around the issues raised in re- • D. Marc Kilgour, Wilfrid Laurier and Computational Biology search leading to changes in teaching) University Thursday (1/7), 9:00–11:20 a.m., and in particular courses. • Kathryn Nyman, Willamette WSCC Room 607 Organizer: Alan Schoenfeld, Univer- University Mathematical and computational sity of California Berkeley • William Webb, Washington State biology encompasses a diverse range Speakers: University of biological phenomena and quan- • Bill Barton, University of Auckland titative methods of exploring those • Ann Edwards, Carnegie Foundation phenomena. This session of current for the Advancement of Teaching research topics will sample from • Sean Larsen, Portland State this diversity. Biological application University areas will address current research • Judy Paterson, University of in growth and control of popula- Auckland tions, spread and development of • Alon Pinto, UC Berkeley disease, evolution and bioinformatics, • Chris Rasmussen, San Diego State and molecular interactions in the University cell. Mathematical approaches will • Annie and John Selden, New include deterministic and stochastic Mexico State University 46 | JMM 2016

MAA Workshops available and additional skills required geriatric car crashes on the decline? for a successful nonacademic job Which nations are the most “devel- search. Some of the topics we will oped”? These are all captivating ques- The Enjoyment of Employment: cover: tions, and the commonality among Finding the Right Organizational • The nonacademic job market for them is that they were tackled by Culture quantitative PhDs students using data from Gapminder. Wednesday (1/6), 2:15–3:35 p.m., • Skills required of PhDs for nonaca- org. While such questions are non- WSCC Room 612 demic jobs trivial for a mathematician or sociolo- This workshop is targeted to graduate • Making industry internships work gist to approach, it is worthwhile for students and postdocs who are for the PhD and adviser students to approach them—doing the considering nonacademic careers. • Counseling and networking work could change their mind about Are you considering a nonacademic resources for nonacademically the utility of mathematics. Created in career after graduate school or bound PhDs 2005, Gapminder is a nonprofit site your postdoc? Are you aware of the • Supporting nonacademic career with the goal of enhancing sustain- “WSCC” different kinds of workplace cultures PhDs emotionally and behaviorally able global development through stands for you’ll encounter? People look for • Managing academic and non- an increased use of information Washington different things in a job: one person academic career PhDs in the same regarding social, economic, and State might want to change the world, department environmental development at local Convention while another just wants a paycheck. • Sharing experiences and challenges and international levels. With more Center Matching your work personality to in mentoring nonacademic career than 520 data sets to peruse, the site the culture of the organization is one PhDs is a powerhouse for applications in of the prime factors in workplace The tools and topics of this work- the classroom; one might use it for happiness. In this workshop you’ll shop are targeted to mathematical demonstrations, short-term assign- assess your workplace personality, sciences faculty who embrace (or ments, or semester-long research which we will then match against dif- at least accept) nonacademic career projects. Notwithstanding, deciding ferent work environments to see what choices for their graduate students how to use the tools so that neither kinds of organizations are compatible and postdocs. The workshop is not a you nor your students become over- with your work style. We’ll end with discussion of the appropriateness of a whelmed can be a challenge. As such, a checklist and timeline for starting graduate education for nonacademic the first component of this interactive your job search so that you’ll be fully career candidates. workshop is to familiarize instructors prepared when the time comes. Before Organizer: Douglas Kalish, University with the site and its visualization the workshop, go to dougsguides of California Berkeley tools. Next, we will move on to discuss .com/personality, take the personality the applications of it in classes such assessment, and bring the results with Applications of Gapminder for as college algebra, first-year seminar, you. Undergraduate Mathematics introductory and upper-level statis- Organizer: Douglas Kalish, University and Statistics Courses tics, differential equations, and other of California Berkeley Thursday (1/7), 8:00–9:20 a.m., modeling courses. Finally, participants Conference Center Tahoma 1 will work in teams to create assign- Guiding Your PhDs to Do a nation’s GDP and its youth’s ments for immediate use in their Nonacademic Careers math ability go hand-in-hand? Are classrooms. Whether one has used Thursday (1/7), 8:00 – 9:20 a.m., WSCC Room 612 Mathematical Art Exhibition According to the NSF, in 2010 nearly A popular feature at the Joint Mathematics Meetings, this exhibition provides 50 percent of mathematics and a break in your day. On display are works in various media by artists who statistics PhDs held nonacademic are inspired by mathematics and by mathematicians who use visual art to positions. More faculty are accepting express their findings. Topology, fractals, polyhedra, and tiling are some and promoting nonacademic career of the ideas at play here. Don’t miss this unique opportunity for a different alternatives for their graduate students and postdocs. But for some faculty perspective on mathematics. The exhibition will be located inside the Joint without extensive industry experience Mathematics Exhibits and open during the same exhibit hours. or contacts, it’s difficult to offer advice Organizers: Robert Fathauer, Tessellations Company; Nathaniel A. Fried- and counsel to these students. This man, ISAMA and SUNY Albany, Anne Burns, Long Island University C. workshop provides information and W. Post Campus, Reza Sarhangi, Towson University, and Nathan Selikoff, tools for faculty who want to mentor Digital Awakening Studios. their PhDs as to the opportunities JMM 2016 | 47 the site before or not, each participant Dakota State University; Karen Sponsor: MAA Committee on the should expect to take away mean- Morgan, New Jersey City University; Mathematical Education of Teachers ingful, tangible strategies for its use. Gulden Karakok, University of (COMET) Participants should come prepared to Northern Colorado; and James A. learn more about the world and how Mendoza Epperson, University of Trends in Undergraduate to bring it into your classroom! Texas–Arlington Mathematical Biology Education Organizers: Samuel L. Tunstall, Sarah Sponsors: MAA Committee on the Friday morning Greenwald, and Bill Bauldry, Appala- Mathematical Education of Teachers Organizers: Timothy Comar, chian State University (COMET) and the MAA Committee Benedictine University; and Daniel on Assessment Hrozencik, Chicago State University Sponsor: BIO SIGMAA MAA Contributed The Teaching and Learning Paper Sessions of Undergraduate Ordinary Mathematics and the Arts Differential Equations Wednesday (1/6) morning and Friday (1/8) morning Full descriptions of the paper sessions afternoon Organizers: Christopher S. Goodrich, with themes are on the JMM website. Organizer: Douglas Norton, Villa- Creighton Preparatory School; and nova University CONTRIBUTED PAPER SESSIONS Beverly H. West, Cornell University Sponsor: SIGMAA ARTS, the WITH THEMES Sponsor: Community of Ordinary SIGMAA on Mathematics and the Differential Equations Educators Experiences and Innovations in Arts Teaching Probability Theory (CODEE) Wednesday (1/6) morning Innovative and Effective Ways to The Broad Impact of Math Organizers: Jonathon Peterson, Teach Linear Algebra Circles Purdue University; and Nathaniel Friday (1/8) afternoon Thursday (1/7) afternoon Eldredge, University of Northern Organizers: Amanda Matson, Clarke Colorado Organizers: David Strong, Pepper- dine University; Gil Strang, MIT; and University; Katherine Morrison, University of Northern Colorado; and Topics and Techniques for Megan Wawro, Virginia Tech Philip Yasskin, Texas A&M University Teaching Real Analysis Sponsor: SIGMAA MCST, the Wednesday (1/6) afternoon Helping Students See beyond Calculus SIGMAA on Math Circles for Stu- Organizers: Erik Talvila, University dents and Teachers of the Fraser Valley; Paul Musial, Saturday (1/9) afternoon Chicago State University; Robert Organizers: David Strong, Pep- Mathematics Experiences and Vallin, Lamar University; and James perdine University; James Tanton, Projects in Business, Industry, Peterson, Alma College MAA; Courtney Davis, Pepperdine and Government University; and Angela Spalsbury, Friday (1/8) afternoon Using Philosophy to Teach Youngstown State University Mathematics Sponsor: SIGMAA TAHSM Organizers: Carla D. Martin, Depart- ment of Defense, and Allen Butler, Thursday morning Mathematics and Sports Wagner Associates Organizers: Carl Behrens, Alexan- Sponsor: BIG SIGMAA dria, Virginia; and Dan Sloughter, Saturday (1/9) morning Furman University Organizers: Drew Pasteur, College The Scholarship of Teaching Sponsor: POM SIGMAA of Wooster; and John David, Virginia and Learning in Collegiate Military Institute Mathematics Common Core State Standards Wednesday (1/6) morning and Preparation, Placement, (CCSS) for Mathematics afternoon Practices and Content: The and Support of Elementary Organizers: Jacqueline Dewar, Loyola Role of Math Departments in Mathematics Specialists Marymount University; Thomas Ban- Preparing Math Education Thursday mornin-g choff, Brown University; Curtis Ben- Candidates for New Organizers: Laurie J. Burton, Western nett, Loyola Marymount University; Assessments Oregon University; Cheryl Beaver, Pam Crawford, Jacksonville Univer- Thursday (1/7) afternoon Western Oregon University; and Klay sity; and Edwin Herman, University of Kruczek, Southern Connecticut State Organizers: William Martin, North Wisconsin–Stevens Point University 48 | JMM 2016

The Contributions of Minorities State University; and Perla Myers, Ganter, East Carolina University to Mathematics throughout University of San Diego Bringing the Community into the History College Mathematics Classroom Friday (1/8) morning Contemplative Pedagogy and Thursday (1/7) afternoon Organizers: Amy Shell-Gellasch, Mathematics Organizer: Ksenija Simic-Muller, Montgomery College; and Lloyd Friday (1/8) afternoon Pacific Lutheran University Douglas, University of North Carolina Organizers: Luke Wolcott, Lawrence Sponsor: HOM SIGMAA University; and Justin Brody, Goucher Innovative Targeted Solutions in College Teaching Introductory Statistics Incorporating the History Thursday (1/7) afternoon of Mathematics into Assessing Student Learning: Organizers: Patti Frazer Lock, St. Developmental Math Courses Alternative Approaches Lawrence University; Randall Pruim, Wednesday (1/6) morning Saturday (1/9) morning Calvin College; and Sue Schou, Idaho Organizers: Van Herd, University Organizers: David Clark, Grand State University of Texas at Austin; and Amy Shell- Valley State University; Jane But- Sponsor: SIGMAA on Statistics Gellasch, Montgomery College terfield, University of Victoria; Robert Education Sponsor: HOM SIGMAA Campbell, College of St. Benedict/St. John’s University; and Cassie Wil- New Ideas in Teaching Upper- Integrating Research into the liams, James Madison University Level Statistics Courses Undergraduate Classroom Friday (1/8) afternoon Saturday (1/9) afternoon Quantitative Literacy in the K-16 Organizers: Patti Frazer Lock, St. Curriculum Organizers: Shannon R. Lockard, Lawrence University; Randall Pruim, Wednesday (1/6) afternoon Bridgewater State University; and Calvin College; and Sue Schou, Idaho Timothy B. Flowers, Indiana Univer- Organizers: Aaron Montgomery, State University sity of Pennsylvania Central Washington University; Gary Sponsor: SIGMAA on Statistics Franchy, Southwestern Michigan Education Graduate Students Teach Too: College; Gizem Karaali, Pomona Addressing the Needs of Ideas and Best Practices College; Andrew Miller, Belmont Mathematics and Computer Saturday (1/9) morning University; and Victor Piercey, Ferris Science Majors in Discrete Organizer: Samuel L. Tunstall, State University Mathematics Courses Michigan State University Sponsor: SIGMAA QL Saturday (1/9) afternoon Organizers: Ksenija Simic-Muller, Mathematical Modeling in the Innovative Approaches to One- Pacific Lutheran University; and Tom Undergraduate Curriculum Semester Calculus Courses J. Edgar, Pacific Lutheran University Saturday (1/9) morning Thursday (1/7) morning Organizers: Jason Douma, Univer- Organizers: Joel Kilty and Alex M. Proofs and Mathematical sity of Sioux Falls; and Rachel Levy, McAllister, Centre College Reasoning in the First Two Years Harvey Mudd College of College Sponsors: MAA CUPM Mathematics Conversations with the Partner Wednesday (1/6) morning Across the Disciplines Subcommittee Disciplines: Collaborations Organizers: Joanne Peeples, El Paso and the SIAM Education Committee to Improve the Mathematics Research in Undergraduate Curriculum Community College; Chris Oehrlein, Mathematics Education Saturday (1/9) afternoon Oklahoma City Community College; and Dean Gooch, Santa Rosa Junior Thursday (1/7) morning and Sponsors: Curriculum Renewal afternoon College Across the First Two Years (CRAFTY) Sponsor: MAA Committee on Two Organizer: Karen A. Keene, North and Mathematics Across the Dis- Year Colleges Carolina State University ciplines (MAD) subcommittees of CUPM and the journal PRIMUS: Sponsor: SIGMAA on RUME Professional Development for Problems, Resources, and Issues in Mathematicians: A Contributed Undergraduate Mathematics Studies Origami in the Mathematics Paper Session for MAA PREP Organizers: Victor Piercey, Ferris K-12 Classroom Organizers and Participants State University; Suzanne I. Dorée, Saturday (1/9) afternoon Wednesday (1/6) afternoon Augsburg College; Jason Douma, Organizers: Roger Alperin, San Jose University of Sioux Falls; and Susan Organizers: Jon Scott, Montgomery JMM 2016 | 49

