Celebration of Mind

The University of Arkansas Department of Mathematical Sciences hosts our 8th Annual Celebration of Mind public event this Spring!

What

The Celebration of Mind is a time for children and adults to learn about the patterns, puzzles, and questions that make mathematics a fascinating subject.  At the event, members of the Department of Mathematical Sciences will have activities for attendees to do which show why we love mathematics and have made careers of it.

Attendees will also have the opportunity to play math games, look at mathematical art, and try solving math problems on their own.

Activities at previous Celebrations considered these questions:

How many different colors do you need to color a map so that no two countries with the same color
share a border?

How can we use mathematics to understand patterns in nature?

How can you count cards to gain an advantage in card games?

How can you use mathematics to devise a winning strategy in a game?

What is the "bell curve" in statistics and what does it mean?

When

Saturday March 31, 2018 from 10 AM to 2 PM.

Where

Champions Hall, fourth floor, University of Arkansas Campus at the corner of W. Dickson Street and N. Duncan Avenue.

Who

Everyone! K-12 students, parents, teachers, other adults with inquiring minds! While the event is designed for K-12 youth, there are interesting activities for all ages.

Registration

Being a public event, registration is not required, though if you are a teacher planning on bringing a class we would appreciate hearing from you to make any special arrangements necessary (such as bus parking).

Parking

Parking is available in Harmon Parking Garage immediately South of Champions Hall.

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For more information, check out our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/UACelebrationofMind or contact the Celebration of Mind 2018 organizer, Michael Duffy, at mjduffy@uark.edu.
Hope to see you there!
Sincerely,
Michael J. Duffy Jr. on behalf of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Arkansas.
mjduffy@uark.edu

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SLAM Algebraist Conference

The Southwest Local Algebra Meeting (SLAM) '18 takes place at the University of Arkansas on February 24-25, 2018.

The meeting features one-hour long talks from keynote speaker, Dr. B. Ulrich (Purdue University), as well as five speakers from the southwest region:

• Dr. J. Kujawa (U. Oklahoma)
• Dr. J. Landsberg (Texas A&M)
• Dr. H. Srinivasan (U. Missouri)
• Dr. P. Thompson (Texas Tech U.)
• Dr. Matt Day (U. Arkansas)

The talks cover a variety of topics in Algebra and are designed to be accessible to graduate students. Additionally, the meeting includes 3 one-hour long poster sessions where graduate students can illustrate their research to the participants.

 

Participants requesting support must register by Jan 20, 2018. All other participants have time until Feb 3, 2018 to register.

 

The registration form as well as more information can be found at the meeting webpage:

http://www.math.ttu.edu/~lchriste/slam2018.html

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ACTM 2018

Online registration for this year's ACTM competition. The entry fee is $2.00 per student. If you are sending a check, make the check payable to Shannon Dingman. Entry forms and fees must be mailed no later than February 2nd!

 

AMC 8 Competition Nov. 16th

What: MAA American Math Competitions (AMC 8)

When: Thursday, November 16th, 2017 from 5:30-7:00 PM

Where: Fayetteville Public Library (Walton Reading Room)

This annual math contest happens annually in November, challenging kids in middle school (grades 6-8) to use math and problem solving skills to answer a series of increasingly difficult problems. The contest takes 40 minutes and involves 25 multiple choice questions. The exam can be fast and is challenging, but is a low-stress and friendly venue to try their hand at unique problem-solving challenges. We emphasize that it is the challenge that drives, excites and motivates us. The competition provides an opportunity for students to develop positive attitudes towards analytical thinking and mathematics that can assist in future careers. It is a terrific experience for all and students who do particularly well are encouraged (and often targeted) to join various math camps over the summer. No calculators or electronic devices of any kind are allowed on the test. Pencil, paper and a brain are all you have and all you need. 

Students in elementary school are also welcome to participate. Some of the problems require some background in algebra, combinatorics, geometry and trigonometry, and number theory to complete, but we've had students from this age group do very well last year even with these subjects being represented. Students interested in preparing for the exam should look into the Fayetteville Math Competition group which meets Wednesday evenings. 

For more information about the exam, visit https://www.maa.org/math-competitions/amc-8 Note: Do NOT register on this site. Registration costs are covered by the department. Please use our registration form below.

For event scheduling and information, visit https://www.facebook.com/ Fayetteville-Math-Olympiad-Groups-1096046183756366/

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MOEMS - Math Olympics!

Mathematical Olympiads for Elementary and Middle Schools (MOEMS) is an international, annual event with the goals of stimulating enthusiasm and fostering creativity in the field of Mathematics. According to MOEMS, last year nearly 170,000 students from 6,000 teams worldwide participated in the Math Olympiads. All 50 states and about 30 other countries were represented.

Over the course of November through March, a team of up to 35 students in grades 4 through 8 may participate in 5 monthly contests. These contests will be taken in the participating school and consist of five non-routine problems.

Points are scored by students individually working a problem correctly to earn a point to where a single student may score up to 25 points per year. While definitions for more complex problems are given, calculators are not permitted and many solutions include follow-up problems and activities. These contests will take place in the Fayetteville Public Library.

