SMRI Special Semester with Francis Su Perspectives on Mathematics: Its Humanity, Culture, & Communication Sydney Mathematical Research Institute Special Semester 1 March - 31 May 2024 https://sites.google.com/view/perspectives-mathematics-2024/ ---- Using Your Voice for Influence: Writing Maths Pieces for Newspapers (with Francis Su) Fri 14 June - Part 2 Location: SMRI Seminar Room A12-03-301 Time: 2:00 pm to 4:00pm This is Part 2. Slides from Part 1 are in this Folder. [link: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/1/folders/1jVxazLcC21Y1FG3YniwsSiPUb3qVzv-E] The degeneration of public discourse and the proliferation of fake news is cause for great concern among people who value facts, evidence, and civility. As mathematicians, we are in a unique position to combat this troubling trend with quantitative information, but to be effective we need to be able to reach a general audience. One way to do that is by writing opinion for popular print or online media. In the final two sessions of the Perspectives Seminar, Francis Su (who has written math-related opinion for newspapers and hosted workshops at the Joint Meetings to train others) will explain how to choose compelling topics and angles, distill relevant quantitative information, write at an appropriate level, and get your work into the hands of people who will publish it. Bring a laptop for brainstorming. In part 2 of this workshop, participants will bring drafts of an 800-word essay, and we will offer feedback and comments on each others’ drafts. The goal is to have a piece that is almost ready for submission to an appropriate venue. You may join Part 2 even if you didn’t attend Part 1 (see folder above for slides and samples of essays other mathematicians have written). ---- Theme One What is Mathematics? Fri 1 March Introduction: Establishing Important Questions 14:00-16:00 AEDT Law Annex Seminar Room 346 Fri 8 March What is Mathematics? 14:00-16:00 AEDT Law Annex Seminar Room 346 Intermezzo One International Day of Mathematics: 14 March Public Lecture by Milena Radnovic 18:00-20:00 AEDT Messel Lecture Theatre, Sydney Nanoscience Hub Theme Two Cultures of Research in Mathematics Mon 18 March The Culture of Mathematics Research 14:00-16:00 AEDT Carslaw 535 Mon 25 March Panel Discussion in conjunction with the IMU-SMRI event 16:00-17:30 AEDT Quad Board Room S445 Intermezzo Two Universities Australia Easter break Theme Three Our Cultural Understanding of Mathematics Fri 12 April Our Cultural Understanding of Mathematics 14:00-16:00 AEST Carslaw 535 Fri 19 April Indigenous Mathematics (with Rowena Ball and Jared Field) 14:00-16:00 AEST Law Annex Lecture Theatre 024 Abstract: Rowena Ball (ANU) and Jared Field (UMelbourne) join us in week 6 of the Perspectives Seminar, in which we discuss questions like these: Why is it important that Australians understand the cultural history of mathematics done by Indigenous peoples? How might a better appreciation improve both the way we teach and learn maths, as well as the content of maths itself? What can Indigenous Mathematics teach us about the place of Western mathematics in human knowledge? All are welcome, even if you’ve not attended the seminar before. Readings are not required to engage in discussion, but we encourage you to do some of the suggested readings (in the "Our Cultural Understanding of Mathematics" section) to enhance your experience. Intermezzo Three Further discussion Theme Four Becoming Inclusive Maths Communities Fri 3 May Women in Mathematics (with Catherine Greenhill and Ben Burton) 14:00-16:00 AEST Law Annex Lecture Theatre 026 Abstract: Catherine Greenhill (UNSW) and Ben Burton (U. Queensland) join us in week 7 of the Perspectives Seminar. We will learn about their efforts to make math communities more inclusive of women, such as in the formation of WIMSIG (Greenhill) and in diversifying math competitions (Burton). They will help us to think about how we, in our own roles, can inspire changes in our own spheres of influence, through changes in structure, climate, and the development of community. All are welcome, even if you’ve not attended the seminar before. Readings are not required to engage in discussion, but we encourage you to do some of the suggested readings (especially the recent article by Cheryl Praeger and Lesley Ward and nearby articles) to enhance your experience. https://sites.google.com/view/perspectives-mathematics-2024/readings Fri 10 May Towards a Fully Inclusive Mathematics Profession 14:00-16:00 AEST Law Annex Lecture Theatre 026 There are many obstacles to the support of inclusive mathematical communities, including historical discrimination. In 2021, the American Mathematical Society (AMS) released a report that wrestled with the legacy of racism within the society by interviewing mathematicians about their experiences, naming specific historical injustices, outlining patterns of exclusion, and making recommendations to the society for change. As VP of AMS at the time and co-chair of the Task Force that produced the report, Francis will describe the efforts of the task force, some of its findings, what has happened since then, and lessons learned. All are welcome, even if you’ve not attended the Perspectives Seminar before. Readings are not required to engage in discussion, but we encourage you to read the AMS report Towards a Fully Inclusive Mathematics Profession (https://www.ams.org/about-us/understanding-ams-history) (especially the Preface, Chapters 1 and 5) or other of the suggested readings to enhance your experience (https://sites.google.com/view/perspectives-mathematics-2024/readings.) Intermezzo Four International Day of Women in Mathematics: 12 May Theme Five Impact on Teaching and Communicating Mathematics Fri 24 May ’Mathematical