College; Barbara Edwards, Oregon • Assessment affect undergraduate education in “WSCC” State University; Nancy Hastings, • History or Philosophy of mathematics you should attend this stands for Dickinson College; and Stan Yoshi- Mathematics session. This two-part short course Washington nobu, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo • Interdisciplinary Topics in will provide information on the spe- State Sponsor: MAA Committee on Profes- Mathematics cific components of an NSF proposal, Convention sional Development • Mathematics and Technology demonstrate the NSF peer review Center. The • Mentoring process, provide access to previously Conference Inquiry-Based Teaching and • Modeling and Applications funded proposals, and explicate the Center is Learning • Outreach NSF merit review criteria by which a different Friday (1/8) morning • Teaching and Learning Develop- proposals are reviewed. Participants building. Organizers: Brian Katz, Augustana mental Mathematics should leave this minicourse with a College; and Victor Piercey, Ferris • Teaching and Learning Introduc- draft of a project summary. State University tory Mathematics • Teaching and Learning Calculus Minicourse 2 • Teaching and Learning Advanced Visual Topics in Undergraduate Recreational Mathematics: Mathematics Complex Analysis Puzzles, Card Tricks, Games, • Algebra Part A. Wednesday (1/6), 4:45–6:45 Game Shows, and Gambling • Analysis p.m., Conference Center Tahoma 5 Thursday (1/7) morning • Applied Mathematics Part B. Friday (1/8), 3:30–5:30 p.m., Organizers: Paul R. Coe, Sara B. • Geometry Conference Center Tahoma 5 Quinn, and Marion Weedermann, • Graph Theory Dominican University Presenters: Michael Brilleslyper, U.S. • Linear Algebra Air Force Academy; and Michael • Logic and Foundations Dorff, Brigham Young University Revitalizing Complex Analysis • Number Theory Saturday (1/9) morning Complex analysis is a staple of the • Probability and Statistics undergraduate mathematics cur- Organizers: Russell Howell, West- • Topology riculum. It is a beautiful mathematical mont College; Paul Zorn, St. Olaf • Other subject that unifies and extends College; and Alan Noell, Oklahoma many topics from other courses. State University The course readily pulls together the The Development and Adoption MAA Minicourses theories of polynomial equations, of Open Educational Resources differentiation, integration, and series, for Teaching and Learning while also including geometry and Friday (1/8) afternoon Minicourse 1 Introductory Proposal Writing function theory. Unfortunately, many Organizers: Benjamin Atchison, undergraduate courses end right Framingham State University, and Short Course for Grant Applications to the NSF EHR/ where the cool stuff starts. In this Jeremy Russell, the College of New minicourse, the proposers intend to Jersey Division of Undergraduate Education expose the participants to two of the Tuesday (1/5), 9:00–11:00 a.m. and myriad of topics that are possible: (1) GENERAL CONTRIBUTED PAPER 2:00–3:00 p.m. an introduction to minimal surfaces, SESSIONS and (2) the dynamics and locations of Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Presenters: John Haddock, Teri Jo zeros of families of polynomials. Both Saturday (1/6–1/9) morning and Murphy, and Lee Zia, Division of of these topics are accessible to an afternoon Undergraduate Education, National audience having familiarity with the Science Foundation Organizers: Jennifer Beineke, basics of complex analysis. The course Western New England University; Presenters will describe the general is aimed at instructors of complex Bem Cayco, San Jose State University; NSF grant proposal process and variables who are looking for some Timothy Comar, Benedictine Univer- consider particular details relevant interesting topics for their courses, sity; and T. James Reid, University of to programs in the Division of mathematicians who want to start Mississippi Undergraduate Education. This learning something about the pro- The MAA’s General Contributed course is geared toward those who posed areas, and instructors looking Paper Session covers all areas of math- have not submitted a proposal to for potential undergraduate research ematics, curriculum, and pedagogy. NSF and are unfamiliar with the projects to do with their students. They are classified according to the organization. If you believe you have Participants will need to bring their following scheme. an idea, project, or program worthy own computers with a current version of federal support that will positively 50 | JMM 2016 of Mathematica, Maple, or Matlab. participants who wish to develop a Minicourse 5 There will be limited support for Sage. course in mathematics and sports, Teaching Introductory Statistics or to incorporate sports applications for Instructors New to Teaching Minicourse 3 into existing courses. The depth of the Statistics Designing and Implementing problems will range from those that Part A. Wednesday (1/6), 9:00–11:00 a Problem-Based Mathematics require little mathematical back- a.m., WSCC Tahoma 1 Course ground (elementary probability, sta- Part B. Friday (1/8), 9:00–11:00 a.m., Part A. Wednesday (1/6), 4:45–6:45 tistics, and combinatorics) that would WSCC Tahoma 1 p.m., WSCC Tahoma 2 be suitable in a first-year seminar or Presenter: Carolyn K. Cuff, Westmin- Part B. Friday (1/8), 3:30–5:30 p.m., general education course, to more ster College WSCC Tahoma 2 sophisticated topics (linear algebra, This minicourse, intended for Presenters: Gail Burrill, Michigan operations research, mathematics of instructors new to teaching statistics, State University; Bowen Kerins, finance) that can make up an elective exposes participants to the big ideas Educational Development Center; and for mathematics majors or minors. of statistics and the ASA-endorsed Darryl Yong, Harvey Mudd College Examples will come from many “Guidelines for Assessment and A problem-based math course, different sports including baseball, Instruction in Statistics Education” where students spend most of the basketball, football, figure skating, and (GAISE) report. It considers ways to time in an interactive, collaborative distance running, depending on the engage students in statistical literacy environment, working on problems interest of participants. Application and thinking, and contrast conceptual connecting various mathematical topics will include strategy, ranking and procedural understanding in the domains, can simultaneously engage and judging, efficient scheduling, and first statistics course. Participants will a broad range of students and en- optimization. Participants will find engage in many of the classic activities large their understanding of what it many of the issues are connected to that all statistics instructors should means to do math. The panelists will essays in the MAA published book know. A set of approximately six to discuss the design of such a course, Mathematics and Sports edited by Joe eight hands-on, classroom-ready consider issues related to teaching Gallian. activities will be given to participants. the course, and describe how it might Parts of each activity will be done by be implemented in a mathematics the participants, other parts will be program. Such courses were originally developed for teachers at the Park Navajo Math Circles City Mathematics Institute, but are Wednesday (1/6), 6:30–7:50 p.m. applicable for undergraduate majors, Hundreds of Navajo children in recent years have found themselves at prospective teachers, or as part of the center of a lively collaboration with mathematicians from around continuing education programs for the world. The children stay late after school and assemble over the experienced teachers. Discussion will summer to study mathematics, using a model called math circles, which be framed by asking what the math- originated in Eastern Europe and which has proliferated across the United ematical goals of such a course might States. This notion of student-centered learning puts children in charge of be, how these goals could contribute exploring mathematics to their own joy and satisfaction, with potentially to a better student understanding long-lasting results. of what it means to do mathematics and how such courses might be part Navajo Math Circles is a one-hour film that is documenting the meeting of the offerings in a typical math of two worlds: that of some of the country’s most-accomplished math- department. ematicians and math educators, with the children and teachers in the underserved, largely rural Navajo educational system. An eight-minute Minicourse 4 trailer gives a taste of the film. Teaching Mathematics with The project is supported by the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute Sports Applications (MSRI) in Berkeley, California, with a generous grant from the Simons Part A. Wednesday (1/6), 2:15–4:15 Foundation, and by Vision Maker Media (VMM), Lincoln, Nebraska, p.m., WSCC Tahoma 2 and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). Following this Part B. Friday (1/8), 1:00–3:00 p.m., premiere screening at the 2016 Joint Mathematics Meeting, Vision Maker WSCC Tahoma 2 Media will work with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to sched- Presenter: Rick Cleary, Babson ule a national broadcast. College This minicourse is designed to help JMM 2016 | 51 summarized by the presenter, and the Minicourse 7 an abstract algebra prerequisite. This main statistical ideas of the activity Making Sense of Calculus with type of course should be of interest will be explained to the participants. Mapping Diagrams to students who want to become The activities have been chosen so Part A. Thursday (1/7), 1:00–3:00 p.m., secondary schoolteachers and also that they require minimal adaptation WSCC Tahoma 1 to those students who plan to pursue for a wide variety of classrooms and Part B. Saturday (1/9), 1:00–3:00 p.m., graduate work in mathematics. People are easy to implement. Each activity WSCC Tahoma 1 who want to teach an IBL algebraic includes goals, key ideas, prerequisite Presenter: Martin Flashman, Hum- geometry course or who just want a skills and concepts, connection to boldt State University brief introduction to algebraic geom- other statistical concepts, objectives, In this minicourse, participants will etry are encouraged to attend. known student difficulties, and assess- learn how to use mapping diagrams Minicourse 9 ment questions. Internet sources of (MD) to visualize functions for many Increasing Student Engagement real data, activities, and best practices calculus concepts. For a given func- and Understanding through articles will be examined. Participants tion, f, a mapping diagram is basically Active Learning Strategies in will find out how they can continue to a visualization of a function table that Calculus learn about the best practices for the can be made dynamic with current Part A. Wednesday (1/6), 2:15–4:15 first course in statistics by becoming technology. The MD represents x p.m., Convention Center Tahoma 1 involved in statistics education–re- and f(x) from the table as points on lated conferences, newsletters, and parallel axes, and arrows between the Part B. Friday (1/8), 1:00–3:00 p.m., groups. points indicate the function relation. Convention Center Tahoma 1 The course will start with an overview Presenters: Debbie Gochenaur, Minicourse 6 of MDs and then connect MDs to Shippensburg University; Larissa Getting Started in the key calculus definitions and theory Schroeder, University of Hartford; Scholarship of Teaching and including: linearity, limits, derivatives, Matt Boelkins, Grand Valley State Learning integrals, and series. Participants will University; Angie Hodge, University Part A. Thursday (1/7), 9:00–11:00 learn how to use MDs to visualize of Nebraska Omaha; Carrie Diaz a.m., WSCC Tahoma 5 concepts, results, and proofs not easily Eaton, Unity College; and Dana Ernst, Part B. Saturday (1/9), 9:00–11:00 a.m., realized with graphs for both single Northern Arizona University WSCC Tahoma 5 and multivariable calculus. Partici- Participants will learn curricular Presenters: Jacqueline M. Dewar and pants are encouraged to bring a laptop and cocurricular evidence-based, Curtis D. Bennett, Loyola Marymount with wireless capability. active-learning strategies to embed in University a Calculus I course. Active learning This course will introduce partici- Minicourse 8 is a process whereby students engage pants to the scholarship of teaching Algebraic Geometry: A Problem- in activities, such as writing, discus- and learning (SoTL) in mathematics Based Course sion, or problem solving that promote and help them begin projects of their Part A. Wednesday (1/6), 2:15–4:15 analysis, synthesis, and evaluation own. We describe a taxonomy of SoTL p.m., WSCC Tahoma 5 of class content; positively affecting questions, provide examples of SoTL Part B. Friday (1/8), 1:00–3:00 p.m., student success can begin with an projects in mathematics, and discuss WSCC Tahoma 5 increase in student engagement within the classroom. This minicourse, methods for investigation. Partici- Presenters: Thomas Garrity, Williams intended for the novice user, will pants will learn about collecting and College; and Ryan Brown, Georgia include small group discussion and analyzing different types of evidence, College hands-on development of active- dealing with human subjects require- Participants will learn how to learning strategies. Participants should ments, and selecting venues for pre- structure an introductory under- bring digital copies of their own cur- senting or publishing their work. With graduate course in algebraic geometry riculum material so that strategies can the presenters’ guidance, participants that is problem based (and hence be embedded into personal material interactively select and transform a an inquiry-based learning course). during the workshop. Bring a laptop teaching problem of their own into a As algebraic geometry is one of the with wireless capability. question for scholarly investigation core subjects of mathematics, such a Sponsor: MAA-NCTM Joint Com- and identify several types of evidence course allows undergraduates to be mittee on Mutual Concerns to gather. introduced to a tremendous amount of material. Further, such a course can be and has been taught either with a linear algebra prerequisite or with 52 | JMM 2016

