Mathematics and Computer Science

Transformative Games: Undergraduate Research by Design

Orando Simpson — 2012-11-02T04:00:00Z

York College Assistant Professor, Dr. Robert O. Duncan and his student Rasha Alsaidi provided us with a hint or snippet of the futuristic involvement of technology in the learning process.

This was a dialog between Dr. Robert O. Duncan and his student Rasha Alsaidi describing the process of creating game-based learning systems for undergraduates. They focused on the mentor-mentee relationship and building a framework to accommodate students with widely varying research interests.

Fibonacci Numbers and Compositions

Orando Simpson — 2012-04-24T18:15:00Z

Too often professors deliver their research to students in a very complicated and uninviting way making it hard for students to maintain their interest and follow what’s going on. This was not at all the case at the York College Monthly Tensor Talk given on February 16, 2012. There, Dr. James Sellers was able to strike a balance with a fun and interactive talk that was not too overbearing and yet full of mathematical results that were nothing short of outstanding. One of the main reasons why he was able to strike this balance is because he is a man many responsibilities. Professionally, he is Director of undergraduate studies, professor at Penn State University, administrator, researcher, and writer. Personally he is a husband, father of five, assistant football coach and webmaster for three different organizations.

Dr. Sellers’s talk focused on the cool and unexpected connections between compositions and the Fibonacci. A composition of an integer n is a partition of n where the order of the parts matters. Dr. Sellers used simple calculations and example to discover formulas beginning with how to find the number of compositions there are for a given natural number. For example, the number of compositions of the number 3, represented by C(3), can be found using the formula c(n) = 2^n-1which he derived and then proved with the help of those in attendance. Next, he showed how the composition of an integers and Fibonacci numbers are related.

At the end of the presentation Dr. Sellers hammered home the point that the Fibonacci Numbers keep appearing in compositions of integers in interesting ways and as result that he believes we should pay more attention to these numbers. He left the audience with several questions to investigate based on the work presented. After the talk Dr. Sellers generously spent time with Tensor Scholars students joining them for dinner at a nearby restaurant. Dr. Sellers was in New York to give a lecture at the CUNY Graduate Center and was invited by Dr. Rishi Nath whose research also deals with integer partitions and Dr. Lidia Gonzalez to give a lecture at York College as part of his NY trip.

Crossing the Equal Sign: Mathematics as Poetic Experience

Orando Simpson — 2012-04-17T04:00:00Z

Among the general public math has a reputation for being cold, calculating, and lacking in emotion. Yet, not everyone feels that way. Throughout history human beings, not always mathematicians have been inspired to write math literature. Well-known examples include Flatland and Alice in Wonderland.

This talk featured the exploration of math poetry by Dr. Marion Cohen, focusing on poems from her book, Crossing the Equal Sign. The book is a series of poems through which one can see her passion for mathematics as she described her experience while working on a particularly intriguing problem. Math weaves in and out of her life – and vice versa.

We heard poems about cats, kids, music, zen, stuttering, broken ankles, and of course points, lines, and math-dreams among others. The reading was punctuated by info and comments about math poetry in general.

Tensor Talk at Undergraduate Research Day

Orando Simpson — 2012-04-15T04:00:00Z

Research Day provided the perfect platform for Tensor program to inform students about the abundant but perhaps unknown opportunities available to them. Dr. James Airozo, Director of Student Academic Awards, CUNY took the opportunity to inform students of scholarships in his talk Scholarships at CUNY and Beyond. This presentation focused on national, competitive scholarships and fellowships, primarily for graduate study. Highlights included an overview of the support services available for CUNY students interested in applying for scholarships to finance their graduate education.

It also provided information on the CUNY Prestigious Scholarships website which offers information on nearly 50 scholarships with links to their websites and a listing of CUNY scholarships winners. Following his talk, Jasmine Osorio, a now-recent graduate of York College and former Tensor Scholar talked about her experiences in a summer research experience for undergraduates in mathematical finance and how this influenced her decision to apply to the Pre-PhD program for women in mathematics at Smith College.

All Things Pi (Pi Day!)