Journeys into Inclusive Teaching’ (with Amie Albrecht and Eddie Woo) 14:00-16:00 AEST Law Annex Lecture Theatre 026 Amie Albrecht (UniSA) and Eddie Woo (USyd) will join us in Week 9 of the Perspectives Seminar https://sites.google.com/view/perspectives-mathematics-2024. Albrecht is a mathematician now doing work in mathematics education, and Woo is a mathematics teacher working to help other teachers improve their craft. They will share their journeys, their insights into what it means to teach mathematics inclusively, and what university educators can learn from those whose expertise is in maths education. In discussion, we’ll think about how we can improve our own practice of teaching maths in inclusive ways. All are welcome, even if you’ve not attended the seminar before. Readings are not required to engage in discussion, but we encourage you to do some of the suggested readings (especially the pieces by Yong and Albrecht) to enhance your experience. (https://sites.google.com/view/perspectives-mathematics-2024/readings.) Wed 29 May Public Lecture: Po-Shen Loh ’Using maths to invent solutions to large-scale human problems, just in time to survive AI’ SSB-02-200 17:30-18:30 AEST Fri 31 May Communicating Maths for the Public (with Po-Shen Loh) 14:00-16:00 AEST Location: Eastern Ave Lecture Theatre 315 Po-Shen Loh (Carnegie Mellon University), who will have given the SMRI Public Lecture earlier in the week, will join us in Week 10 of the Perspectives Seminar. Loh has been very active as a public communicator of maths. He gave 200+ talks in 100 cities last year, reaching tens of thousands of people in person, and has featured in or co-created videos totaling over 21 million YouTube views. In interactive discussion, Loh will discuss how he approaches public communication, what the thinks about as he prepares, mistakes he’s made, lessons he’s learned, and how we might approach the future of public communication around mathematics. Participants will also reflect on their roles as communicators of mathematics. ***Fri 7 Jun Using Your Voice for Influence: Writing Maths Pieces for Newspapers (with Francis Su) Part 1 (Fri 14 June - Part 2) Location: SMRI Seminar Room A12-03-301 Time: 2:00 pm to 4:00pm Part 1 is open to all: The degeneration of public discourse and the proliferation of fake news is cause for great concern among people who value facts, evidence, and civility. As mathematicians, we are in a unique position to combat this troubling trend with quantitative information, but to be effective we need to be able to reach a general audience. One way to do that is by writing opinion for popular print or online media. In the final two sessions of the Perspectives Seminar, Francis Su (who has written math-related opinion for newspapers and hosted workshops at the Joint Meetings to train others) will explain how to choose compelling topics and angles, distill relevant quantitative information, write at an appropriate level, and get your work into the hands of people who will publish it. Bring a laptop for brainstorming. Part 2 is open to those who register at this link. [https://forms.gle/dddpKQJLAQvQ5xrs5] In part 2 of this workshop, participants will bring drafts of a piece that they’ve worked on since Part 1, and offer feedback and comments on each others’ drafts. The goal is to have a piece that is almost ready for submission to an appropriate venue. If you would like to join Part 2 and aren’t able to attend Part 1, that is fine, just let me know in the registration form and I’ll send you slides and notes. If you would like to join Part 2 but cannot make the listed time, we may adjust the time to one that might work for those who register. Course Description This interactive seminar series will explore and illuminate the human side of mathematics - the culture(s) of mathematics, how we teach and do research in it, who we include, and the impact of how we communicate maths to students and the broader public. Discussions and invited presentations will help participants envision how they can improve the culture, practices, and communication around maths to better serve their communities. We imagine the topics will interest mathematicians, educators, and practitioners. Seminar 1: Important Questions In this first session to open the Perspectives Seminar, we will establish important questions we would like to tackle over the course of the term around the humanity, culture, and communication of mathematics. Meet others interested in exploring these topics, hear the organisers talk about the goals of the seminar, and participate in interactive activity and discussion. Suggested readings will enhance one’s experience in the seminar. Seminar 2: The Relationship Between Humans & Mathematics The seminar comprises five two-week blocks centred on a theme, and will meet 14:00-16:00 AEST on Fridays in those weeks (except for the Theme Two). Each block is followed by an intermezzo, a "free week" that allows participants to explore the theme further or to attend aligned events. Location is at the University of Sydney. See the calendar below for topics, dates, and rooms (some details still to be finalised). An abstract will be posted prior to each session. We invite you to join us for rich discussions and interaction, especially in Week 1, when we set the stage for what will come, and you can connect with others interested in pursuing a holistic approach to maths and maths education. We encourage you to register your interest in the series at this form (optional, but helps us to plan). If you have other questions, write to Francis Su. All talks are free and open to the public. The special semester leads up to the International Congress of Mathematical Education that takes place in Sydney from 7-14 July 2024.