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MAA FOCUS October 2008 MAA FOCUS October 2008 MAA FOCUS is published by the Mathematical Association of America in January, February, March, April, May/June, MAA FOCUS August/September, October, November, and December. Volume 28 Issue 7 Editor: Fernando Gouvêa, Colby College; [email protected] Managing Editor: Carol Baxter, MAA Inside [email protected] 4 ‘I can wear a math hat and a computer science hat’ Senior Writer: Harry Waldman, MAA An Interview with Margaret Wright [email protected] By Ivars Peterson Please address advertising inquiries to: [email protected] 6 Financial Information for Members is Now on the MAA Web Site By John W. Kenelly President: Joseph Gallian First Vice President: Elizabeth Mayfield, 7 It’s All About MAQ Second Vice President: Daniel J. Teague, By Kay Weiss Secretary: Martha J. Siegel, Associate Secretary: James J. Tattersall, Treasurer: 9 Letters to the Editor John W. Kenelly Executive Director: Tina H. Straley 10 Consternation and Exhilaration Director of Publications for Journals and Early Experiences in Conducting Undergraduate Research Communications: Ivars Peterson By Robin Blankenship Donald MAA FOCUS Editorial Board: 12 MathFest 2008 in Pictures J. Albers; Robert Bradley; Joseph Gallian; Jacqueline Giles; Colm Mulcahy; Michael Orrison; Peter Renz; Sharon Cutler Ross; An- 14 Report of the Secretary nie Selden; Hortensia Soto-Johnson; Peter By Martha J. Siegel Stanek; Ravi Vakil. 16 Renowned Mathematician Oded Schramm Dies in Fall Letters to the editor should be addressed to Fernando Gouvêa, Colby College, Dept. of Mathematics, Waterville, ME 04901, or by 17 In Memoriam email to [email protected]. Subscription and membership questions . should be directed to the MAA Customer 18 Joint Mathematics Meetings Service Center, 800-331-1622; email: [email protected]; (301) 617-7800 (outside U.S. and Canada); fax: (301) 206-9789. MAA Washington, D.C. Headquarters: (202) 387-5200. Copyright © 2008 by the Mathematical January 5 – 8, 2009 Association of America (Incorporated). Educational institutions may reproduce articles for their own use, but not for sale, 46 Employment Opportunities provided that the following citation is used: “Reprinted with permission of MAA FOCUS, the newsmagazine of the Mathematical Association of America (Incorporated).” Periodicals postage paid at Washington, DC and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Cover photograph courtesy of iStockphoto.com Send address changes to MAA FOCUS, Mathematical Association of America, P.O. Box 90973, Washington, DC 20090-0973. MAA FOCUS Deadlines ISSN: 0731-2040; Printed in the United States August/September October November of America. Editorial Copy July 8 September 16 Display Ads July 10 August 20 September 24 Employment Ads June 11 August 13 September 10 2 October 2008 MAA FOCUS Haimo Award Winners to Speak at the Joint Meetings Michael Bardzell, David Pengelley, innovations. At the beginning of the program that focuses on frequent assess- and Vali Siadat are the winners of this calculus reform movement, Pengelley ment, constant feedback and student sup- year’s Haimo Awards for distinguished and colleagues developed a program port. His project, supported by nearly one teaching. They will receive the MAA’s of student projects. Major multi-step $100,000 grant from Gabriella and Paul most prestigious teaching award at the problems were used to engage students Rosenbaum Foundation, has improved Prize Session during the Joint Mathemat- in imaginative thinking, challenge them student outcomes not only in mathemat- ics Meetings. The winners will give talks to integrate ideas, and express them in a ics but also in reading comprehension. at a special session to be held on Wednes- written report. This work led to Student He has also been a leader in Project Ac- day, January 7, from 2:30 to 4:00. Research Projects in Calculus, an MAA cess, a nearly $1,000,000 NASA funded best seller. mathematics-based summer program for Michael Bardzell has had a pronounced low-income and minority students from impact, both locally at Salisbury State Pengelley is passionate about using middle and high schools. Each summer University and well beyond. At Salisbury primary historical sources in teaching. from 1996-2004, 80-100 students were State, he has involved many students with He feels that studying primary sources recruited from 52 middle schools and a variety of backgrounds in research. fosters motivation, broadens perspec- high schools in Chicago to explore engi- Over the last ten years, his students have tive, reveals context, hones verbal and neering as a career option. Siadat not only presented their work at various venues, deductive skills, provides excitement, directed the local program but was a key including the National Conference on brings students