2021 Section Meeting

Invited talks

Tim Chartier, Davidson College

Mathematical Celebrity Look-Alikes

Abstract: Have you ever wondered what celebrities you look like? This talk develops a mathematical answer to this question from a group of celebrity photos. Vectors norms enable us to discern what celebrity looks most like a selected individual. Then, we broaden the question to explore what linear combination of celebrity photos best approximates a selected photo. Would you describe yourself as a cross between Russell Crowe and Ben Stiller? Or maybe Julia Roberts and Jennifer Aniston? In this talk, we learn how to answer this question using mathematical methods from undergraduate linear algebra classes.

Carol Schumacher, Kenyon College

All Tangled Up

Abstract: Toys have inspired a lot of interesting mathematics. The Spirograph (TM) helps children create lovely curves by rolling a small circle around the inside or the outside of a larger circle. These curves are called hypotrochoids and epitrochoids and are special cases of mathematical curves called roulettes. A roulette is created by following a point attached to one curve as that curve "rolls" along another curve. Another children’s toy, the Tangle (TM), inspired some students and me to investigate roulettes that we get by rolling a circle around the inside of a "tangle curve," which is made up of quarter circles. The resulting roulettes we named "tangloids." In this talk, we will look at many pretty pictures and animations of these curves and discuss some of their interesting properties. As a bonus, I will discuss the nature of generalization, which is very important in mathematics.

Tom Edgar, Pacific Lutheran University

A Mathematician's Groundhog Day: Prove, reflect, and repeat

Abstract: What might a mathematician do if they were forced to relive the same day over and over, much like Bill Murray in the classic movie Groundhog Day? Wouldn't boredom set in after proving the same theorem over and over? Not if they use different techniques each time! In this talk, we will discuss why mathematicians might be interested in proving one result in many ways. We'll explore multiple proofs for a variety of theorems that are typically encountered by undergraduate mathematics students. In particular, we will encounter several visually-inspired proofs that encourage alternate ways of thinking about pure mathematical ideas.