Please contact Lucy Kimball, Mathematical Sciences
Department, Bentley College, Waltham, MA 02154, (781) 891-2467, lkimball@bentley.edu
, Coordinator of the Regional Dinner Meetings, for information regarding
hosting a dinner meeting for your region in Spring 2005
or for more information about the dinner meetings program.
Speaker: David Mazur, Department of Mathematics & Computer Science,
Western New England College
Title: "A User's
Guide to the P vs. NP Problem"
Of the seven, million-dollar Millennium Prize Problems offered by the Clay Mathematics Institute, the P vs. NP Problem is perhaps the best known in pop culture; just watch "The Simpsons" or "Numb3rs". In this talk, we'll go beyond just an acquaintance with the problem's name to understand what P and NP mean. We'll look at the difference between "easy" and "hard" problems. We'll even talk about your options if the problem you're working on is found to be (gasp!) NP-hard. The emphasis will be on how everyone can use the theory, rather than on how the theory is built.
Date: Tuesday, April 12, 2005
Simmons College, Boston,
MA
Schedule:
5:00-5:45 p.m. Reception, Faculty/Staff Lounge
Lower Level, Main College Building (MCB)
5:45-7:00 p.m. Dinner, Faculty/Staff Lounge
Lower Level, MCB
7:00-8:00 p.m.
Presentation, Linda K. Paresky Conference Room.
Third floor, MCB
Where: Main College Building (MCB) -- #2 on the Campus
map
Simmons College, 300 The Fenway
Parking available in lot behind the MCB, accessed via Avenue Louis Pasteur.
Choice of entree: Chicken Parmesan or Eggplant Parmesan (Please indicate your choice when you send your check.)
Cost: $20.00
Registration Deadline for the dinner meeting;: April 1, 2005
Registration form (to be mailed in)
Contact: Donna Beers, Professor of Mathematics
Email: donna.beers@simmons.edu
Phone: (617) 521-2389
Directions to
Simmons College
Campus map
NES/MAA Homepage | Eastern Massachusetts | Central Massachusetts | Rhode Island
The Twelfth Leonard C. Sulski Memorial Lecture:
Speaker: Frank Morgan, Williams College
Title:
Soap Bubble Geometry, 200 BC - 2005 AD
Abstract: Soap bubbles as optimal shapes have fascinated and confounded mathematicians for millennia. The show will include the latest news, questions, explanations, demonstrations, and prizes.
Date: Thursday, April 7, 2005
College of the Holy Cross,
Worcester, Massachusetts
Schedule:
5:30 pm Cash bar,
Hogan Campus Center, Suite B
6:15 pm
Dinner, Hogan Campus Center, Suite B
8:00 pm
Presentation in Hogan Campus Center, Room 519
Choice of Entree: Poached
Salmon, Chicken Marsala, or Vegetarian (Please indicate your
choice when you send your check.)
Cost: $15.00 (Make checks payable to:
Holy Cross College)
Registration form (to be mailed in)
Registration Deadline: Tuesday, March 29, 2005
Contact: Thomas Cecil (cecil@mathcs.holycross.edu)
(508) 793-2719
Directions to
Holy Cross
Campus Map
(Hogan Campus Center is #29 on the map.)
NES/MAA Homepage |
Boston Area |
Eastern Massachusetts |
Rhode Island
A dedicated teacher committed to excellence, a serious scholar, a popular son of South Boston, and a gentleman – Ken Preskenis died on Thanksgiving Day, 2002. Ken Preskenis had a passion for mathematics and for sharing that love with others, especially, youngsters. A relentless pursuer of knowledge, he was a regular participant at the weekly seminars in functional analysis at Brown University where he earned his M.S. in 1967 and his Ph.D. in 1971. He joined the faculty at Framingham State College in 1977 after teaching at Newton College and then at Boston College for a total of 14 years. Ken was the author of a number of articles in analysis and mathematics education, a regular attendee and contributor at MAA/NES meetings, a South Boston Athletic Hall of Famer, and a recipient of the Michael E. Glynn South Boston Community Service Award.
Please join us as we honor the memory of our dear friend and colleague Kenneth J. Preskenis.
Speaker: Dr. Robert L. Devaney, Boston University
Presentation Title:
Chaos Games and Fractal Images
Abstract: In this lecture, we will describe some of the beautiful images that arise from the "Chaos Game." We will show how the simple steps of this game produce, when iterated millions of times, the intricate images known as fractals. We will describe some of the applications of this technique used in data compression as well as in Hollywood. We will also challenge students present to "Beat the Professor" at the chaos game and maybe win his computer.