Orando Simpson — 2012-03-14T04:00:00Z

We began the day by celebrating Pi day with a talk/activity about pi and followed that up with some pizza pies and other round treats! The audience was very fascinated by the history and intuitive activities involving pi.

York Tensor Scholars Talk: All Things Pi

Orando Simpson — 2012-03-07T19:14:10Z

A presentation and discussion about the history and important uses of Pi (π).

2012 Women in Mathematics Day

Orando Simpson — 2012-03-01T05:00:00Z

Women in Math Day 2012 brought together students and faculty to hear two wonderful talks by prominent women in mathematics. These were:

Fermat’s Little Theorem and RSA Code by Dr. Shamita Dutta Gupta, Department of Mathematics, Pace University
Mathematics and Creativity by Dr. Vrunda Prabhu, Department of Mathematics and Computer S0cience, Bronx Community College

The talks were followed by lunch at Jamaica’s Sangria Restaurant.

Research Experiences for Undergraduates

Orando Simpson — 2011-11-29T18:55:00Z

On November 22, 2011 the York College Tensor Scholars Program in association with the Office of Undergraduate Research hosted a talk by Jasime Osorio titled, Summer Research in Mathematical Finance at Berkeley.

During her talk she shared her summer research experiences. She explained she worked on while taking part in a research experience for undergraduates at the prestigious university as well as encouraged students in attendance to look into and apply for such programs themselves.

Jasmine Osorio is an undergraduate majoring in Math at York College. Working under the guidance of Dr. Rishi Nath, she was able to obtain a grant from Mathematical Science Research Institute (MSRI).

With this grant she was able to spend several weeks at University of California Berkeley studying mathematical finance. Jasime explained that she enjoyed sharing her experiences while encouraging her peers and labeled the event refreshing.

Excluded Minor Results in Matroids

Orando Simpson — 2011-11-15T18:45:00Z

On Monday, November 14, 2011, the York College Tensor Scholars Program featured a talk by Dr. Sandra Kingan from the Department of Mathematics at Brooklyn College, CUNY titled Excluded Minor Results in Matroids.

The excluded minor results on which she focused are some of the most celebrated results in graph and matroid structure theory. For a given class of matroids with a specified structure, a minimal excluded minor is a matroid that is not in the class though every single-element deletion and contraction is in the class.

Such matroids are minimal obstructions for membership in the class. For example, the complete graph on five vertices and the complete bipartite graph with three vertices in each class are the minimal obstructions to planarity in graphs.

Several classes of matroids such as binary, ternary, and quaternary matroids can be characterized in terms of their minimal obstructions. Dr. Kingan’s talk was an interesting introduction to matroids for many in attendance.

Trip to the One Theater Festival

Orando Simpson — 2011-11-01T18:00:00Z

On November 19, 2011 the York College Tensor Scholars Program sponsored a trip to the All for One Theater Festival, to see Truth Values: One Girl's Romp Through M.I.T.'s Male Math Maze.

The play paints a vivid picture of challenges experienced by woman in the mathematics field which is dominated by males. The play offers laughter while giving the audience a deep and critical understanding of the gender differences and double standards in the mathematics profession.

Truth Values is an autobiographical work written and performed Gioia De Cari and has won several awards and earned positive reviews from critics and the students who attended alike.

After the play those Tensor Scholars in attendance had dinner at Polonia, a Polish restaurant near the theater. A good time was had by all.

Cops and Robbers on a Cube

Orando Simpson — 2011-10-23T17:40:00Z

On Friday, October 21, 2011, the York College Tensor Scholars Program hosted a talk by Dr. Kerry Ojakian from the Department of Mathematics at Queens College, CUNY. Dr. Ojakian’s talk focused on the game Cops and Robbers on a Cube.

This is a two-player game, played with an undirected graph. The cops’ objective is to catch the robber while the robber is trying to evade being caught. To begin the game, the cops choose any vertices to occupy, and then the robber chooses a vertex to occupy.

The players then take turns, at each turn remaining stationary or moving to an adjacent vertex. The cops win if they catch the robber, that is, if they ever occupy the same vertex as the robber; the robber wins if he can avoid being caught indefinitely. The talk was well received by those in attendance.