Minicourse 10 Part B. Friday (1/8), 9:00–11:00 a.m., to develop some of the necessary Directing Undergraduate Convention Center Tahoma 2 teaching practices needed to imple- Research Presenters: Estrella Johnson, Vir- ment inquiry-oriented curricula. Part A. Thursday (1/7), 1:00–3:00 p.m., ginia Tech; Karen Keene, North Convention Center Tahoma 5 Carolina State University; and Christy Minicourse 12 Part B. Saturday (1/9), 1:00–3:00 p.m., Andrews-Larson, Florida State Humanistic Mathematics Convention Center Tahoma 5 University Part A. Wednesday (1/6), 9:00–11:00 a.m., Convention Center Tahoma 5 Presenter: Aparna Higgins, This session is designed to inform University of Dayton and support instructors interested Part B. Friday (1/8), 9:00–11:00 a.m., This minicourse will cover many in implementing inquiry-oriented Convention Center Tahoma 5 aspects of facilitating research by curriculum. By inquiry-oriented we Presenters: Gizem Karaali, Pomona undergraduates, such as getting mean that the students are engaging College; and Eric Marland, Appala- students involved in research, finding in authentic mathematical inquiry and chian State University appropriate problems, deciding how the teachers are actively involved in The phrase “humanistic mathe- much help to provide, and presenting inquiring into students’ mathematical matics” is historical, going back about and publishing the results. Similari- thinking. This minicourse will have 30 years and awakens many connota- ties and differences between research two components. In the first compo- tions in those who hear it. Indeed conducted during summer programs nent, participants will engage with humanistic mathematics can include a and research that can be conducted mathematical tasks from three dif- broad range of topics; we use it in two during the academic year will be ferent research-based inquiry-oriented distinct manners. First, as a scholarly discussed. The minicourse is designed curricula that have been developed perspective, humanistic mathematics for faculty who are new to directing for linear algebra, differential equa- describes an approach to mathematics undergraduate research. Although tions, and abstract algebra. The goals that views it as a human endeavor and the examples used will be primarily in of this component are to familiarize focuses on the paths of inquiry that the area of discrete mathematics, the participants with the curricular tasks, study its aesthetic, cultural, historical, strategies discussed can be applied to the nature of the instruction, and literary, pedagogical, philosophical, any area of mathematics. common ways of student thinking. psychological, and sociological The second component will focus on aspects. Minicourse 11 high-leverage teaching practices that Second, as a pedagogical stance, Implementing Inquiry-Oriented can be used in any inquiry-oriented humanistic mathematics explores Curricula for Linear Algebra, setting. Examples of such practices in- and builds on the relationship of Differential Equations, and clude leading whole class discussions mathematics with its nontraditional Abstract Algebra and launching instructional tasks. partners in the humanities, the fine Part A. Wednesday (1/6), 9:00–11:00 The goals of this component are to arts, and social sciences, providing a.m., Convention Center Tahoma 2 provide instructors with opportunities additional perspective for the role of mathematics in a liberal arts education. This minicourse will introduce participating mathematics faculty to the ideas and scholarship of humanistic mathematics, a body of literature that eschews disciplinary jargon (e.g., edu-speak) in favor of reaching a more diverse audience. As concrete outcomes, participants will • Develop a viable plan for a liberal arts course that they can offer at their own campuses to invite many new students into the fascinating world of mathematics; • Come up with ideas for possible scholarly projects in order to contribute to the ongoing conversations

L . Mc HUGH MAA/ in the field; Minicourses range far and wide in content. JMM 2016 | 53

• Connect with like-minded colleagues; Minicourse 14 but manageable set of tools, data as well as Teaching Quantitative visualization, basic statistical inference • Get informed about possible venues Reasoning with Common Sense using R, and resampling. Much of this of communication, collaboration, and Common Knowledge will be facilitated using the mosaic and dissemination of materials Part A. Thursday (1/7), 9:00–11:00 package. The minicourse is designed related to humanistic mathematics. a.m., Convention Center Tahoma 2 to be accessible to those with little or Part B. Saturday (1/9), 9:00–11:00 a.m., no experience teaching with R and Minicourse 13 Convention Center Tahoma 2 will provide participants with skills, Introduction to Process- Presenters: Maura B. Mast, University examples, and resources that they can Oriented Guided Inquiry of Massachusetts Boston; and Ethan use in their own teaching. Participants Learning (POGIL) in D. Bolker, University of Massachusetts should bring a laptop to the session. Mathematics Courses Boston Part A. Thursday (1/7), 1:00–3:00 p.m., Minicourse 16 Ten years from now, what do you Convention Center Tahoma 2 Mobile Mathematics— want or expect your Quantitative Interactive Apps for Teaching Part B. Saturday (1/9), 1:00–3:00 p.m., Reasoning students to remember? and Learning Convention Center Tahoma 2 Our answers to those questions pro- Part A. Wednesday (1/6), 4:45–6:45 Presenters: Zdeňka Guadarrama, foundly shaped our approach to the p.m., Convention Center Tahoma 1 Rockhurst University; Jill E. Guerra, course. We realized that in 10 years, University of Kansas Fort Smith; and what matters will be how students Part B. Friday (1/8), 3:30–5:30 p.m., Laurie Lenz, Marymount University approach a problem using the tools Convention Center Tahoma 1 This workshop will introduce faculty they carry with them—common sense Presenters: Lila Roberts, Clayton State to the guided inquiry instructional and common knowledge—not the University; and Andrew G. Bennett, method called POGIL (Process- particular mathematics we chose for Kansas State University Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning). the curriculum. This has changed how Mobile devices have made their way Participants will use hands-on and what we teach. In this minicourse into our lives and our classrooms. activities to learn the crucial ele- we will provide hands-on experience In this minicourse, participants will ments in a successful guided inquiry with class activities using our ap- learn about various ways to integrate classroom. The workshop will provide proach and practice creating examples tablets and other mobile devices into participants with a basic introduc- and exercises from current news. mathematics courses. The presenters tion to facilitation techniques and will demonstrate interactive resources an opportunity to reflect on how Minicourse 15 that they have developed as well as facilitation can enhance or interfere Teaching Statistics using R and other applications/materials that are with student learning as well as how RStudio ready made and easily available. In ad- facilitation strategies can be critical in Part A. Thursday (1/7), 10:00 a.m.– dition, participants will learn how to the development of student process noon, Convention Center Tahoma 1 use various ways to develop new and/ skills. The participants will have the Part B. Saturday (1/9), 10:00 a.m.– or adapt existing resources for their opportunity to examine a POGIL noon, Convention Center Tahoma 1 face-to-face and online classrooms. calculus activity and be introduced to Presenter: Randall Pruim, Calvin Bring your own mobile device and/or the way the learning structure that is College a wireless-capable laptop computer. integrated into all POGIL activities R is a freely available language and is implemented in a mathematics environment for statistical computing specific activity. By the end of the and graphics that has become popular workshop, participants will be trained in academia and in many industries. to begin implementing guided inquiry But can it be used with students? This activities in their own mathematics minicourse will introduce participants classrooms. to teaching applied statistics courses using computing in an integrated way. The presenter has been using R to teach statistics to undergraduates at all levels for the last decade and will share an approach and some favorite examples. Topics will include workflow in the RStudio environment, providing novices with a powerful FASTER FORWARD TO WEB EXPERIENCES THAT KNOWS NO BOUNDS.

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MAA Panel Sessions Advanced Placement Calculus Creating a Meaningful Calculus I Today: Opportunities and Experience for Students Entering Challenges with High School Calculus Full descriptions of the panel Wednesday (1/6), 9:35–10:55 a.m., Wednesday (1/6), 8:00–9:20 a.m., sessions are online at http:// WSCC Room 612 WSCC Room 612 jointmathematicsmeetings.org/jmm. Organizer: Ben Hedrick, College Organizer: Alison Reddy, University Board of Illinois NSF Funding Opportunities for Panelists: Don King, Northeastern Panelists: Michael Boardman, Pacific the Learning and Teaching of University; Dan Teague, North University; Randy McCarthy, Uni- the Mathematical Sciences Carolina School of Science and versity of Illinois; Robin Permantle, Part I: Undergraduate/Graduate Mathematics; Gail Burrill, Michigan University of Pennsylvania; and Uri Education, Department of Math- State University; and Stephen Davis, Treisman, University of Texas ematics Infrastructure, and Human Davidson University Sponsors: MAA/NCTM Joint Com- Resource Development (DUE/DGE/ mittee on Mutual Concerns, College DMS/HRD) Career Options for Board/MAA Joint Committee on Wednesday (1/6), 8:00–9:15 a.m., Undergraduates Mutual Concerns WSCC Room 609 Thursday (1/7), 10:35–11:55 a.m., Part II: The K-16 Continuum– WSCC Room 609 Developing Mathematical Learning Science & Research and Organizers: Thomas P. Wakefield, Concepts with Technology Pre- and Inservice Teachers (DUE/ Youngstown State University; and Thursday (1/7), 10:35–11:55 a.m., DRL) Kristine Roinestad, U.S. Census WSCC Room 612 Wednesday (1/6), 9:30–10:30 a.m., Bureau Panelists: Wade Ellis, West Valley WSCC Room 609 Panelists: Thomas Grandine, Boeing Community College; Tom Dick, Organizers: John Haddock and Corp.; Katie Oliveras, Seattle Univer- Oregon State University; Andrew Lee Zia, Division of Undergraduate sity; and Marcia A. Ciol, University of Bennett, University of Kansas; and Education, NSF; Karen King, Division Washington Gail Burrill, Michigan State University of Research on Learning, NSF; Tasha Sponsor: Young Mathematicians Inniss, Division of Human Resource Network Developing the MAA Pedagogy Development, NSF: Jennifer Slimowitz Guide Pearl, Division of Mathematical Sci- College Calculus and the Wednesday (1/6), 2:15–3:35 p.m., ences, NSF Preparation Gap: Identified WSCC Room 609 Sponsor: MAA Committee on Profes- Problems and Models for Organizer: Martha Abell, Georgia sional Development Improvement Southern University Friday (1/8), 8:00–9:20 a.m., WSCC Panelists: Jacqueline Dewar, Loyola MAA Session for Chairs: What Room 612 Marymount University; Gavin Department Chairs Should Organizers: Michael Boardman, Pa- LaRose, University of Michigan; Carol Know about Teaching with cific University; Gail Burrill, Michigan Schumacher, Kenyon College; Lew Technology State University; and David Bressoud, Ludwig, Denison University; and Thursday (1/7), 9:00–10:20 a.m., Macalester College Diana White, University of Colorado WSCC Room 609 Panelists: David Bressoud, Macalester Denver Organizers: Catherine M. Murphy, College; Deborah Hughes Hallett, Purdue University Calumet; and Harvard University; Robin Cruz, Col- Finding a Thesis Topic and Daniel Maki, Indiana University lege of Idaho; Dave Dwyer, University Adviser Panelists: Michael Gage, University of Evansville; and Chad Topaz, Wednesday (1/6), 3:50–5:10 p.m., of Rochester; Gavin LaRose, Univer- Macalester College WSCC Room 609 sity of Michigan; and Peter Turbek, Sponsors: MAA/NCTM Joint Com- Organizers: Nicholas Scoville, Ur- Purdue University Calumet mittee on Mutual Concerns, College sinus College; and Emily Cilli-Turner, Board/MAA Joint Committee on Salve Regina University Mutual Concerns Panelists: Allison Henrich, Seattle University; and Brooke Shipley, Comprehensive information about the Joint Meetings is online: University of Illinois at Chicago http://jointmathematicsmeetings.org/meetings/national/ Sponsor: Young Mathematicians jmm2016 Network 56 | JMM 2016

