Math Awareness Week

Topic

Presenter

Description

Date

and

Time

Recording Link

Beating Las Vegas Blackjack

Mark McKay

Mark McKay is a founding member of the Ophthalmic Medical Technologist program at Palm Beach State.  He loves teaching and lecturers nationally about eye care. He is a board-certified optician.

This presentation will examine how art, gambling, and math came together in Las Vegas.

Monday, April 5^th

10 AM

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The Art of Patterns, Numbers, and Sequences

Dr. Terri Speights

Dr. Speights’ teaching experience spans over 20 years. She received a Master’s in Mathematics Education in 2006 at Nova Southeastern University and a Doctorate in Leadership Education at Valdosta State University in 2018.

In 2013, Dr. Speights received a special recognition from the Vice President of Academic Affairs for her role in the redesign of the Developmental Mathematics courses which lead to improvements in student success and retention.  Professor Speights joined PBSC in 2015 as a Professor of Mathematics.   Her research has focused on “The Effects of Developmental Math Courses on Student Success Outcomes at Community Colleges.”   Professor Speights has always been committed to developing and implementing learning strategies which promote “student success and retention.”  In her spare time, Professor Speights loves to spend time at the beach, traveling or hanging out with family and friends.

This presentation is designed to develop student’s critical thinking skills by providing them with an opportunity to understand, identify, and describe patterns, numbers and sequences. An interactive approach will be utilized using technology through gaming making learning fun and engaging.

Monday, April 5^th

11 AM

N/A

A Very Unorthodox History of Statistics

Marty Triola

Mario F. Triola a Professor Emeritus of Mathematics at Dutchess Community College, where he has taught statistics for over 30 years. He is the author of Elementary Statistics -- the #1 best-selling statistics text in the market for the last 25 years. Marty is a firm believer that “real data brings statistics to life,” and that is the foundation on which he writes his texts. Marty also designed the original Statdisk statistical software, which is incorporated into his texts along with other software packages.

Marty’s interest in applying statistics to real-world situations comes from his own work experiences. Marty’s consulting work includes the design of casino slot machines and fishing rods. He has worked with attorneys in determining probabilities in paternity lawsuits, analyzing data in medical malpractice lawsuits, identifying salary inequities based on gender, and analyzing disputed election results. He has also used statistical methods in analyzing medical school surveys, in analyzing survey results for the New York City Transit Authority, and analyzing COVID-19 virus data for government officials. Marty has testified as an expert witness in the New York State Supreme Court. The Text and Academic Authors Association has awarded Marty a “Texty” for Excellence for his work on Elementary Statistics.

My "Very Unorthodox History of Statistics" is so unorthodox that it is not much about history at all.

Instead, it is a forward-looking presentation designed to help prepare for the future!

Monday, April 5^th

12 PM

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Art of Wealth

Jesse Rogers

Jesse Rogers has been a Learning Specialist at PBSC since 2006.

Since the pandemic he has written around 75 Medium articles, become a REALTOR, a podcaster, and a cryptocurrency investor. He’s interested in developing an entrepreneurship club so connect with him at rogersjj@palmbeachstate.edu if interested.

His Compounding Interest Podcast link is https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLcRrlkjedROcFDdwr8ANwg

Read his Medium posts at https://jessejrogers.medium.com/

One of the earliest and most important applications of mathematics has been to facilitate trade and measure wealth. But what is money, really? How did it start? What gives little scraps of dirty paper so much value?

This talk gives a historical overview of wealth, and an introduction to the 21^st century techniques that you can use to build it.

Monday, April 5^th

1 PM

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Accompanying Materials:

https://youtu.be/AS4g8tAqdak

https://medium.com/compounding-interest-podcast/the-art-of-wealth-f3bc2ef6a51e?sk=343135bd4733a6d404bda21c1c74262b

The Beauty of the Cross Product

Dr. Andrew Trupin

Professor Trupin received his Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Colorado.

Professor Trupin teaches science courses at PBSC such as Descriptive Astronomy, Earth Science and Applied Physics.

Professor Trupin has published science articles relating to global tide gauge sea level data, the effect of melting glaciers on the Earth’s rotation and gravitational field, plus more.

Dr. Trupin will perform a cross product using a determinant of two three dimensional vectors and determine the angle between them. Then, using a dot product he will verify the angle. If time allows, he will also solve a differential equation using cross products.

