AMS News

Haensch Receives AMS-AAAS Mass Media Fellowship

Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 EST

Anna Haensch has been awarded the 2013 American Mathematical Society Mass Media Fellowship. Anna earns her PhD in mathematics from Wesleyan University in the coming weeks and she will spend 10 weeks this summer working at National Public Radio.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) organizes the Mass Media Science & Engineering Fellowship program. It is a very competitive program designed to improve public understanding of science and technology by placing graduate and post-graduate science, mathematics and engineering students in news media outlets nationwide. Fellows work with media professionals to improve their communication skills and increase their understanding of the editorial process by which events and ideas become news.

Fellows have worked as reporters, editors, researchers and production assistants at such media outlets as Scientific American, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Voice of America and National Public Radio. Read more about the fellowship, including a list of previous fellows with links to descriptions of their experiences.

AMS Selects Congressional Fellow

Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 EST

The American Mathematical Society is pleased to announce Karen Saxe as its 2013-14 Congressional Fellow. Professor Saxe is currently chair of the Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science department at Macalester College. She received her PhD in mathematics from the University of Oregon.

The AMS Congressional Fellowship provides a unique public policy learning experience to demonstrate the value of science-government interaction and to bring a technical background and external perspective to the decision making process in Congress. The fellowship is year-long and runs from September through August.

The Congressional Fellowship is one of several fellowships offered through the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science & Technology Policy Fellowships program. This fellowship allows the recipient an opportunity to work on the staff of a member of Congress or a congressional committee, working as a special legislative assistant in legislative and policy areas requiring scientific and technical input. The fellowship includes an orientation on congressional and executive branch operations and a year-long seminar series on issues involving science, technology and public policy. Learn more about the AMS Congressional Fellowship and read about some fellowship experiences.

National Academy Elects New Members

Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 EST

Twelve people in the mathematical sciences are among the 84 new members and 21 foreign associates elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). Elected as members are: Manjul Bhargava (Princeton University), S. James Gates, Jr. (University of Maryland, College Park), Juris Hartmanis (Cornell University), Victor Kac (MIT), Gregory F. Lawler (University of Chicago), Juan Maldacena (Institute for Advanced Study), James A. Sethian (University of California, Berkeley), Éva Tardos (Cornell University), David A. Vogan, Jr. (MIT and AMS president), Avi Wigderson (Institute for Advanced Study), and Horng-Tzer Yau (Harvard University). Peter G. Hall, University of Melbourne (Australia), was elected as a foreign associate. See the entire list of this year's elected members and associates in the NAS press release. Celebrating its 150th year, the NAS is a private, non-profit society of distinguished scholars charged with providing independent, objective advice to the nation on matters related to science and technology.

2014 Joint Mathematics Meetings

Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 EST

January 15-18, Baltimore, Maryland. The largest mathematics meeting in the world includes a broad scientific program, prize session, courses, activities for students, exhibits, employment center, art exhibition and more.

American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2013 Class of Members

Wed, 01 May 2013 00:00:00 EST

The American Academy of Arts and Sciences has announced its new members for 2013 including ten people in the mathematical sciences. Lawrence David Brown (University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School), Philip J Hanlon (University of Michigan); Herve Jacquet (Columbia University), H. Blaine Lawson, Jr. (Stony Brook University), Duong H. Phong (Columbia University), Sorin Popa (University of California, Los Angeles), Walter A. Strauss (Brown University), Richard A. Tapia (Rice University), and Bin Yu (University of California, Berkeley). Henri Berestycki (Ecole des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales) is a foreign honorary member. One of the nation's most prestigious honorary societies, the Academy is also a leading center for independent policy research. Members contribute to Academy publications and studies of science and technology policy, energy and global security, social policy and American institutions, the humanities and culture, and education. The 220 new members are listed alphabetically and by discipline. The new class will be inducted at a ceremony on October 12, 2013, at the Academy’s headquarters in Cambridge, MA.

AMS introduces Blog on Math Blogs

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EST

The AMS is pleased to announce the Blog on Math Blogs--Two mathematicians tour the mathematical blogosphere. Editors Brie Finegold (University of Arizona) and Evelyn Lamb (freelance math and science writer) blog on blogs related to math in the news, mathematics research, applied mathematics, mathematicians, mathematics education, math and the arts and more. Finegold and Lamb, both past AAAS-AMS Mass Media Fellows and PhD mathematicians, will select and write their thoughts on interesting blogs from around the world, as well as invite reactions from readers.

2013 Mathematical Art Exhibition Album

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EST

Images of selected works in the 2013 Mathematical Art Exhibition, held at the Joint Mathematical Meetings held in San Diego, CA, are in a new album on Mathematical Imagery. Click on the thumbnails to see larger versions, read about the mathematics behind the works, and share the e-postcards.

Kenneth Appel, 1932-2013

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EST

Kenneth Appel, who proved the Four Color Theorem with Wolfgang Haken, died April 19 at the age of 80. Their proof, published in two parts in the Illinois Journal of Mathematics in 1977, was the first major proof that involved extensive computer calculations. The proof earned Appel and Haken the Delbert Ray Fulkerson Prize from the AMS and the Mathematical Programming Society in 1979. Appel received his PhD from the University of Michigan in 1959 under the direction of Roger Lyndon. He worked for the Institute for Defense Analyses before joining the faculty at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1969. Appel remained at the university until 1993 when he became chair at the University of New Hampshire, retiring in 2003. During retirement he volunteered as a teacher in mathematics enrichment programs and was elected to the Dover (NH) School Board in 2010. Appel was a member of the AMS since 1958 and of the inaugural class of AMS Fellows elected in 2012. Read more about his life in this obituary and in "Kenneth I. Appel, Mathematician Who Harnessed Computer Power, Dies at 80," by Dennis Overbye, The New York Times, April 28, 2013.

INGenIOuS Project: Strategies for Advancing the Mathematics and Statistics Workforce

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EST

To best position mathematics and statistics departments and students to meet 21st century needs, the AMS, ASA, MAA and SIAM are bringing together people to develop strategies for future investments in training at the graduate and undergraduate levels. The INGenIOuS (Investing in the Next Generation through Innovative and Outstanding Strategies) project will establish a community from academic institutions, professional societies, government agencies, and industry to think strategically about enhancing recruitment, retention, and job placement in the mathematics and statistics communities. Following a series of online activities, including live virtual panels and forum discussions, the project will culminate in the publication of six white papers and a three-day workshop at the ASA headquarters in the Washington, D.C., area this July. The project is funded by the National Science Foundation and will be facilitated in collaboration with a team from Knowinnovation. Those interested in participating can sign up at the project's website.

Math Department at University of Texas Arlington Receives AMS National Award

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 00:00:00 EST

The Mathematics Department at the University of Texas at Arlington is the recipient of the 2013 AMS Award for an Exemplary Program or Achievement in a Mathematics Department, for making "a concerted and highly successful effort over the last decade to build a doctoral program whose composition reflects the demographics of our increasingly diverse nation." (Photo: Undergraduate researcher Ivan Beeks at the 2012 National REU at University of Texas Arlington Mathematics Department. Photo courtesy of UT Arlington Mathematics Department.)