Guidelines for Statistics Panelists: Heidi Berger, Simpson Perspectives on IBL Teaching: Education: MAA Curriculum College; Jessica Libertini, Virginia Novice, Experienced, and Guide, ASA Guidelines, GAISE II, Military Institute; Gary Olson, Master and SET University of Colorado Denver; and Friday (1/8), 9:35–10:55 a.m., WSCC Friday (1/8), 8:00–9:20 a.m., WSCC Robert Wooster, College of Wooster Room 609 Room 609 Organizers: Judith Covington, Loui- Organizer: Patti Frazer Lock, St. Is Online Inquiry-Based Learning siana State University at Shreveport; Lawrence University; Sue Schou, (IBL) Possible? and Theron Hitchman, University of “WSCC” Idaho State University; and Randall Thursday (1/7), 2:35–3:55 p.m., WSCC Northern Iowa stands for Pruim, Calvin College Room 609 Panelists: Angie Hodge, University of Washington Panelists: Patti Frazer Lock, St. Law- Organizers: Padraig McLoughlin, Nebraska Omaha; Mitchel T. Keller, State rence University; Michelle Everson, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania; Washington and Lee University; and Convention Ohio State University; Chris Franklin, and Perry Y. C. Lee, Kutztown Univer- Carol Schumacher, Kenyon College Center University of Georgia; and Beth sity of Pennsylvania Chance, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Panelists: TBD Summer Research Programs Sponsor: SIGMAA STAT ED Thursday (1/7), 2:35–3:55 p.m., WSCC Learning from Each Other: Room 612 Improving the Preparation of International Perspectives on Organizers: Lloyd E. Douglas, Graduate Students to Teach the Mathematical Education of Independent Consultant; William A. Mathematics: An NSF-Funded Teachers Hawkins Jr., MAA and University of Project Friday (1/8), 1:00–2:20 p.m., WSCC the District of Columbia; and Robert Wednesday (1/6), 3:50–5:10 p.m., Room 612 Megginson, University of Michigan WSCC Room 612 Organizers: Bonnie Gold, Monmouth Sponsor: MAA Committee on Organizer: Jessica Deshler, West University; and David C. Carothers, Minority Participation and the MAA Virginia University James Madison University Office of Minority Participation Panelists: Jack Bookman, Duke Panelists: Tad Watanabe, Kennesaw University; Robin Gottlieb, Harvard State University; Catherine B. Kessel, Undergraduate Research as a University; Shandy Hauk, WestEd; Mathematics Education Consultant, Capstone Course Sarah Schott, Duke University; and Berkeley, California; and William Friday (1/8), 1:00–2:20 p.m., WSCC Natasha Speer, University of Maine Schmidt, Michigan State University Room 609 Sponsor: MAA Committee on Profes- Sponsor: MAA Committee on the sional Development Mathematical Education of Teachers Organizers: Aklilu Zeleke, Michigan (COMET) State University; James Solazzo, Instructional Strategies That Coastal Carolina University; Michael Can Make a Difference Midcareer Faculty: Charting the Karls, Ball State University Friday (1/8), 9:35–10:55 a.m., WSCC Next Half of Your Career Panelists: Anant Godbole, East Ten- Room 612 Thursday (1/7), 1:00–2:20 p.m., WSCC nessee State University; Keshav Jagan- nathan, Coastal Carolina University; Panelists: Tom Dick, Oregon State Room 612 Rebecca Garcia, Sam Houston State University; Diane Briars, National Organizer: Jenna P. Carpenter, University; and Sergio Loch, Grand Council of Teachers of Mathematics; Louisiana Tech University View University Brian Hopkins, St. Peters University; Panelists: Jonathan K. Hodge, Sponsor: MAA Subcommittee on and Darryl Yong, Harvey Mudd Grand Valley State University; Judith Research by Undergraduates College Covington, Louisiana State University Sponsor: MAA/NCTM Joint Com- at Shreveport; Annalisa Crannell, Renewing the First Two mittee on Mutual Concerns Franklin and Marshall College; Bri- Years Curriculum: Calculus, gitte Lahme, Sonoma State University; Quantitative Reasoning, and Ronald Taylor, Berry College Interdisciplinary Modeling Statistics, Precalculus, and Sponsor: MAA Committee on Profes- Experiences for Undergraduates Developmental Mathematics Thursday (1/7), 1:00–2:20 p.m., WSCC sional Development Friday (1/8), 2:35–3:55 p.m., WSCC Room 609 Room 612 Organizers: Amanda Beecher, Organizer: Suzanne I. Dorée, Augs- Ramapo College of New Jersey; and burg College Chris Arney, U.S. Military Academy Panelists: Michael Axtell, University JMM 2016 | 57 of St. Thomas; Caren Diefenderfer, Actuarial Science: Change Is the Winners of the Deborah and Hollins University; Patti Frazer Lock, Norm! Franklin Tepper Haimo Awards for St. Lawrence University; Rebecca Friday (1/8), 5:00–7:00 p.m., WSCC Distinguished College or University Hartzler, Seattle Central College; and Room 609 Teaching will give presentations on Bruce Yoshiwara, Pierce College Organizers: Patrick Brewer, Lebanon the secrets of their success. Sponsor: MAA Committee on Cur- Valley College; Robert Buck, Slippery Organizers: MAA Secretary Barbara riculum Renewal Across the First Two Rock University; Bettye Case, Florida Faires, Westminster College; and Years (CRAFTY) State University; Kevin Charlwood, MAA President Francis Su, Harvey Washburn University; Michelle Guan, Mudd College Starting a New Track: Actuarial Indiana University Northwest; Steve Science, Biomathematics, Paris, Florida State University; and Project NExT Reception Environmental Science, Climate Sue Staples, Texas Christian University Friday (1/8), 8:00–10:00 p.m. Studies Panelists: Steve Armstrong, Casualty All Project NExT fellows, consultants, Saturday (1/9), 9:00–10:20 a.m., WSCC Actuarial Society; Robert Buck, Slip- and other friends of Project NExT are Room 609 pery Rock University; Robert Fisette, invited. Organizers: Julie Barnes, Western Milliman; Caitlin Hendricks, Liberty Organizers: Julia Barnes, West Carolina University; Martha Siegel, Mutual; Stuart Klugman, Society Carolina University; Alissa Crans, Towson University; and Linda of Actuaries; John Leo, Regence Loyala Marymount University; Matt McGuire, Muhlenberg College Group; and Steve Paris, Florida State DeLong, Taylor University; David Panelists: Jim Daniel, University of University Kung, St. Mary’s College of Maryland; Texas at Austin; Tim Comar, Bene- and Anthony Tongen, James Madison dictine University; and Ben Galluzzo, What’s beyond the Curriculum? University Shippensburg University Saturday (1/9), 10:35–11:55 p.m., Sponsors: MAA Committee on the WSCC Room 609 MAA Business Meeting Undergraduate Program in Mathe- Organizer: Martha Siegel, Towson Saturday (1/9), 11:10–11:40 a.m. matics (CUPM) and MAA Committee University Chair: MAA President Francis Su, on Professional Development Sponsor: MAA Committee on Harvey Mudd College the Undergraduate Program in A Common Vision for the Mathematics Mathematically Bent Theater Undergraduate Mathematics Friday (1/8), 6:00–7:00 p.m. Program in 2025 Performers: Colin Adams and the Friday (1/8), 2:35–3:55 p.m., WSCC Other MAA Sessions Mobiusbandaid Players Room 609 Is laughter the body’s attempt to Organizer: Karen Saxe, Macalester MAA Department Liaisons eject excess phlegm? Why did Plato College Meeting write dialogues instead of mono- Panelists: Tara Holm, Cornell Uni- Wednesday (1/6), 9:30–11:00 a.m. logues? Who walked off with my copy versity; Helen Burn, Highline College; of “Quasi-Linear Perturbations of Rachel Levy, Harvey Mudd College; Hamiltonian Klein-Gordon Equa- MAA Section Officers Meeting and Matthew Ando, University of tions on Spheres” at the AMS Fellows Illinois Urbana–Champaign Wednesday (1/6), 4:00–5:00 p.m. Reception at the San Antonio Joint Chair: Betty Mayfield, Hood College Meetings? These are just a few of the International Engagement in Section officers will meet with mem- questions we will not answer in this Research and Education in the bers of the Committee on Sections theatrical presentation of several short Mathematical Sciences and MAA staff to share information mathematically inclined humorous Saturday (1/9), 1:00–2:20 p.m., WSCC and discuss current initiatives. pieces. Room 609 Organizer: Overtoun Jenda, Auburn SIGMAA Officers Meeting Poetry+Art+Math University Thursday (1/7), 10:30 a.m.–noon Thursday (1/7), 5:30–7:00 p.m., WSCC Panelists: Neal Koblitz, University Chair: Karen A. Marrongelle, Port- Room 608 of Washington; Overtoun Jenda, land State University In the last few years, JMM attendees Auburn University; Suzanne Lenhart, have enjoyed eclectic poetry readings. University of Tennessee; Yuan Lou, Presentations by MAA Teaching This year’s reading will be augmented Ohio State University; Fred Roberts, Award Recipients by a guest lecture by Seattle mathe- Rutgers University Friday (1/8), 2:30–3:50 p.m. matical artist/poet Michael Schultheis, 58 | JMM 2016

