Lander Mathematics Society
Thursday - October 22nd - Opening Meeting & Presentation on Fermat's Last Theorem
Around 1637, the French mathematician Pierre de Fermat wrote his Last Theorem in the margin of Diophantus’Arithemetica, stating that the equation xn + yn = zn had no non-trivial solutions when n is greater than 2. Lastly, Fermat wrote: “I have discovered a truly marvelous proof of this, which this margin is too narrow to contain.” For the last thirty years of his life, however, Fermat never again mentioned his “marvelous proof,” and in 1665, he took his secret to the grave…
We will watch a BBC documentary on the proof of Fermat's last theorem, including a discussion of the Epsilon Conjecture as well as Andrew Wiles' proof of the Tanayama-Shimura conjecture.
Refreshments: Pizza
We will watch a BBC documentary on the proof of Fermat's last theorem, including a discussion of the Epsilon Conjecture as well as Andrew Wiles' proof of the Tanayama-Shimura conjecture.
Refreshments: Pizza
Thursday - November 5th - Careers in Mathematics
Earlier this year, the Wall Street Journal brought attention to a study that evaluated 200 different careers based on five important criteria: environment, income, employment outlook. physical demands and stress. What do you think they found to be the #1 best job? The answer, in fact, was mathematician! The second best? Actuary! The third? Statistician! These findings were based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Census Bureau. Interestingly enough, all three of these jobs are mostly likely to be held by college graduates holding a degree in Mathematics or Actuarial Science. As the private industry relies more and more on technology and financial analysis, mathematicians are needed to calculate the risk of potential business ventures or design mathematically-based computer systems and programs. Furthermore, the poor mathematics education in American schools fuels the demand for those few who do graduate with a maths degree. In that spirit, we will be showing a short video presentation entitled "Careers in Mathematics" that will demonstrate the various exciting jobs in the math field. Afterwards, Prof. Moshe Snow will speak about his personal experience in the actuarial field, as well as give advice to students who are interested in entering this lucrative and rewarding career.
Refreshments: Pizza
Thursday - November 19th - Dangerous Knowledge - Part 1
In this one-off documentary, David Malone looks at four brilliant mathematicians - Georg Cantor, Ludwig Boltzmann, Kurt Gödel and Alan Turing - whose genius has profoundly affected us, but which tragically drove them insane and eventually led to them all committing suicide. The film begins with Georg Cantor, the great mathematician whose work proved to be the foundation for much of the 20th-century mathematics. He believed he was God's messenger and was eventually driven insane trying to prove his theories of infinity. Presenter David Malone reads letters which demonstrate Cantor's crumbling self-belief.
Ludwig Boltzmann's struggle to prove the existence of atoms and probability eventually drove him to suicide. Kurt Gödel, the introverted confidant of Einstein, proved that there would always be problems which were outside human logic. His life ended in a sanatorium where he starved himself to death.
Finally, Alan Turing, the great Bletchley Park code breaker, father of computer science and homosexual, died trying to prove that some things are fundamentally unprovable.
The film also talks to the latest in the line of thinkers who have continued to pursue the question of whether there are things that mathematics and the human mind cannot know. They include Greg Chaitin, mathematician at the IBM TJ Watson Research Center, New York, and Roger Penrose.
Dangerous Knowledge tackles some of the profound questions about the true nature of reality that mathematical thinkers are still trying to answer today.
Refreshments: TBA
Ludwig Boltzmann's struggle to prove the existence of atoms and probability eventually drove him to suicide. Kurt Gödel, the introverted confidant of Einstein, proved that there would always be problems which were outside human logic. His life ended in a sanatorium where he starved himself to death.
Finally, Alan Turing, the great Bletchley Park code breaker, father of computer science and homosexual, died trying to prove that some things are fundamentally unprovable.
The film also talks to the latest in the line of thinkers who have continued to pursue the question of whether there are things that mathematics and the human mind cannot know. They include Greg Chaitin, mathematician at the IBM TJ Watson Research Center, New York, and Roger Penrose.
Dangerous Knowledge tackles some of the profound questions about the true nature of reality that mathematical thinkers are still trying to answer today.
Refreshments: TBA
Thursday, December 10th -- The Mathematics of Dreidel
You may not know it, but the much beloved Chanukah game of Dreidel is, in fact, mathematically biased. Join LMS president Elchanan Solomon for donuts and an analytic presentation on the probabilistic nature of the game of dreidel, as well as how it can be made fair.
Thursday, December 31st -- Gershon Firestone -- Lander Alumni & Actuary
Gershon Firestone, an AXA actuary and alumni of Lander College will be giving a presentation on the nature of his job and how students can get internships and full-time positions.