Date: Thursday, April 28, 2005
Framingham State College,
Framingham, MA
Location for Dinner and Reception: D. Justin McCarthy
College Center, Framingham State College
(#14 on the Campus Map
)
Location for Dr. Devaney’s Presentation: Hemenway Hall
212
(#5 on the Campus Map
)
Schedule:
5:45 -6:30 pm Reception with cash bar, McCarthy’s,
Second Floor of D. Justin McCarthy College Center
6:30-8:00 pm
Dinner, Snack Bar, Second Floor of D. Justin McCarthy College Center
8:00-9:00 pm
Dr. Devaney’s Presentation, Hemenway Hall 212
Reception: Crudite with ranch and blue cheese dip, Cheese
and crackers, Sliced fruit; Sparkling non-alcoholic punch; Cash Bar
Buffet Dinner: Assorted warm dinner rolls with butter; Tossed
salad with Ranch dressing, Balsamic vinaigrette, Red Wine Vinegar, Olive Oil;
Top Round Au Jus (sliced), Italian Marinated Grilled Chicken Breast, Pasta with
Roasted Vegetables; Roasted Red Bliss Potatoes; Steamed Fresh Summer Squash and
Zucchini with Fresh Garlic and Basil; Chocolate Cake, Carrot Cake, Cheesecake
with Strawberries on the side; Bottled Water; Coffee, Decaf, and Hot Tea.
(Menu in pdf form)
Cost: $20.00 (Please make checks payable to Framingham State College Mathematics Department.)
Registration Deadline: Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Registration form (to be mailed in): pdf format MS Word format
Contact : Sarah L. Mabrouk (smabrouk@frc.mass.edu)
(508)626-4785
Framingham dinner meeting announcement in pdf form
Directions to Framingham
State College
Campus Map
NES/MAA Homepage |
Boston Area |
Central Massachusetts | Rhode Island
Speaker:
James Tattersall, Department of Mathematics & Computer Science, Providence
College
Title: Nyctaginaceous Mathematics, Pontifical
Geometry, and Barbeau Triangles
Abstract: We discuss the geometry of Gerbert the Great, a tenth century educator; the achievements and adventures of Louis Antoine de Bougainville, mathematician, explorer, and student of D'Alembert; and end with recent extensions of the work of the second century (A.D.) mathematician, Nicomachus of Gerasa.
Jim Tattersall received his undergraduate degree in mathematics from the University of Virginia in 1963, a Master's degree in mathematics from the University of Massachusetts in 1965, and a Ph.D. degree in mathematics from the University of Oklahoma in 1971. On a number of occasions he has been a visiting scholar at the Department of Pure Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics at Cambridge University. He spent the summer of 1991 as a visiting mathematician at the American Mathematical Society. In 1995-1996, he spent eighteen months as a visiting professor at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He was given awards for distinguished service (1992) and distinguished college teaching (1997) by the Northeastern Section of the MAA. In 2001, he was a Visiting Mathematician at Santa Clara University and California State University at San Bernardino. He is former President of the Canadian Society for History and Philosophy of Mathematics, the Archivist/Historian of NES/MAA, and the Associate Secretary of the Mathematical Association of America.
Date: Thursday, April 21, 2005
Location: Providence College,
Providence RI
Quiet Dining Room, Slavin Center (#4 on the
Campus Map)
Schedule:
5:30-6:00 pm Reception, Quiet Dining Room, Slavin Student
Center
6:00-7:00 pm Dinner, Quiet Dining Room, Slavin Student Center
7:00-8:00 pm Presentation, Quiet Dining Room, Slavin Student
Center
Buffet Menu: Salad, Pasta, Choice of marinara sauce or Alfredo sauce, meatballs, dessert, beverages
Cost: $20.00. Make check payable to Providence College.
Registration Deadline: April 15, 2005
Contact: Frank Ford; E-mail: fpford@providence.edu
Phone: (401) 865-2334 or (401) 865-2635
Registration Form
(To be mailed in)
Directions to Providence College
Campus Map (When you get the map, scroll down for the names of the
buildings.)
NES/MAA Homepage | Boston Area | Central Massachusetts | Eastern Massachusetts
E-mail: gingrichr1@southernct.edu
URL: http://www.SouthernCT.edu/organizations/nesmaa/regdinnermts2005.html
Revised: April 8, 2005
"The views and opinions expressed in this page are strictly those of the page author and have not been reviewed or approved by Southern Connecticut State University."