whose art will be displayed during the Organizers: Jacob White, Texas A&M SIGMAA Sessions session. Come to share your poetry University; and Timothy Goldberg, or simply enjoy the poetry-art-math! Lenoir-Rhyne University SIGMAA Officers Meeting “WSCC” Though we can often accommodate Sponsor: Young Mathematicians Thursday (1/7), 10:30 a.m.–noon stands for last-minute decisions to participate, Network Washington we encourage poets to submit poetry Chair: Karen A. Marrongelle, Port- State (up to three poems, totaling no Managing Your Own Course land State University Convention longer than five minutes) and a bio Social Hour Center in advance—and, as a result, be listed Friday (1/8), 4:00–5:00 p.m., WSCC SIGMAA on Statistics Education on our printed program. Submissions Room 2A (SIGMAA STAT-ED) (by December 1) and inquiries may One of the many challenges facing • Reception (joint with SIGMAA be made to Gizem Karaali (gizem. new faculty members (and sometimes QL): Thursday (1/7), 5:30–6:00 p.m., [email protected]). advanced teaching assistants) is man- Conference Center Yakima 1 Organizers: Gizem Karaali, Pomona aging their own courses. This event • Business Meeting: Thursday (1/7), College; Lawrence M. Lesser, Univer- will consist of small group discussions 6:00–6:45 p.m., Conference Center sity of Texas at El Paso; and Douglas based on types of courses and perhaps Yakima 1 Norton, Villanova University types of institutions, with the goal of • Guest Lecture, Tim Hesterburg, Sponsors: The Journal of Humanistic sharing ideas and experiences about Google: Thursday (1/7), 6:50–7:40 Mathematics and SIGMAA ARTS managing one’s own course. This may p.m., Conference Center Yakima 1 also include discussions on creating a • Panel Session: Guidelines for Backgammon! course. Statistics Education: Friday (1/8), Friday (1/8), 8:00–10:00 p.m. Organizers: Jacob A. White, Texas 8:00–9:20 a.m., WSCC Room 609 Learn to play backgammon from A&M University; and Timothy Gold- • Contributed Paper Session: expert players. It’s a fun and exciting berg, Lenoir-Rhyne University Innovative Targeted Solutions in game where players with a good math- Sponsor: Young Mathematicians Teaching Introductory Statistics: ematics background have a decisive Network Thursday (1/7) afternoon advantage. Boards and free lessons • Contributed Paper Session: New will be provided by members of the Pure and Applied Talks Ideas in Teaching Upper-Level U.S. Backgammon Federation. Stop by by Women Math Warriors Statistics Courses: Friday (1/8) anytime! Presented by EDGE (Enhancing afternoon Organizer: Arthur Benjamin, Harvey Diversity in Graduate Education) Mudd College Friday (1/8), 8:00–10:55 a.m., WSCC SIGMAA on Quantitative Literacy Room 608 (SIGMAA QL) Find a Research Collaborator Since its beginning in 1998, nearly • Reception (joint with SIGMAA Social Hour 200 women have participated in the STAT-ED): Thursday (1/7), Thursday (1/7), 3:15–4:15 p.m., WSCC EDGE program. Approximately 70 5:30–6:00 p.m., Conference Center Room 608 are working toward a PhD, over 100 Yakima 1 As freshly graduated PhDs will start have earned master’s degrees, and • Business Meeting: Thursday (1/7), their research career at a new institu- 57 have gone on to complete PhDs. 6:00–6:45 p.m., Conference Center tion, one of the obstacles observed This session will comprise research Yakima 2 is finding (1) collaborators in other talks in various subdisciplines, given • Contributed Paper Session: departments or institutions, and (2) by women involved with the EDGE Quantitative Literacy in the K-16 finding topics to work on. This event program. For more information on Curriculum: Wednesday (1/6) will consist of small group discussions the EDGE program, see edgefor- afternoon based on research interests, with the women.org. SIGMAA on the History of goal of sharing ideas of how to find Organizers: Candice R. Price, Sam Mathematics (HOM SIGMAA) collaborators and topics, as well as Houston State University; and Amy L. possibly finding a collaborator during Buchmann, Tulane University • Business Meeting and Reception: the event. Wednesday (1/6), 5:30–6:20 p.m., WSCC Room 607 • Guest Lecture: James Evans, Uni- Comprehensive information about the Joint Meetings is online: versity of Puget Sound: Wednesday http://jointmathematicsmeetings.org/meetings/national/ (1/6), 6:30–7:20 p.m., jmm2016 WSCC Room 607 JMM 2016 | 59

• Contributed Paper Session: The SIGMAA on the Philosophy of SIGMAA on Math Circles for Contributions of Minorities to Mathematics (POM SIGMAA) Students and Teachers (SIGMAA Mathematics throughout History: • Contributed Paper Session: Using MCST) Friday morning Philosophy to Teach Mathematics: • Math Circle Demonstration: “WSCC” • Contributed Paper Session: Incor- Saturday (1/9), 11:00–11:50 a.m., stands for Thursday (1/7) morning porating the History of Math- WSCC Room 612 Washington • Reception: Thursday (1/7), 5:30– ematics into Developmental Math • Math Wrangle: Saturday (1/9), State 5:50 p.m., WSCC Room 617 Courses: Saturday (1/9) morning 1:00–2:30 p.m., WSCC Room 612 Convention • Business Meeting: Thursday (1/7), • Contributed Paper Session: The Center 6:00–6:20 p.m., WSCC Room 617 SIGMAA on Mathematics • Guest Lecture: Bonnie Gold, Mon- Broad Impact of Math Circles: Instruction Using the WEB (WEB mouth University: Thursday (1/7), Thursday (1/7) afternoon SIGMAA) 6:30–7:20 p.m., WSCC Room 617 • Business Meeting and Reception: SIGMAA on Teaching Advanced Friday (1/8), 5:30–6:00 p.m., WSCC SIGMAA on Undergraduate High School Mathematics Room 2A Research (UR SIGMAA) (SIGMAA TAHSM) • Guest Lecture: Matthew Leingang, • Business Meeting: Thursday (1/7), • Contributed Paper Session: New York University: Friday (1/8), 5:30–6:30 p.m., WSCC. All are Helping Students See beyond 6:00–6:50 p.m., WSCC Room 2A invited to the first meeting of the Calculus: Saturday (1/9) afternoon Title: “Streamlining Assessment, MAA’s newest SIGMAA! Members Feedback, and Archival with and friends of the SIGMAA on SIGMAA on Business, Industry, Auto-Multiple-Choice” Undergraduate Research (UR and Government (BIG SIGMAA) Abstract: Auto-multiple-choice SIGMAA) will gather to meet each • Contributed Paper Session: Math- (AMC) is an open-source optical other, discuss our first elections, and ematics Experiences and Projects mark recognition software package plan our first year as a SIGMAA. in Business, Industry, and Govern- built with Perl, LaTeX, XML, and Those who are considering joining ment: Friday (1/8), afternoon sqlite. I use it for all my in-class as especially welcome! • Guest Lecture: Genetha Gray, Intel quizzes and exams. Unique papers Corporation: Friday (1/8), 6:15–7:05 are created for each student, fixed- SIGMAA on Mathematical and p.m., WSCC Room 2B response items are scored automati- Computational Biology (BIO • Reception: Friday (1/8), 7:05–7:45 cally, and free-response problems, SIGMAA) p.m., WSCC Room 2B after manual scoring, have marks • Invited Paper Session: Current • Business Meeting: Friday (1/8), recorded in the same process. In the Trends in Mathematical and Com- 7:45–8:15 p.m., WSCC Room 2B first part of the talk I will discuss putational Biology: Thursday (1/7), AMC’s many features and why I feel 9:00–11:20 a.m., WSCC Room 607 Research in Undergraduate it’s ideal for a mathematics course. • Reception and Business Meeting: Mathematics Education My contributions to the AMC Thursday (1/7), 6:00–6:50 p.m., (SIGMAA on RUME) workflow include some scripts WSCC Room 304 • Contributed Paper Session: designed to automate the process of • Guest Lecture: Leah Edelstein- Research in Undergraduate returning scored papers back to stu- Keshet, University of British Co- Mathematics Education: Thursday dents electronically. AMC provides lumbia: Thursday (1/7), 7:00–7:50 morning and afternoon an email gateway, but I have written p.m., WSCC Room 304 programs to return graded papers • Contributed Paper Session: Trends via the DAV protocol to student’s in Undergraduate Mathematical dropboxes on our (Sakai) learning Biology Education: Friday morning management systems. I will also show how graded papers can be SIGMAA on Mathematics and archived, with appropriate metadata the Arts (SIGMAA ARTS) tags, into an Evernote notebook. • Poetry+Art+Math: Thursday (1/7), • Poster Session: Me and My Gad- 5:30–7:00 p.m. gets—Teaching with Technology • Contributed Paper Session: Math- ematics and the Arts: Wednesday (1/6) morning and afternoon 60 | JMM 2016

AMS Special Sessions and Sea Ice, I (a Mathematics Moduli Spaces in Algebraic Geometry Research Communities Session) Moduli Spaces in Symplectic Distribution of Zeros of Entire Geometry Some sessions are cosponsored with Functions other organizations. These are noted Nonlinear Algebra within the parentheses at the end of Early-Career Female Mathematicians Nonlinear Waves and Coherent each listing, where applicable. in Algebra and Topology Structures Equations of Fluid Motion Number Theory and Cryptography Advances in Free Analysis: The Essential Mathematical Structures and Operators, Function Spaces, and Theory and Applications of Non- Practices in K-12 Mathematics commutative Functions, Inequali- Models ties, and Domains Financial Mathematics, I (a Math- Origami Methods and Applications ematics Research Communities Advances in the Theory and Applica- Session) Parabolic Geometries, Twistor Theory, tion of Reaction Diffusion Models and the AdS/CFT Correspondence Fractal Geometry and Dynamical Algebraic Theory of Differential and Systems Partial Differential Equations in Functional Equations Complex Analysis Geometric and Categorical Methods Algebraic and Topological Methods in in Representation Theory Problems and Challenges in Financial Combinatorics Engineering and Risk Management Global Harmonic Analysis Analysis and Geometry in Non- Problems in Geometry and Design of smooth Metric Measure Spaces Graduate Mathematics Courses and Materials Programs for Secondary Math- Analysis, Geometry, and Data ematics Teachers Pseudorandomness and Its Applications Analytic Function Spaces and Opera- Graph Products tors on Them Quantum Walks, Quantum Markov Higher Genus Curves and Fibrations Analytic Methods in Geometry Chains, Quantum Computation, of Higher Genus Curves in Math- and Related Topics Applications of Logic, Model Theory, ematical Physics and Arithmetic and Theoretical Computer Science Geometry Random and Complex Dynamics of Reaction-Diffusion Systems to Systems Biology Innovative Ideas in Enhancing Applied and Computational Topology Success in Mathematics Classes Recent Advances in Dynamical (AMS-MAA) Systems and Mathematical Biology Arithmetic Dynamics Integrable Systems, Painlevé Equa- Recent Advances in Orthogonal Big Demand for Big Data: How Do tions, and Random Matrices Polynomials and Special Functions We Create the Big Supply? Interactions between Noncommuta- Recent Developments in Dispersive Classification Problems in Operator tive Algebra, Algebraic Geometry, Partial Differential Equations and Algebras and Representation Theory Harmonic Analysis Combinatorial Design Theory Knots in Washington (State) Representation Theory of Algebraic Commutative Algebra (AMS-AWM) Groups Mathematical Information in the Commutative Algebra and Its Interac- Digital Age of Science Research by Postdocs of the Alliance tions with Algebraic Geometry for Diversity in Mathematics Mathematical Programming on (AMS-AWM) Integral Invexity Research from the 2014 and 2015 Commutative Algebra, I (a Math- Rocky Mountain–Great Plains Mathematics and Public Policy ematics Research Communities Graduate Research Workshop in Session) Combinatorics Current Areas of Interest in the Mathematics in Natural Resource Research in Mathematics by Mathematical Sciences of Medieval Modeling Undergraduates and Students Islam in Postbaccalaureate Programs Metrical and Topological Fixed Point (AMS-MAA-SIAM) Data-Intensive Modeling in Ecology Theory with Applications Set-Valued Optimization and Varia- Difference Equations and Applications Modular Forms, q-Series, and Math- tional Problems with Applications Differential Equations, Probability, ematics Inspired by Ramanujan JMM 2016 | 61