Monday, April 5^th

2 PM

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Topic

Presenter

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Statistical Approaches in the Evaluation of HIV Risk Reduction Interventions

Dr. Alisa Stephens

Alisa J. Stephens-Shields, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Biostatistics at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine.  Her research focuses on extensions and innovative applications of causal inference to enhance the design and analysis of clinical trials. She also works on the development of patient-reported outcomes to inform population-appropriate trial endpoints.  Dr. Stephens-Shields collaborates in several clinical areas, including pediatrics, chronic pain, pharmacoepidemiology, and behavioral economics. She is a recipient of the inaugural Committee of Presidents of Statistical Societies Leadership Academy award and has held elected positions in the American Statistical Association Section on Statistics in Epidemiology and the Eastern North American Region of the International Biometrics Society. Dr. Stephens-Shields serves as associate editor for the journals Biostatistics and Pharmacoepidemiology and Drug Safety.  She is a proud native of Teaneck, New Jersey, and holds Ph.D. and A.M. degrees in biostatistics from Harvard University and a B.S. in mathematics with minor in Spanish from the University of Maryland, College Park. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Omicron Delta Kappa national honor societies.

In conducting randomized trials to evaluate the impact of a novel intervention or drug prior to authorization and widespread use, several complementary measures of effect are of interest.  We present two studies in which we use mediation analysis to explicate observed treatment differences of two interventions designed to prevent HIV transmission.  In Being Responsible for Ourselves (BRO), a longitudinal, randomized trial of a behavioral intervention to increase condom usage, we estimate indirect effects through two-stage regression to determine reasons for lack of intervention efficacy and inform the design of future interventions.  In the Phambili study, a double-blind, randomized trial of an experimental vaccine to reduce HIV infection, we identify a framework to explore the rationale for elevated infection rates among participants randomized to the active vaccine compared with placebo post unblinding.

Tuesday, April 6^th

11 AM

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How cool is that? 10 Applications From Math Class that Highlight the Beauty of Mathematics

Dennis Runde

Dennis Runde is in his 31st year of teaching mathematics at State College of Florida in Bradenton. He earned his BS and MS in Mathematics from the Universities of Wisconsin at Platteville and Milwaukee, respectively and his PhD in Mathematics Education from the University of South Florida. He is lead author on a Liberal Arts Mathematics textbook and on a series of Algebra for College Students textbooks. Dennis and his wife, Kristin, are the proud parents of three adult sons.

This presentation will present 10 interesting, and beautiful, topics from the first two years of college mathematics. This presentation will focus on applications from Algebra and Liberal Arts courses.

Tuesday, April 6^th

12 PM

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The Human Side of Mathematics

Dr. Anthony Piccolino

Dr. Tony Piccolino is a professor of mathematics at Palm Beach State College since 2009. He also serves as Honors College Faculty Coordinator.  Prior to his tenure at Palm Beach State, he taught undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral courses in mathematics and mathematics education for 17 years at Montclair State University in New Jersey and served on several dissertation committees.  In addition to his years in higher education, he also served for 25 years as a mathematics teacher and supervisor in public schools in New York State. Tony’s educational background includes an B.S. in mathematics from Iona College, Master’s Degrees from Yeshiva University and Fordham University, and a doctorate in mathematics education from Columbia University (Teachers College).

The Human Side of Mathematics explores a wide variety of problems and personalities that have shaped the mathematical landscape. Some of the problems are still unsolved and some of the colorful characters

you will meet prove that mathematicians are real people too!

Tuesday, April 6^th

1 PM

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The Foundations of Mathematics and Art

Dr. Lynn Gamwell

Lynn Gamwell is a lecturer in the history of art, science, and mathematics at the School of Visual Arts in New York. She is the author of Mathematics and Art: A Cultural History (Princeton, 2018) and Exploding the Invisible: Art, Science, and Spiritual (Princeton, 2020).

This lecture will present David Hilbert’s The Foundation of Geometry (1899) and the art styles it inspired, including Russian Constructivism, Polish Unism, Swiss Concrete Art, Japanese Mono Ha, and several more.

Tuesday, April 6^th

2 PM

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Topic

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Recording Link

Career Panel of Community Professionals

David Jenks-Career Center Manger, Palm Beach Gardens Campus

Panel Moderator
David has worked almost 20 years in college career development.  Mr. Jenks has been with PBSC since Fall 2017 and has also worked at the FAU and UCF Career Centers.  His previous career was sales and marketing in the finance and travel industries.

Dr. Eva Suarez

Panelist

Originally from Puerto Rico, Dr. Suarez made studying her passion. Dr. Suarez has degrees in Chemistry, Statistics, Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, and Civil/Environmental Engineering, yes 5 degrees!

Dr. Suarez Worked at Pratt & Whitney for 17 years, and taught while working as an adjunct. Two and a half years ago, she accepted the position of Engineering Technology Department Chair, and since then expanded the ET program to all four campuses.

Camille Zerfas (Next Era Energy)

Panelist

I went to North Dakota State University for my undergraduate degree, where I majored in math & economics. I attended graduate school right after because I enjoyed the upper-level math classes and wanted to learn more.  I earned my PhD in computational mathematics from Clemson University in 2019. I am now working for NextEra Energy as a Data Scientist. I’ve had a lot of fun in this role because it’s allowed me to apply my mathematical knowledge to completely different situations and help build data-driven solutions for engineers at NextEra.