For more information on the event and sample problems, visit www.moems.org

For scheduling and registration, visit sites.uark.edu/mathcircle/moems/

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Pi Day Pi K - March 13, 2016

Are you a Pi enthusiast? Would you like to take a walk on a lovely March day with fellow Pi enthusiasts?Join us in celebrating Pi Day!

The UA Department of Mathematical Sciences, with the assistance and support of the UA Math Club, is planning a fun walk of Pi K (3.14 km) for Pi Day (March 14, 2016). 

While the walk itself will begin promptly at 3:14 pm, there is a mandatory pre-walk meeting at 3:00 pm! Meet us at the start line! The start line will be located at the entrance to Champions Hall (the new building at the corner of Dickson and Duncan and home to the MRTC). 

The 3.14 km route features a tour of our beautiful UA campus and incorporates interesting Pi points (fun facts) along the way! Besides fun facts about Pi and a great deal of fun in general, t-shirts for all registered participants await! 

So, join us in celebrating Pi Day with our first-ever Pi K Fun Walk! Meet us in front of Champions Hall at 3:00 pm for a pre-walk meeting and, then, the real fun will begin! 
UA Pi Day Pi K (3.14 km) on March 14, 2016 (03/14) @ 3:14 pm 

And tell your friends! There are only 100 spots!
#UAPiDayPiK 

For questions, contact Samantha Robinson (sewrob@uark.edu) or Jennifer Paulk (jewest@uark.edu).

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John H. Conway gives talk on "The Free Will Theorem" - April 7, 2016

The two theories that revolutionized physics in the twentieth century, relativity and quantum mechanics, are full of predictions that defy common sense. Recently, Conway and Simon Kochen used three such paradoxical ideas to prove "The Free Will Theorem," the culmination of a series of theorems about quantum mechanics that began in the 1960s. it asserts, roughly, that if indeed we humans have free will, then elementary particles already have their own small share of this valuable commodity!

More precisely, if the experimenter can freely choose the directions in which to orient his apparatus in a certain measurement, then the particle's response is not determined by the entire previous history of the universe.

John H. Conway, subject of the recent biography Genius at Play, is the John von Neumann Professor of Mathematics at Princeton University and Fellow of the Royal Society. Inventor of the Game of Life. Discoverer of the Surreal Numbers and the Baby Monster Group. Free Will Theorem Prover. Knot Enumerator and Pencil Weaver... et cetera, et cetra, ad infinitum.

Born in Liverpool, England in 1937, Dr. John Horton Conway has since made vast achievements in the field of mathematics; most notably in the study of finite groups, number theory, game theory, coding theory, tiling, and knot theory. After being accepted in 1957, Conway went on to receive his B.A. in 1959 and Ph.D. in 1962 from the University of Cambridge. While being a lecturer in pure mathematics (1962-1975), reader (1957-1983), and professor (1983-1987) at the University of Cambridge, Conway later moved on to Preston University in 1987 where he became a von Neuman Professor of Mathematics.

From there on, Conway has worked with fellow professors and instructors and has published hundreds of independent and joint works; notably The Symmetries of Things (2008) with Heidi Burgiel of Bridgewater State University and Chaim Goodman-Strauss of the University of Arkansas. Conway has also been the recipient of the Pólya Prize from the London Mathematical Society in 1987, the Frederic Esser Nemmers Prize in Mathematics from Northwestern University in 1998, and the Leroy P. Steele Prize for Mathematical Exposition from the American Mathematical Society in 2000. For the contributions made in his areas of study, Conway was elected into the Royal Society of London in 1981.

Now an emeriti, Conway has made – and continues to make – lasting impressions on the mathematical community with his contributions of “surreal numbers,” Conway 24-Dimensional symmetry group, Monster 883-dimensional group, and many other achievements and games including, his own, the Game of Life. Recently, Conway has been working with Simon Kochen of Princeton University to formulate a Free Will Theorem, which connects human free will with the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen paradox in quantum mechanics.

Presently, Conway is flying back from Atlanta, Georgia from where he and Goodman-Strauss will attend “Gathering for Gardner” (G4G) being held March 30^th to April 3^rd. Before passing in 2010, Martin Gardner made various contributions to the broad field of mathematics, inspiring and influencing many throughout the mathematics community. From this inspiration, Tom Rodgers founded the G4G Foundation and the biannual weekend event in January 1993. Since then, G4G has had 12 conferences that attract magicians, mathematicians, skeptics, philosophers, puzzle enthusiasts, and the general public, all united by a shared enthusiasm for the work of Martin Gardner.

Newswire Article April 01, 2016

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 Arkansas Women in Statistics and Mathematics (AWSM) presents Q&A with Babara Alexander Stiles

Barbara Alexander Stiles is a UofA Distinguished Alumni who has been invited to give a Q&A by the Arkansas Women in Statistics and Mathematics (AWSM). Stiles is on the Board of Directors for several distinguished businesses, including Qualcomm, Inc.

The lecture will take place in SCEN 350 on September 15 at 3:00 pm.

 

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