Special Functions and q-Series MAA Poster Sessions mathematics. These programs might Stochastic Effects in Models for Math- include such activities as after-school clubs, weekend activities, one-day ematical Biology and Ecology Project NExT–YMN Poster “WSCC” conferences, mentoring opportuni- Stochastic Models in Population Session stands for ties, and summer camps. This poster Biology Wednesday (1/6), 2:15–4:15 p.m., Washington session encompasses a wide variety WSCC Hall 4A State Surreal Numbers (AMS-ASL) of outreach efforts for a variety of Organizers: Thomas Wakefield, age groups. For example, programs Convention Tensor Decompositions and Secant Youngstown State University; and might be designed to reach out to Center Varieties Jonathan Needleman, LeMoyne underrepresented groups. The projects The History of Mathematics College supported by MAA Tensor and (AMS-MAA) This session is intended to highlight Summa grants will find this an ideal The Mathematics of Computation the research activities, both math- venue in which to share the progress ematical and pedagogical, of recent or of their funded projects. Another pos- Topological Graph Theory: Structure future master’s/PhDs in mathematics sible type of outreach might involve and Symmetry and related fields. The organizers mathematical enrichment programs. Topological Representation Theory seek to provide an open venue for For example, recipients of Dolciani Water Waves people who are near completion, or Mathematics Enrichment Grants have finished their graduate studies might wish to highlight their pro- What’s New in Group Theory? in the last five years, to present their grams. Other examples might include work and make connections with innovative programs to motivate other same-stage professionals, in undergraduates to study mathematics. AMS Sessions for Contributed Papers much the same spirit as YMN and We encourage everyone involved with There will be sessions of 10-minute Project NExT. The poster size will be offering mathematical outreach activi- contributed talks. Although an 48” wide by 36" high. Poster boards ties to consider submitting an abstract individual may present only one and materials for posting pages on to the session organizer, Betsy Yanik contributed paper at a meeting, any the posters will be provided on site. ([email protected]). combination of joint authorship may We expect to accept about forty Sponsor: MAA Committee on the be accepted, provided no individual posters from different areas within the Participation of Women speaks more than once on the mathematical sciences. To apply, send program. Contributed papers will be a poster abstract, when and where Projects Supported by the NSF grouped together by related subject you have or will receive your PhD Division of Undergraduate classifications into sessions. or master’s degree, and your current Education college or university affiliation to Thursday (1/7), 2:00–4:00 p.m., WSCC the organizers. Potential applicants Hall 4A should send a poster abstract to one Organizer: Jon Scott, Montgomery of the organizers, Thomas Wakefield, College [email protected], or Jonathan This session will feature principal Needleman, [email protected], investigators (PIs) presenting progress to apply for the session. The deadline and outcomes from various NSF- for submissions is December 15. funded projects in the Division of Sponsors: Young Mathematicians Undergraduate Education. The poster Network and Project NExT session format will permit ample opportunity for attendees to engage in Mathematical Outreach small group discussions with the PIs Programs and to network with each other. In- Thursday (1/7), 10:00 a.m.–noon, formation about presenters and their WSCC Hall 4A projects will appear in the program. Organizer: Betsy Yanik, Emporia State University MAA Student Poster Session This poster session is designed Friday (1/8), 4:30–6:00 p.m., WSCC to highlight special programs that Hall 4A have been developed to encourage Organizer: Joyati Debnath, Winona students to maintain an interest in State University and commitment to succeeding in 62 | JMM 2016

This session features research done MAA Sessions for High of quadratics in Algebra II. Let’s by undergraduate students. School Students and see how to bring the light of ease Questions regarding this session Teachers and joyful doing into this standard should be directed to Joyati Debnath classroom unit. By letting go of a ([email protected]). focus on jargon and memorization, How to Think Brilliantly and we can help our students develop the Me and My Gadgets—Teaching Creatively in Mathematics: A confidence to “nut their way” through with Technology Guide for K-12 Educators and questions and challenges, to engage Saturday (1/9), 10:00–11:55 a.m. Their Students in problem solving, and to develop Saturday (1/9), 8:00–8:50 a.m., WSCC Constantly changing technology pres- the confidence to persevere. We can Room 612 ents an exciting and shifting opportu- teach our students to be confident nity to engage students and improve Speaker: James Tanton, MAA and agile thinkers and still master the learning. This electronic poster This lecture is a guide for thinking curriculum content they are required session will consist of live, interactive brilliantly and creatively in math- to know. This workshop will model demonstrations of applets, widgets, ematics for K-12 educators, their the presentation of the entire standard or other technology for teaching students, and all seeking joyful quadratics content, illustrating how mathematics. Rather than preparing a mathematics doing. How do we model doing less leads to more! traditional printed poster, presenters and practice uncluttered thinking and Organizer: Deanna Haunsperger, will showcase how students engage joyous doing in the classroom? Pursue Carleton College mathematics through their application deep understanding over rote practice Sponsor: MAA Council on Outreach using some electronic device such and memorization? Develop the art as a tablet, smartphone, or laptop. of successful flailing? Our complex Math Circle Demonstration Preference will be given to presenters society demands of its next genera- Saturday (1/9), 11:00–11:50 a.m., demonstrating their own or new tion not only mastery of quantitative WSCC Room 612 applications or to novel approaches skills, but also the confidence to ask Presenter: Zvezdelina Stankova, in using existing ones. In addition to new questions, explore, wonder, flail, Mills College, Berkeley Math Circle the active displays, all participants will persevere, innovate, and succeed. Let’s Director give a three- to five-minute “Lightning not only send humans to Mars—let’s A math circle is an enrichment Talk” to demonstrate their applica- teach our next generation to solve experience that brings mathematics tion, highlighting where it fits into a problems and get those humans back professionals in direct contact with mathematics curriculum. These will if something goes wrong! In this talk, precollege students and/or their be scheduled in the middle of the James Tanton will explore five natural teachers. Circles foster passion and session and included in the program. principles of mathematical thinking. excitement for deep mathematics. This Potential presenters must submit a We will all have fun seeing how school demonstration session offers the op- detailed description of their applica- mathematical content is the vehicle for portunity for conference attendees to tion to jmm2016-gadgets@google ingenuity and joy. All are so welcome observe and then discuss a math circle groups.com and receive approval to attend! experience designed for local students. from the organizers for inclusion in Organizer: Deanna Haunsperger, While students are engaged in a this session. The deadline for submis- Carleton College mathematical investigation, mathema- sion is December 15. Sponsor: MAA Council on Outreach ticians will have a discussion focused Organizer: John Travis, Mississippi on appreciating and better under- College; Karl Schmitt, Valparaiso High School Quadratics: How to standing the organic and creative University; Tom Hagedorn, College Think about and Do Everything process of learning that circles offer, of New Jersey; and Michael Scott, about Them Brilliantly and and on the logistics and dynamics of California State University Monterey Creatively running an effective circle. Bay Saturday (1/9), 9:15–10:45 a.m., WSCC Organizers: Zvezdelina Stankova, Sponsors: MAA Committee on Room 612 Mills College; Tatiana Shubin, San Technology in Mathematics Education Presenter: James Tanton, MAA Jose State University; and Paul Zeitz, and WEB SIGMAA James Tanton will now put brilliant University of San Francisco and creative thinking practices into Sponsor: SIGMAA MCST an actual high school topic: the study

Comprehensive information about the Joint Meetings is online: http://jointmathematicsmeetings.org/meetings/national/jmm2016 JMM 2016 | 63

Math Wrangle Organizer: Dennis Davenport, Teaching the Statistical Saturday (1/9), 1:00–2:30 p.m., WSCC Howard University Investigation Process with Room 612 Randomization-Based Inference Math Wrangle will pit teams of Bringing Passion to your Tuesday, January 5, 9:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. students against each other, the clock, Introductory Statistics Presenters: Nathan Tintle, Dordt and a slate of great math problems. Classroom: A Supportive, College; Todd Swanson, Hope Col- The format of a Math Wrangle is Multidisciplinary Project-Based lege; and Robin Lock, St. Lawrence designed to engage students in math- Approach University ematical problem solving, promote ef- Monday, January 4, 9:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. The goals of this workshop are fective teamwork, provide a venue for Presenter: Lisa Dierker, Wesleyan to help participants to revise their oral presentations, and develop critical University introductory statistics course in two listening skills. A Math Wrangle This workshop will support instruc- ways: (1) Using randomization-based incorporates elements of team sports tors who teach an introductory methods, as opposed to methods and debate, with a dose of strategy statistics or quantitative research based on the normal distribution, tossed in for good measure. The inten- course in designing or redesigning to introduce concepts of statistical tion of the Math Wrangle demonstra- any or all portions of their course to inference, and (2) emphasizing the tion at the Joint Mathematics Meet- engage students in the rich, compli- overarching process of conducting ings is to show how teachers, schools, cated, decision-making process of real statistical investigations, from formu- circles, and clubs can get students statistical inquiry. Core features of this lating a question and collecting data started in this exciting combination passion-driven, flipped-classroom ap- through exploring data and drawing of mathematical problem solving proach include providing opportuni- inferences to communicating results, with careful argumentation via public ties for students to flexibly apply their throughout the course. The workshop speaking, strategy, and rebuttal. statistical knowledge in the context will provide direct experience with Organizers: Mark Saul, MAA of real data, the use of computing as hands-on activities that introduce American Math Competitions; and a window to core statistical concepts, students to fundamental concepts of Ed Keppelmann, University of Nevada supporting students with varying inference using randomization-based Reno levels of preparation, and attracting methods. The learning activities Sponsors: SIGMAA-MCST and MAA and inspiring students from under- involve using freely available applets American Mathematics Competitions represented groups. The workshop to explore concepts and analyze real will include very brief presentations data from genuine research studies. focused on the nuts and bolts of The presenters will also offer imple- MAA Ancillary Workshops supporting project-based experi- mentation and assessment suggestions ences, followed by ample hands-on during these activity-based sessions opportunities that will be supported and discussion sessions based on National Research Experiences by experienced faculty and students. presenters’ experiences with random- for Undergraduates Workshop Similar to the approach that will be ization-based curricula in their own Tuesday, January 5, 9:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. presented, your experience in the classrooms. More information about This workshop will teach participants workshop will be individualized to the project on which this workshop how to write a competitive grant your own interests, background, and is based can be found at math.hope. proposal. This workshop is a hands- needs. edu/isi. on experience where participants Advance registration (but no fee) is Advance registration (but no fee) is write a summary of a proposal and required. Go to causeweb.org/work- required. Go to causeweb.org/work- rate an NSF-awarded proposal in a shop to register. shop to register. mock panel review. Participants will Organizers: Lorey Burghard, Penn- Organizers: Lorey Burghard, Penn- also learn many helpful hints and sylvania State University; Lisa Dierker, sylvania State University; and Dennis fatal flaws to proposal writing. This Wesleyan University; and Dennis Pearl, Pennsylvania State University workshop is appropriate for current Pearl, Pennsylvania State University Sponsor: Consortium for the Ad- principal investigators of MAA’s Sponsor: Consortium for the Ad- vancement of Undergraduate Statistics NREUP grants and for those who vancement of Undergraduate Statistics Education (CAUSE) were denied funding for an MAA Education (CAUSE) grant. Advanced registration is required. Send an email to the organizer at [email protected] to register for the workshop. 64 | JMM 2016

Social Events 2016 AMS Dinner Celebration Backgammon! Saturday (1/9), 6:30 p.m. Organizer: Arthur Benjamin, Harvey Reception at 6:30 p.m. and doors open Mudd College Full information about these events is at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $69 including Friday (1/8), 8:00–10:00 p.m. at the JMM 2016 website: tax and gratuity. The student ticket http://jointmathematicsmeetings. price is $29. Budapest Semesters in org/meetings/national/ Mathematics Annual Alumni jmm2016/2181_social. Association of Christians in the Reunion Mathematical Sciences (ACMS) Friday (1/8), 6:00–7:30 p.m. All events listed are open to all Reception and Lecture Informational Session, Friday (1/8), registered participants. For any event Thursday (1/7), 5:30–7:30 p.m. noon–1:00 p.m. requiring a ticket, tickets should be Speaker: John Roe, Penn State Uni- purchased through advance registra- versity; title: “Math. Love. Danger.” University of Chicago, Math- tion. Only a very limited number of See acmsonline.org. ematics Alumni Reception tickets, if any, will be available for Thursday (1/7), 6:00–7:00 p.m. sale on site. If you must cancel your Association of Lesbian, Gay, participation in a ticketed event, you Bisexual, and Transgendered Reception for Graduate may request a 50 percent refund by Mathematicians Reception Students and First-Time returning your tickets to the Math- Thursday (1/7), 6:00–8:00 p.m. ematics Meetings Service Bureau Participants (MMSB) by January 2, 2016. After that Association for Women in Wednesday (1/6), 5:30–6:30 p.m. date, no refunds can be made. Special Mathematics Reception and Sponsors: AMS and MAA meals are available at banquets upon Awards Presentation Knitting Circle advance request, but this must be Reception, which is open to all JMM Thursday (1/7), 8:00–9:30 p.m. indicated on the Advanced Registra- attendees: 9:30 p.m. following the tion/Housing Form. AMS Gibbs Lecture. Recognition of prize winners: 10:00 p.m.

