Snow February 8-9, 2013
Here in Williamstown we got just about a foot of snow.
Archive for the ‘Articles’ Category.
Hazel’s Bridge Club in Toronto
When I was at the Field’s Institute in Toronto on sabbatical in the fall of 2010, I played duplicate bridge with 25 different partners. Here’s an interesting hand from Hazel’s Bridge Club on September 6, with Joyce Fraser. I was East at 4S. Do you see how to make it? The key after taking the heart ace is to force an entry to dummy by leading a low spade to the 6. This was good for 10/15 matchpoints.
Actually it can be set by perfect defense. Do you see how? South has to underlead the AK of clubs to North’s Q, so that North can return a diamond to eventually score two diamond tricks.
Royal Caribbean Bridge with Larry Cohen and Jeff Meckstroth
Here’s an interesting hand from a Royal Caribbean regional bridge tournament cruise (with 6000 passengers and 2000 staff on the Allure of the Seas) with Larry Cohen in December, 2012. After my partner (Lois Hausman) opened 1D, I took her to 6N. After a heart lead, she properly advanced the 9 of spades and West properly covered, leaving East with the J86 after dummy’s A1075. Do you see how to make the hand? Take the club finesse and the AK, play out the red winners, and then put East in with the club 9 to his 10. Now he must lead from his spades. Continue reading ‘Royal Caribbean Bridge with Larry Cohen and Jeff Meckstroth’ »
Allentown School District Foundation
After the week-long soap bubble conference in Scotland, I spent the rest of spring break in my hometown, visiting my mom and enjoying the arrival of spring, exemplified by the pink blossoms of the cherry trees. We attended a fundraising dinner by the new Allentown School District Foundation, with excerpts from school spring musicals. They sponsor all kinds of creative programming in the schools. Their greatest current need is funding for a director.
It’s always hard to leave. On the way back to Williams I wrote the following poem:
ICMS “Isoperimetric Problems…” 19-22 March 2012 Edinburgh
ICMS workshop on “Isoperimetric problems, space filling, and soap bubble geometry” in Edinburgh, Scotland, March 19-22, 2012, described in my Huffington Post blog on “Soap Bubbles in Scotland”; research blog.
Video of Simon Cox, Aberystwyth University, organizer. Continue reading ‘ICMS “Isoperimetric Problems…” 19-22 March 2012 Edinburgh’ »
My New Huffington Post Blog
The Huffington Post has invited me to do a math blog. My first post is titled, “Can Math Survive without the Bees?”
Can Math Survive Without the Bees? Huffington Post blog, 6 March 2012.
Alan Alda’s Flame Challenge and Kids’ Five Most Popular Science Questions, Huffington Post blog, 16 March 2012. Winner.
Soap Bubbles in Scotland, Huffington Post blog, 23 March 2012.
Math Finds the Best Doughnut, Huffington Post blog, 2 April 2012.
Geometry Festival, Huffington Post blog, 30 April 2012.
Math Now—Commencement Can Wait, Huffington Post blog, 28 May 2012.
Why is Summer so Early (June 20)? Huffington Post blog, 17 June 2012.
I Win Soap-Bubble-Cluster Controversy, Huffington Post blog, 22 June 2012.
Spilled Orange Juice on My Way to a Math Conference in Spain, Huffington Post blog, 30 June 2012.
Why a Laptop is Not a Computer, Huffington Post blog, 24 July 2012.
U.S. Presidential Election Paradox, Huffington Post blog, 16 October 2012.
Why I Don’t Like Energy-Efficient Light Bulbs, Huffington Post blog, 24 November, 2012
How Often Should I Rebalance my Investments?, Huffington Post blog, 3 December, 2012
Dark Matter and Worst Packings, Huffington Post blog, 28 May, 2013
Are Smaller College Classes Really Better? Huffington Post blog, 26 August, 2013
Adding Fractions, Huffington Post blog, 14 March, 2014
The Inferiority of Mac Mail, Huffington Post blog, 15 September, 2015.
Sphere Packing in Dimension 8, Huffington Post blog, 21 March, 2016.
Mathematicians Tell Stories
On the occasion of its centennial, the Royal Spanish Math Society has published a commemorative issue of their Revista. Mathematicians describe some early influential encounters with mathematics.
Regularity of Area-Minimizing Surfaces
The proof of the regularity of an area-minimizing surface with a given smooth boundary has had a long and interesting history. Following work of Douglas, Rado, and Osserman, Gulliver [1973, G] proved that a least-area map of a disc into R3 with prescribed boundary is a smooth immersion on the interior. The map need not be an embedding and cannot be if the boundary curve is knotted. The possibility of boundary branch points remains open today. Continue reading ‘Regularity of Area-Minimizing Surfaces’ »
NSF “Division of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences”?
I have heard that the NSF is considering changing the name of the Division of Mathematical Sciences to the Division of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences.
Update 12 October 2012. Today AMS President Eric Friedlander sent the following email to AMS members, IMS President Ruth Williams sent the succeeding email to IMS members, and SIAM President Nick Trefethen sent the third email to SIAM members.
Update 17 October 2012. Today MAA President Paul Zorn sent the final email below to MAA members.
Continue reading ‘NSF “Division of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences”?’ »
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