On March 13, Bucknell will host the 46th Professor John Steiner Gold Mathematical Competition. The competition is open to all area high schools, public and private. Each school may enter up to three students, who will compete for both team and individual prizes. Please see the link below for more details about this year’s competition.
Best of luck to all participants!
John Steiner Gold Exam Announcement
Student Colloquium talk by Professor Matthew Mizuhara ’12 of The College of New Jersey
Title: An Orchestra without a Conductor: The Mathematics of Synchronizing Fireflies
Abstract: In Amphawa, Thailand trees are lined with thousands of fireflies spontaneously flashing in near perfect unison. However, there is no “leader” driving this coordination. The Kuramoto model, a non-linear system of differential equations, describes the firefly flashes. Using numerical simulations, we can capture this spontaneous emergence of synchronization and explore other, new patterns which can arise. No background in differential equations is required to enjoy this talk!
https://www.facebook.com/266699492339/posts/10157141057037340/
Yili Wang ’21, who is majoring in Applied Mathematical Sciences, is featured in this video about the “Cool Class” DANC 200: Art of Chinese Watersleeve.
Student Colloquium talk by Professor Lucas Waddell of Bucknell University
Title: Using Genetic Algorithms for U.S. Army Robot Design
Abstract: In recent years, Operations Research practitioners have increasingly utilized nature-inspired algorithms (NIAs) to solve real-world, large-scale optimization problems. One of the most popular NIAs is the Genetic Algorithm (GA), which is based on ideas from Darwin’s theory of evolution. This talk will provide an introduction to GAs through the lens of a project that Lucas worked on for the U.S. Army during his time as an Operations Research Analyst at Sandia National Laboratories.
As part of Professor Flynt’s Foundation Seminar titled Sports, Statistics and Society, groups of first-year students acted as consultants, performing sports analytics for different Bucknell athletic teams. Students worked with Baseball, Field Hockey, Men’s and Women’s Basketball, and Football. Each coach developed a set of questions that they were interested in having the students analyze and gave students full access to their team data. The group of students working with the football team worked very closely with Offensive Coordinator, Coach Bobby Acosta, spending time in the football coaching suite, looking at game video, and taking stats for the team up in the box at several practices. Their analysis of practice data helped inform play calling for the offense in the last couple games of the season. The project was featured in this segment during the TV broadcast of the final game versus Fordham on November 17th.
Student Colloquium talk presented by Bucknell Students
Moderator: Nate Mattis ’19
Presenters:
Abstract: There are many exciting summer opportunities for students in the mathematical sciences! These range from internships with financial companies to research experiences at other universities to leadership development programs. In this week’s colloquium, a panel of your peers will tell you their experiences. What did they enjoy about their experiences? When did they apply? There will also be ample time for questions and answers. These varied opportunities, as well as being terrific fun, are also immensely valuable as you begin to think about your careers after Bucknell.
Student Colloquium talk by Professor Dick Forrester of Dickinson College
Title: Assigning Students to Schools to Minimize Socioeconomic Variation between Schools: An Introduction to Optimization Modeling
Abstract: Numerous studies have found that a student’s academic achievement is as much determined by the socioeconomic composition of their school as their own socioeconomic status. In this talk we provide a methodology for assigning students to schools so as to balance the socioeconomic compositions of the schools while taking into consideration the total travel distance. Our technique utilizes a bi-objective general 0-1 fractional program that is linearized into a mixed 0-1 linear program which can be submitted directly to a standard optimization package. If you didn’t understand that last sentence, don’t worry, the purpose of this talk is to introduce you to optimization modeling. As a test case for our approach we analyze data from the Greenville County School District in Greenville, South Carolina.
Student Colloquium talk by Professor Liz Stanhope of Lewis and Clark College (Visiting Professor at Bucknell University)
Title: Listening to Orbifolds and Orbigraphs
Abstract: Spectral geometry is a lively area of mathematical research motivated by the question `Can you hear the shape of a drum?’ My work in spectral geometry has been to study the spectral properties of objects called orbifolds. Questions in spectral geometry have useful analogs in graph theory. Because of this we’ll discuss how to make sense of the concept of orbifold in the setting of spectral graph theory.
Student Colloquium talk by Professor Ken Field of Bucknell University
Title: Bioinformatics and the Challenges of Visualizing Big Data
Abstract: Bioinformatics and next generation sequencing have revolutionized biology and medicine. The increasing affordability of next generation sequencing has made it possible to use whole-genome and whole-transcriptome approaches to answer questions in the lab, the field, and the clinic. However, working with these large datasets presents several computational and statistical challenges. As an example, we will discuss the importance of data exploration and multiple testing corrections. In addition, visualizing complex multi-dimensional data is also difficult and we will discuss approaches using interactive data displays and virtual reality.
Title: Proofs Without Witnesses: Zero Knowledge Proofs
Abstract: Peggy wants to convince Victor that she possesses a secret. Victor doesn’t believe that Peggy is telling the truth while Peggy doesn’t trust Victor enough to show him the secret. Zero knowledge proofs provide a method by which Peggy can convince Victor that she has the secret without giving Victor any information about the secret itself. In this talk we’ll construct and analyze several zero knowledge proofs, and discuss how they can be used in a wide array of areas including computer security and nuclear disarmament.