EMP Museum Activities for and the Seattle Undergraduates Space Needle share acreage on the Seattle A list of activities intended for Center Grounds. undergraduates is on the JMM website, including the Radical Dash: jointmathematicsmeet ings.org/meetings/national/ jmm2016/2181_students le.org Se att isit Tho mps on/V T im JMM 2016 | 65

MAA/Project NExT Reception Registering in Advance MMSB, P.O. Box 6887, Providence, RI Friday (1/8), 8:00–10:00 p.m. 02940 or 401-455-4004. For security Organizers: Julia Barnes, Western reasons, credit card numbers by email Carolina University; Alissa Crans, Comprehensive information is online or fax cannot be accepted. If a partici- Loyola Marymount University; Matt at the the JMM 2016 website. pant is registering by paper form and DeLong, Taylor University; Dave The importance of registering for the would like to pay for the registration Kung, St. Mary’s College of Maryland; meeting cannot be overemphasized. or guarantee your hotel reservation by and Anthony Tongen, James Madison Advanced registration fees are consid- credit card, he or she should indicate University. erably lower than on-site registration this on the form and someone from fees. Badges are required to enter the the MMSB will call that person. MAA Two-Year College Joint Mathematics Meetings (JMM) Participant Lists and Mailing Reception Exhibits, the Employment Center, and Lists: If any participant would like to Thursday (1/7), 5:45–7:00 p.m. to obtain discounts at the AMS and opt-out of any mailing lists or partici- MAA book sales and cash a check pant lists that are generated for the Mathematical Reviews with the Joint Meetings cashier. meeting, he or she should check the Reception Participants who register by appropriate box on the Registration Friday (1/8), 6:00–7:00 p.m. November 17 may receive their and Housing Form. All participants badges, programs, and tickets (where who do not opt-out will be included Mathematical Institutes Open applicable) in advance by U.S. mail in all mailing lists and participant lists House approximately three weeks before that are generated and distributed for Wednesday (1/6), 5:30–8:00 p.m. the meetings. Those who do not the meeting. https://icerm.brown.edu/events/ want their materials mailed should Cancellation Policy: Participants mioh/2016. check the appropriate box on the who cancel for the meetings, mini- Registration and Housing Form. courses, or short course by December MSRI Reception for New and Materials cannot be mailed to Canada, 31 will be eligible to receive a 50 Prospective MSRI Donors Mexico, or other countries outside percent refund of fees paid. Partici- Thursday (1/7), 6:30–8:00 p.m. of the United States. Participants pants who cancel their banquet tickets For more information, contact: Heike from these countries must pick up by January 2, 2016, will be eligible for Friedman, director of development, their materials at the Joint Meetings a 50 percent refund. No refunds are [email protected]; 510-643-5056. Registration Desk on the fourth floor available after these deadlines. of the Washington State Convention Registration Category Definitions National Association of Center. A replacement fee of $5 will be Full-Time Students Mathematicians Banquet charged for programs and badges that Graduate Student Member Friday (1/8), 6:00–8:40 p.m. were mailed but not brought to the Undergraduate Student Member meeting. Emeritus NSA Women in Mathematics Online Registration: The form Librarian Society Networking Session to register for the meeting and to Unemployed Thursday (1/7), 6:00–8:00 p.m. reserve a hotel room online is located Developing Country Participant at jointmathematicsmeetings.org/ Temporarily Employed Pennsylvania State University meetreg?meetnum=2181. VISA, Nonmathematician Guest Mathematics Alumni Reception MasterCard, Discover, and American Commercial Exhibitor Thursday (1/7), 5:30–7:30 p.m. Express are the only methods of Registration Deadlines payment accepted for online registra- EARLY meetings registration (free SIMIODE Reception tions, and charges to credit cards will room drawing): November 2. Friday (1/8), 7:00–9:00 p.m. be made in U.S. funds. All registration ORDINARY meeting registration acknowledgments will be sent by (hotel reservations, materials mailed): Student Hospitality Center email to all email addresses provided. November 17. Wednesday–Friday (1/6–1/8), 9:00 Paper Form Registration: The FINAL meeting registration a.m.–5:00 p.m., and Saturday (1/9), form to register for the meeting and (advanced registration, short course, 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. to reserve a hotel room by paper minicourses, and banquets): De- Sponsor: MAA Committee for is at jointmathematicsmeetings. cember 22. Undergraduate Student Activities org/meetings/national/jmm2016/ Early Registration: Participants jmm16_regform.pdf. Forms must who register by the early deadline Reception for Undergraduates be mailed or faxed to the MMSB at of November 2 will be included in a Wednesday (1/6), 4:00–5:00 p.m. random drawing to select winners 66 | JMM 2016 of complimentary hotel room nights additional equipment should be sent exhibit for a fee of $50 (posters are during the meeting. Rooms with to [email protected] and received by slightly higher) per item. Please multiple occupants will be included November 1. contact the exhibits coordinator, in the drawing. The location of these Equipment requests made at the MMSB, P.O. Box 6887, Providence, RI rooms will be based on the number of meetings most likely will not be 02940, or by email at [email protected] complimentary room nights earned granted because of budgetary restric- for further details. in the various hotels. Therefore, a tions. Unfortunately no audiovisual The administration of these tables free room will not necessarily be in equipment can be provided for is in the hands of the AMS-MAA winner’s first-choice hotel. All winners committee meetings or other meet- Joint Meetings Committee, as are all will be notified by phone and email ings or gatherings not on the scientific arrangements for Joint Mathematics prior to December 22, so register program. Meetings. early! Child Care: The AMS and the Local Information: For informa- Ordinary Registration: Partici- MAA will provide reimbursement tion about the city, see visitseattle. pants who register after November grants of US$250 per family to help org. 2 and by the ordinary deadline of with the cost of child care for a Photograph and Video Policy: November 17 may use the housing number of registered participants at The videotaping of any AMS or joint services offered by the MMSB but are JMM2016. The funds may be used sponsored events, talks, and sessions not eligible for the free room drawing. for child care that frees a parent to is strictly forbidden without the They may also elect to receive their participate more fully in JMM. explicit written permission of the badges and programs by mail in Information about child care grants AMS director of meetings and confer- advance of the meeting (U.S. partici- and deadlines for requesting support ences. The policy for videotaping of pants only). will be available prior to the opening any MAA events, talks, and sessions is Final Registration: Participants of advance registration in September; posted at www.maa.org/about-maa/ who register after November 17 and watch the website at jointmathemat- policies-and-procedures/recording- by the final deadline of December 22 icsmeetings.org/meetings/ national/ or- broadcasting-of-maa-events. must pick up their badges, programs, jmm2016/2181_childcare. Photographs and videos of meeting and any tickets for social events at Email Services: Limited email ac- interactions will be taken by profes- the meeting. Unfortunately, it is cess for all Joint Meetings participants sional photographers hired by the sometimes not possible to provide will be available in an email center Joint Mathematics Meetings or by final participants with housing, so located near the JMM Registration AMS and MAA staff. These photo- everyone is strongly urged to make Desk, Atrium Lobby, on the fourth graphs and videos may occasionally their hotel reservations by November level in the Washington State Conven- be used for publicity purposes. By 17. The final deadline of December 22 tion Center. The hours of operation participating in the Joint Mathematics is firm. Any forms received after that will be published in the program. Meetings, attendees acknowledge date will be returned with full refunds. Participants should be aware that that their photograph or a video that Registration materials may be picked complimentary Internet access will be includes them may be published in up at the Meetings Registration Desk available in the networking center in material produced by the Joint Meet- on the the fourth floor of the Wash- Skybridge (Hall 4D), fourth level of ings, AMS or MAA. AMS and MAA ington State Convention Center. the convention center. are not responsible for unauthorized Information Distribution: Tables Miscellaneous Information photographs or other images not are set up in the exhibit area for taken by professional photographers Audio-Visual Equipment: A dissemination of general information hired by the Joint Mathematics Meet- projection screen is included as of possible interest to the members ings or AMS and MAA staff. standard equipment in all session and for the dissemination of informa- Telephone Messages: It will be rooms. Invited 50-minute speakers tion of a mathematical nature not possible to leave a message for any are automatically provided with an promoting a product or program for registered participant at the meetings ELMO visual presenter (document sale. Information must be approved registration desk from January 6 camera/projector), and a laptop by the AMS director of meetings and through 9 during the hours that the projector; AMS Special Sessions and conferences. desk is open. These messages will be Contributed Papers, and MAA Invited If a person or group wishes to posted on the Mathematics Meetings and Contributed Paper Sessions, display information of a mathematical Message Board in the networking are provided with a screen and a nature promoting a product or center; however, staff at the desk laptop projector. Blackboards are not program for sale, they may do so in will try to locate a participant in the available, nor are Internet connections the exhibit area at the Joint Books, event of a bona fide emergency. The in session rooms. Any request for Journals, and Promotional Materials JMM 2016 | 67 telephone number will be published in discount) on scheduled service to schedule. Two passenger pick-up areas the program and daily newsletter. Seattle. Discounts are applicable to are located outside baggage claim at U.S.- and Canada-originating passen- the north and south ends of the main Travel/Transportation gers. This discount is not valid with terminal. Proceed to the baggage Seattle is on Pacific Time. The other discounts, certificates, coupons, claim level and pick up your checked principal airport is the Seattle-Tacoma or promotional offers. bags. Exit the sliding glass doors near International Aiport (SEA, frequently To make a reservation, go to delta. either carousel 1 or 15 and walk to referred to as Sea-Tac) which is served com, and click on the box that says one of the two designated shuttle bus by all major airlines. The website for “Book a Trip.” At the bottom of the pick-up areas for transportation to the Seattle-Tacoma International airport drop-down, click on “Advanced rental car facility. is portseattle.org/Sea-Tac/Pages/ Search” (includes Flexible Airport and Hertz is the official car rental default.aspx, and the street address is Meeting Event Code). On the reserva- company for the meeting. A brochure 17801 International Boulevard, Seatac, tion screen, please enter the Meeting with the information for this meeting WA, 98158. It is approximately 12 Event Code NMLNH. It is located to is located at jointmathematicsmeet- miles from downtown Seattle. the right of “Number of Passengers.” ings.org/Hertz-info-Seattle.pdf. To The 2016 Joint Mathematics Meet- Reservations can also be made by access the JMM special meeting rates ings will be held in the Washington calling Delta Meeting Network at www.hertz.com, enter the standard State Convention Center, 800 Conven- Reservations at 800-328-1111 and information (pickup location, dates, tion Place, Seattle, WA, 98101. The citing the meeting event code. A direct etc.) and then click the box that says main entrance is on Eighth Avenue ticketing charge will apply for booking “Enter a discount or promo code” and between Pike and Seneca. by phone. enter 04N30006 as the convention number (CV#). Reservations can also Airline Ground Transportation be made by calling Hertz directly at The official airline for this meeting is Car Rental: All major rental car 800-654-2240 (US and Canada) or Delta. Participants are encouraged to companies have offices at the Sea-Tac 405-749-4434. book their flights for the meeting, if airport. There is a separate rental Meeting rates include unlimited possible, with Delta and receive spe- car facility with dedicated shuttle mileage and are subject to avail- cial pricing (in most cases, a 5 percent buses operating on a 24-hour-a-day ability. Advance reservations are

