Fall 2009 Lectures |
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| Lecture # 86 | |
| Spatiotemporal Location: |
Friday, September 18, 2009, 3:30 PM, Room 209 |
| Title: | "How To Prove The Impossible" |
| Speaker: | Professor Steve Deckelman, UW- Stout |
| Abstract: | Impossibility Theorems are some of most intriguing in mathematics. Results of this type are often fascinatingly counterintuitive because they tell us that something we think ought to be possible is actually impossible. Historically, the 2000 year old quests to duplicate the cube, trisect the angle and square the circle were eventually stymied by proofs that these geometric constructions are impossible. Although students don't usually learn why this is so until taking a college course in modern algebra, the basic ideas behind these \three Greek problems" are surprisingly elementary and can be understood with a good precalculus(algebra+trigonometry) background. This talk will describe how all of this works. |
| Biography: |
Dr. Steve Deckelman (1994); Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison |
| Lecture # 87 | |
| Spatiotemporal Location: |
Friday, October 9, 2009, 3:30 PM, Mitby Theater |
| Title: | "Humor. Activity, and Intrigue ... the Fun Side of Mathematics" |
| Speaker: | Professor John Coburn's previous presentation was: "Mining the Cubic Equation for Mathematical Gems" |
| Abstract: | This session is designed to provide a few enjoyable and instructive moments for all who attend. The presentation nicely mixes visual cues given via PowerPoint; with opportunities for individual and group participation from willing volunteers, as well as the active participation of all attendees who will attempt to solve mathematical riddles, anticipate punch-lines, and otherwise share in the moment. It will also include a collection of student bloopers, favorite quips and quotes, humorous cartoons related to the teaching and learning of mathematics, and ingenious devices used to make a mathematical point. Other vehicles for learning and enjoyment will include word play, double meanings, acronyms, simple games, riddles, creative tests, and humorous anecdotes, all designed to help us find unexpected connections and insight, and ways to increase retention, while encouraging divergent thinking and increasing group rapport. A great time is in store for all. |
| Biography: |
Professor John Coburn, Mathematics Department, St. Louis Community College |
| Lecture # 88 | |
| Spatiotemporal Location: |
Friday, October 23, 2009, Room 209 |
| Title: | "Statistics at Consumer Reports" |
| Speaker: | Professor Michael Saccucci, Director of Statistics and Quality Management, Consumer Union |
| Abstract: | The speaker will give an introduction to Consumers Union -- the organization that publishes Consumer Reports magazine -- and the types of products and services they test and evaluate. After this, he will show two examples of testing: paints and beer. Then, he will talk about some ways they use statistics and mathematics at Consumers Union. This will include a discussion of how they design their experiments, a brief introduction of how they develop ratings, and an algorithm he developed to help identify CR Best Buys. |
| Biography: |
Professor Saccucci received his Ph.D. and M.S. in Statistics from the University of Delaware. He has been with the Consumer Union since 1999. He has also taught at the Western Connecticut State University, Drexel University and Temple University. |
| Lecture # 89 | |
| Spatiotemporal Location: |
Friday, November 6, 2009, 3:30 PM, Room 209 |
| Title: | "Rational Imaginary Roots of Polynomials" |
| Speaker: | Professor Tony Thomas |
| Abstract: | The Rational Root Theorem tells us where to look for rational roots of polynomials. In this talk we will discuss where to look for rational imaginary roots, i.e., imaginary roots whose real and imaginary parts are rational numbers. The only prerequisite for this talk is a background in algebra that includes finding roots of polynomials. |
| Biography: |
Tony Thomas received his B.A. from Washington University (St. Louis) and his Ph.D. from Purdue University. He has been teaching at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville since 1994. |
| Lecture # 90 | |
| Spatiotemporal Location: |
Friday, November 20, 2009, 3:30 PM, Room 209 |
| Title: | "Pythagorean Triples: Where Do They Come From?" |
| Speaker: | Professor John A. Frohliger, St. Norbert College Past Lectures: "The Golden Ratio", "Finding the Odd Weight", "Worms, Blocks, and Harmony", "Honey, Where Shall We Sit?" and "One Potato, Two Potato, ..." |
| Abstract: |
Everyone remembers the Pythagorean Theorem: If a, b, and c are the legs and hypotenuse of a right triangle, then |
| Biography: |
Professor John A. Frohliger of St. Norbert College has been an Associate Professor of Mathematics at St. Norbert College since 1983. He received his B.A. from Indiana University and M.S. and Ph.D. from Purdue University. He has served as the Wisconsin coordinator of the American High School Mathematics Examination (AHSME), 1987-92, the Chair of the Wisconsin Section of the MAA 1998-1999 and a Reader for the AP calculus exam since 2000. |
| Lecture # 91 | |
| Spatiotemporal Location: |
Friday, December 4, 2009, 3:30 PM, Room 209 |
| Title: | "Odd Pie Fights" |
| Speaker: | Professor John Koker, UW-Oshkosh, Dean, College of Letters and Science Past Lectures: (You Took How Many? NIM Type Games), (a2 + b2 = c2 Says Who?), (Two men thinking about math recreations) |
| Abstract: | Suppose that an odd number of people are standing in a room and each person has a banana cream pie that he or she will throw at the closest person. Assuming that each person is a perfect shot and hits the person they throw at, it can be shown that there is always a survivor (someone who doesn’t get hit by a pie). Some basic geometry will be used to prove this and other surprising results. Questions will be posed as well. |
| Biography: |
John Koker has been the chair of the mathematics department at UW Oshkosh since 2000 and is the current chair of the Wisconsin division of the Mathematical Association of America. After receiving his Ph.D. from UW Milwaukee in 1990, he spent one year as a visiting professor at Potsdam College of the State University of New York. John was the Co-chair of the MAA-WI section's high school math contest for six years. During his spring 1999 sabbatical he was a visiting professor at Kyungpook National University in Taegu, South Korea. In 2002, he received the UW-Oshkosh Distinguished Teaching Award, and this fall he will receive UW-Oshkosh's 2004-2005 John McNaughton Rosebush Professorship for excellence in teaching, professional achievement and public service. He is also part of a recent project aimed at boosting the math skills of Menominee Indian School District middle school students. Koker is in the top quarter of all mathematicians, based on the number of times his work has been reviewed by the journal Mathematical Review. His primary areas of research include the theory of rings and modules, mathematics education and graph theory. |
. Most people can even recall some particular examples, such as the 3-4-5 right triangle, where the lengths of the sides are all integers. In this talk, we’ll investigate some of the properties of a, b, and c and look at how you can generate your own Pythagorean triple (bring a calculator).
