EPaDel Fall 2019 Section Meeting

EPaDel's Fall 2019 meeting was held November 9, 2019 at DeSales University.

Schedule

View this meeting's schedule

Invited Speakers

Image of Speaker Michael Dorff (President of the MAA)
How mathematics is making Hollywood movies better

What’s your favorite movie? Star Wars? Avatar? The Avengers? Frozen? What do these and all the highest earning Hollywood movies since 2000 have in common? Mathematics! You probably didn’t think about it while watching these movies, but math was used to help make them. In this presentation, we will discuss how math is being used to create better and more realistic movies. Along the way we will discuss some specific movies and the mathematics behind them. We will include examples from Disney’s 2013 movie Frozen (how to use math to create realistic looking snow) to Pixar’s 2004 movie The Incredibles (how to use math to make an animated character move faster). Come and join us and get a better appreciation of mathematics and movies.

Image of Speaker David Kung (St. Mary's College of Maryland)
Promoting Responsible Citizenship in an Age of Alternative Facts

Most citizens spend years in our mathematics classes before they ever cast a vote. Are we preparing them to be responsible, informed participants in a thriving democracy? What mathematics is required to understand current events, critically examine issues of social and economic justice, and properly evaluate public policy proposals? What can educators who teach mathematics do to fight back against the rise of alternative facts? We will discuss example problems, student projects, and pedagogical choices that push us in the direction of a more just world.

Image of Speaker Maria Lorenz (Temple University)
Proving Myself: A Personal Journey

In this talk, I will recount the struggles and successes on my path to a career in mathematics. I will highlight major turning points and the people, experiences, and initiatives that contributed to them. Although the story is a personal one, I hope that there will be take-aways for students, faculty, and administrators alike.

Student Activity

Cube Folding

Can we cut out the shape below (along the outside and along the red line), and then fold it into a cube using only the grid lines? Come try it!

Find out about this shape and more at the EPaDel Student Activity Session from 1-2pm in Gambet Room 220.

Be there or be SQUARE!

Proposal to Update Bylaws

A proposal to update the bylaws of the EPaDel Section will be presented for a vote at the business meeting of the Spring 2019 section meeting. Please review the links below for more information.

Elections of Section Officers

The Business Meeting will include an election for several section officers.

Click here for a PDF of the biographies of candidates.

Silent Auction

Click here to see a PDF list of the books available at the silent auction.