Mt. Rainer. le.org e att visits 68 | JMM 2016

recommended and blackout dates picks up and drops off at the inner color, national or ethnic origin, may apply. Government surcharges, drive curb on the third floor of the religion or religious belief, age, marital taxes, tax reimbursement, airport- airport garage. It departs twice an status, sexual orientation, disabilities, related fees, vehicle licensing fees and hour from 6:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., with or veteran status. optional items are extra. Standard service to and from many downtown Harassment is a form of misconduct rental conditions and qualifications Seattle hotels, including the Crowne that undermines the integrity of JMM apply. Vehicles must be returned to Plaza, Fairmont Olympic, Grand activities as well as the AMS and the renting location. Minimum rental Hyatt, Renaissance Seattle, Seattle MAA missions.The AMS and MAA age is 20 (age differential charge for Sheraton, and the Westin Hotel. will make every effort to maintain an 20–24 applies). Online reservations are required. The environment that is free of harass- Weekend rentals are available in fare is approximately $19 one way, ment, even though they do not control the continental U.S. and Canada for and the trip can take up to an hour, the behavior of third parties. A com- pickup between noon Thursday and depending on traffic. Share ride and mitment to a welcoming environment noon Sunday and must be returned private service is also available. Call is expected of all attendees at JMM no later than Monday at 11:59 p.m. 425-981-7000 or go to shuttleexpress. activities, including mathematicians, Thursday pick-up requires a min- com/seattle/airport/downtown- students, guests, staff, contractors imum three-day keep. Friday pick-up airporter for more detail. and exhibitors, and participants in requires a minimum two-day keep, Parking: The Washington State scientific sessions and social events. and Saturday and Sunday pick-up Convention Center operates two To this end, the AMS and MAA will require a one-day keep. Weekly rentals parking garages, the WSCC Garage include a statement concerning their are from five to seven days. Extra day and the Freeway Park Garage. The expectations toward maintaining a rate for weekly rentals will be one-fifth WSCC Garage entrance is on Eighth welcoming environment in registra- the Weekly Rate. Avenue between Pike and Seneca, tion materials, and have put in place Taxi: The taxi stand is on the third and it is open daily between 5:30 a.m. a mechanism for reporting violations. floor of the airport garage. The phone and midnight. The entrance to the Violations may be reported confiden- number for Seattle Yellow Cab is 206- Freeway Park Garage is on Hubbell tially and anonymously to 855-282- 622-6500, and the website is Place between Pike and Seneca. It is 5703 or at mathsociety.ethicspoint. seattleyellowcab.com/seatac-taxi- open Monday–Friday, 5:30 a.m. to com. The reporting mechanism rides/. One-way fare to the downtown 8:00 p.m. Directions to the parking ensures the respect of privacy while area is approximately $45. garages and rates are at wscc.com/ alerting the AMS and MAA to the Seattle Sound Transit Link Light parking-directions. The parking map situation. Rail: The SeaTac/Airport Station is is located at wscc.com/sites/default/ connected to the fourth floor of the files/find-it/files/2014.09.09_FIND_IT_ airport parking garage by a covered Parking_map.pdf. walkway. Wheelchair service is avail- See hotel page for details on parking able. Take the train at SeaTac/Airport at the hotels. station and go to the end of the line at Westlake Center. Westlake Center is located at 4th Avenue and Pine Street. Welcoming Environment To go to the Sheraton Seattle from Policy Westlake Center, go 1/2 block east on Pine Street, and 2 blocks south on Sixth Avenue. Trains run every 8–15 The AMS and MAA strive to ensure minutes from 5:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. that participants in the Joint Math- on weekdays, and every 15 minutes ematics Meetings enjoy a welcoming on Saturday. On Sunday, the trains environment. In all JMM activities, run from 6:00 a.m. to midnight. One the two organizations seek to foster way fare is currently $2.75. The trip an atmosphere that encourages the takes approximately 35 minutes. The free expression and exchange of ideas. schedule and more information is lo- The AMS and MAA support equality cated at soundtransit.org/Schedules/ of opportunity and treatment for all Link-light-rail. participants, regardless of gender, Downtown Airporter Shuttle: The gender identity or expression, race,

Downtown Airporter/Shuttle Express le.org e att visits 2016 Joint Mathematics Meetings Advance Registration/Housing Form

Name (please write name as you would like it to appear on your badge)

Mailing Address

SEATTLE JAN 6-9, 2016 Telephone Fax:

In case of emergency (for you) at the meeting, call: Day # Evening #:

Email Address Additional email address for receipt Acknowledgment of this registration and any hotel reservations will be sent to the email address(es) given here. Check this box to receive a copy in U.S. Mail:

Affiliation for badge Nonmathematician guest badge name: (company/university) (Note fee of US$18)

I DO NOT want my program and badge to be mailed to me on 12/11/15. (Materials will be mailed to the address listed above unless you check this box.) SEATTLE JAN 6-9, 2016 Registration Fees Payment

Membership please P all that apply. First row is eligible to register as a member. Registration & Event Total (total from column on left) $ For undergraduate students, membership in PME and KME also applies. o AMS o MAA o ASL o CMS o SIAM Hotel Deposit (only if paying by check) $ Undergraduate Students Only: o PME o KME Other Societies: o AWM o NAM o YMN o AMATYC Total Amount To Be Paid $

Joint Meetings by Dec 22 at mtg Subtotal o Member AMS, MAA, ASL, CMS, or SIAM US$ 282 US$ 371 Method of Payment o Nonmember US$ 448 US$ 571 o Check. Make checks payable to the AMS. For all check payments, o Graduate Student Member (AMS, MAA please keep a copy of this form for your records. ASL, CMS, or SIAM) US$ 63 US$ 74 o Graduate Student (Nonmember) US$ 101 US$ 112 o Credit Card. All major credit cards accepted. For your security, we o Undergraduate Student (Member AMS, do not accept credit card numbers by postal mail, email or fax. If the MMSB ASL, CMS, MAA, PME, KME, or SIAM) US$ 63 US$ 74 receives your registration form by fax or postal mail, it will contact you at the o Undergraduate Student (Nonmember) US$ 101 US$ 112 phone number provided on this form. For questions, contact the MMSB at o High School Student US$ 6 US$ 12 [email protected]. o Unemployed US$ 63 US$ 74 o Temporarily Employed US$ 230 US$ 263 Signature: o Developing Countries Special Rate US$ 63 US$ 74 o Emeritus Member of AMS or MAA US$ 63 US$ 74 o High School Teacher US$ 63 US$ 74 o Purchase Order # (please enclose copy) o Librarian US$ 63 US$ 74 o Press US$ 0 US$ 0 o Exhibitor (Commercial) US$ 0 US$ 0 Other Information o Artist Exhibitor (work in JMM Art Exhibit) US$ 0 US$ 0 o Nonmathematician Guest Mathematical Reviews field of interest # of registered mathematician US$ 18 US$ 18 o I am willing to serve as a judge for the MAA Undergraduate Student Poster Session $ o For planning purposes for the MAA Two-year College Reception, please AMS Short Course: Rigorous Numerics in Dynamics (1/4-1/5) check if you are a faculty member at a two-year college. o Member of AMS US$ 110 US$ 144 o I am a mathematics department chair. o Nonmember US$ 165 US$ 195 o Please do not include my name and postal address on any promotional o Student, Unemployed, Emeritus US$ 58 US$ 79 mailing lists. (The JMM does not share email addresses.) $ o Please do not include my name on any list of JMM participants other than the scientific program if I am, in fact, making a presentation that is part of MAA Minicourses (see listing in text) the meeting. I would like to attend: o One Minicourse o Two Minicourses o Please P this box if you have a disability requiring special services. Please enroll me in MAA Minicourse(s) #______and #______Price: US$ 85 for each minicourse. (For more than 2 minicourses, call or email the MMSB.) $ Deadlines Eligible for the complimentary room drawing: Nov. 2, 2015 Graduate School Fair Receiving badges/programs in the mail: Nov. 17, 2015 o Graduate Program Table US$ 75 US$ 75 (includes table, posterboard & electricity) $ Housing reservations, changes/cancellations through the JMM website: Dec. 14, 2015 Receptions & Banquets Advance registration for the Joint Meetings, short o Graduate Student/First-Time Attendee Reception (1/6) (no charge) course, minicourses, and tickets: Dec. 22, 2015 o NAM Banquet (1/8) US$63 #____Chicken #____Vegetarian 50% refund on banquets, cancel by Jan. 2, 2016* #____Kosher 50% refund on advance registration, minicourses, o AMS Dinner (1/9) Regular Price #____US$ 69 and short course, cancel by Dec. 31, 2015* Student Price #____US$ 29 *no refunds issued after this date (Additional fees may apply for Kosher meals.) $

Total for Registrations and Events $ Mailing Address/Contact:

Registration for the Joint Meetings is not required for the short course but it Mathematics Meetings Service Bureau (MMSB) is required for the minicourses and the Employment Center. To register for P. O. Box 6887 the Employment Center, go to www.ams.org/profession/employment-services/ Providence, RI 02940-6887 Fax: 401-455-4004; Email: [email protected] employment-center. Telephone: 401-455-4144 or 1-800-321-4267 x4144 or x4137 2016 Joint Mathematics Meetings Hotel Reservations – Seattle, WA

(Please see the hotel page in the announcement or on the web for detailed information on each hotel.) To ensure accurate assignments, please rank hotels in order of preference by writing 1, 2, 3, etc. in the column on the left and by circling the requested bed confirguration. If your requested hotel and room type is no longer available, you will be assigned a room at the next available comparable rate. Please call the MMSB for details on suite configurations, sizes, availability, etc. All reservations, including suite reservations, must be made through the MMSB to receive the JMM rates. Reservations made directly with the hotels before December 14, 2015 may be changed to a higher rate. All rates are subject to a room tax plus Seattle Tourism Assessment Fee totalling 15.6%. Guarantee requirements: First night deposit by check (add to payment on reverse of form) or a credit card guarantee. o Deposit enclosed (see front of form) o Hold with my credit card. For your security, we do not accept credit card numbers by postal mail, email or fax. If the MMSB receives your registration form by postal mail or fax, we will contact you at the phone number provided on the reverse of this form.

Date and Time of Arrival Date and Time of Departure Number of adult guests in room Number of children

Name of Other Adult Room Occupant (s) Arrival Date Departure Date

Housing Requests:.(example: rollaway cot, crib, nonsmoking room, low floor) o I have disabilities as defined by the ADA that require a sleeping room that is accessible to the physically challenged. My needs are: o I am a member of a hotel frequent-travel club and would like to receive appropriate credit. The hotel chain and card number are: o I am not reserving a room. I am sharing with , who is making the reservation.

Order Hotel Single Double Double Triple Quad Rollaway Cot Fee of choice 1 bed-2 people 2 beds- 2 people 3 adults-2 beds 4 adults-2 beds (add to special requests if reserving online) Sheraton Seattle (headquarters) US$ 166 US$ 166 US$ 166 US$ 191 US$ 216 Deluxe Rate US$ 186 US$ 186 US$ 186 US$ 211 US$ 236 Rollaways available only in king-bedded rooms Club Level US$ 206 US$ 206 US$ 206 US$ 231 US$ 256 at no charge Student Rate US$ 124.50 US$ 124.50 US$ 124.50 US$ 149.50 UD$ 174.50 Grand Hyatt US$ 159 US$ 159 US$ 159 US$ 184 US$ 209 Rollaways available only in king-bedded rooms only Student Rate US$ 125 US$ 125 US$ 125 US$ 150 US$ 175 for a nightly charge of US$15 Rollaways available only in king-bedded rooms for a Fairmont Olympic Hotel Seattle US$ 152 US$ 152 US$ 152 US$ 182 US$ 212 one-time $15 fee The Westin Seattle US$ 139 US$ 139 US$ 139 US$ 169 US$ 199 Rollaways available only in king-bedded Student Rate US$ 104 US$ 104 US$ 104 US$ 134 US$ 164 rooms at no charge; sleeper sofas in some rooms Renaissance Seattle Hotel US$ 139 US$ 139 US$ 139 US$ 159 US$ 179 Rollaways available only in king-bedded rooms Student Rate US$ 129 US$ 129 US$ 129 US$ 149 US$ 169 at no charge The Paramount Hotel Seattle US$ 130 US$ 130 US$ 130 US$ 150 US$ 170 Rollaways available only in king-bedded rooms Student Rate US$ 120 US$ 120 US$ 120 US$ 140 US$ 160 at no charge Rollaways available only in king-bedded rooms Hyatt Olive 8 Seattle US$ 125 US$ 125 US$ 125 US$ 150 US$ 175 at no charge The Inn at the Washington Rollaways are extremely limited, Athletic Club US$ 125 US$ 125 US$ 125 US$ 145 US$ 165 inquire directly with the MMSB Crowne Plaza Seattle Downtown US$ 125 US$ 125 US$ 125 US$ 145 US$ 165 Rollaways available only in king-bedded rooms Student Rate US$ 115 US$ 115 US$ 115 US$ 135 US$ 155 for a one-time $25 fee The Roosevelt Hotel US$ 120 US$ 120 US$ 120 US$ 140 US$ 160 Sofa beds are available in all rooms

People interested in suites should contact the MMSB directly by email at [email protected] or by calling 800-321-4267, ext. 4137 or 4144 (401-455-4137 or 401-455-4144). . t n S

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