closer to the practice figure in developing curriculum related to Undergraduate Research, regional under- of research, shows the genesis and mathematical logic and computer science graduate conferences and local meetings, progression of ideas, and displays the for the national program. and national and sectional meetings of human face of mathematics. Moreover, the MAA. Several of his students have knowledge of difficulties of the past As a mentor and advisor, Siadat supports won awards for their presentations, and a can help students better understand the students to obtain internship in scientific variety of publications have resulted. problems of today. At New Mexico State organizations and laboratories outside the University, Pengelley developed honors college. He has had excellent success in Bardzell, together with faculty from five courses based on primary sources leading arranging numerous summer research institutions, has received two grants from to two co-authored textbooks of guided internship programs for two-year college the CCLI program of the NSF Division of primary sources, Mathematical Expedi- students at the world renowned Argonne Undergraduate Education. The second of tions: Chronicles by the Explorers and National Laboratory. A scholar with two these was on visualizing abstract math- Mathematical Masterpieces: Further doctorates, one in pure mathematics and ematics and included his organization Chronicles by the Explorers, both pub- another in mathematics education, Siadat of two summer undergraduate research lished by Springer. continues with his research to develop retreats at New College of Florida, where innovative approaches in pedagogy and students spent a week learning and inves- More recently, Pengelley has been devel- improvement of teaching of undergradu- tigating various aspects of mathematics. oping a student-centered inquiry-based ate mathematics. The grants have also led to a set of labora- teaching method as an alternative to tory exercises that help students to visual- lecturing. Students prepare in advance Siadat’s talk at the Joint Meetings will ize concepts in abstract algebra, including via guided reading, writing assignments, discuss My Teaching Philosophy and the normal subgroups, quotient groups, and and warm-up exercises. Thus, their first Development of the Keystone Method: subnormal series, and similar exercises in contact with new material never occurs A Synergistic Model for Teaching and dynamical systems and number theory, as via lecture, allowing class time to be Learning. well as two computer programs that al- spent more productively and at a higher low for mathematical visualization, and intellectual level. The Deborah and Franklin Tepper Haimo the collection of related data for student Award for Distinguished College or Uni- exploration. Pengelley’s talk at the Joint Meetings will versity Teaching was established by the be on How to Beat the Lecture/Textbook Mathematical Association of America to Bardzell’s talk at the Joint Meetings will Trap! An Active Classroom via Advance honor college or university teachers who be From Groups to Graphics – Stories of Student Reading and Writing. have been widely recognized as extraor- Undergraduate Research in Visualizing dinarily successful and whose teaching Abstract Mathematics. Vali Siadat is a teacher who cares effectiveness has been shown to have MAA FOCUS Deadlines deeply about the success of his students, had influence beyond their own institu- August/September October November For the past 20 years, David Pengelley and does whatever it takes to help them tions. Each year, at most three college or Editorial Copy July 8 September 16 has been continually reinventing his achieve their educational goals. He is university teachers receive this award. Display Ads July 10 August 20 September 24 teaching, and the mathematical com- best known for the development of the See page 21 for more information on the Employment Ads June 11 August 13 September 10 munity has benefited greatly from those Keystone Method, a synergistic teaching Haimo talks. 3 MAA FOCUS October 2008 ‘I can wear a math hat and a computer science hat’ An Interview with Margaret Wright By Ivars Peterson Margaret Wright is Silver Professor they said that, because the math that I was of Computer Science and Mathemat- taught was never presented as useful, but ics and chair of the Computer Science I believed them. Department at the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York Uni- Then Stanford started a computer science versity. Last March, she gave one of the program, and I thought it was great that MAA’s series of Distinguished Lectures, you could make a computer produce speaking on ‘What Can We Say After interesting results. The kind of computer We Say We’re Sorry?
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