Craig Kruempel (GHD)

Panelist
Craig has a BS in Biology, and a MS in Coastal Zone Management with an emphasis on marine biology. With more than 35 years of experience, he provides clients with coastal zone resource planning, permitting, and monitoring support. A major part of his responsibilities include working on comprehensive characterization, monitoring, and mitigation program development with an emphasis on natural hardbottom, artificial reefs, and living shorelines.

During his career, Craig has worked on projects that require a comprehensive understanding of State and Federal coastal resource permitting and National Environmental Policy Act compliance. He has served as principal scientist on numerous field investigations throughout the Gulf of Mexico and East Coast of the United States. Craig’s recent project experience includes implementation of a comprehensive water quality monitoring program at Port Everglades and support of a marine resource monitoring program in the United Arab Emirates.

Leanne T. Schmitt

Panelist

Ms. Schmitt is a Managing Director and Investment Specialist at Intech. She has been with Intech for 18 years. Ms. Schmitt is responsible for providing investment solutions to current and prospective intermediary relationships.

Ms. Schmitt earned her MBA in International Business from Keller Graduate School of Business Administration. She earned her BS in Computer Science from Fordham University.

Ms. Schmitt spent her first seven years at Intech in Portfolio Management where she was responsible for the day-to-day portfolio management and trading process for client portfolios. Prior to joining Intech, Ms. Schmitt worked at Salomon Smith Barney (now Citi Prime Finance) Global Prime Brokerage Technology Group located in downtown Manhattan, working on application development for internet/intranet systems and was also head of their Disaster Recovery Team.

Ms. Schmitt worked in New York City as a web developer for Kiwibox.com and as a teacher’s assistant in the Computer Science Department at Fordham University while earning her undergraduate degree. Ms. Schmitt holds FINRA Series 7 and 63 licenses.

The Careers in Math Panel is a great way for students to learn about how mathematics is applied in the professional world.  This year’s panel will feature four accomplished professionals from a variety of industries who will share how they use math in their careers.  Students will also have the opportunity to ask the panelists questions.

Wednesday, April 7^th

11 AM

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A boy genius, a witch, a drunk pet moose walk into a bar…

Anurag Katyal

Professor Katyal has been teaching Mathematics at PBSC since 2010. Professor Katyal was selected as a fellow in a Scholarship of Teaching and Learning which was piloted by the American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges.

Professor Katyal teaches his courses using an inquiry-based learning format, choosing not to lecture to students but instead engage them in solving math problems on their own at the onset of class sessions.

Real stories about real mathematicians.

Wednesday, April 7^th

1 PM

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The History, Art and Stimulation of Hyperbolic Geometry

Joseph Pick

When Professor Pick was young, he viewed math as a collection of cute tricks. “Often, I did not pay attention to why I was able to implement these cute tricks. I just enjoyed playing with cute math tricks. While attending university I learned about the deep theoretical concepts that explained why I was allowed to implement the math tricks of my youth. The proofs of these theoretical concepts contained many wonderful, deep, and ingenious tricks that I added to my “bag of cute math tricks”. After university I worked in industry as a programmer and wrote software for radar systems and hardware simulations. My math background came in handy because the applications that I wrote programs for required a deep understanding of math (calculus, linear algebra, statistics, and Boolean logic). For the last 8 years I have used my experiences with cute math tricks, theoretical math, and industrial applications to make math more meaningful and enjoyable for Palm Beach State College students both in the classroom and during my Math Awareness Week presentations.”

This presentation explores the historical (and philosophical) implications of Hyperbolic Geometry. A simulation model for Hyperbolic Geometry will be introduced and some of the non-intuitive properties of Hyperbolic Geometry will be illustrated using this simulation model. Examples of Hyperbolic Geometry in various art forms will also be shown.

Wednesday, April 7^th

2 PM

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Math and Music

Carrie McDonald

Professor McDonald is a Mathematics Professor at PBSC.

Attend this presentation to enjoy learning about some of the intriguing connections between math and music.

Wednesday, April 7^th

3 PM

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Topic

Presenter

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Recording Link

What to do with Alexa, math skills, and more

Bob Anstett

Robert “BOB” Anstett is the Coordinator for Digital Initiatives for Broward County Libraries. Bob is in charge of the Creation Station at Main Library in Fort Lauderdale as well as Creation Station Business and other creative spaces around the County. Bob likes to say that he “lives in the future” where he gets to work with 3D printing, creative design, hands on maker projects and robotics. He is currently organizing and running a robotics track for the public to learn coding and building robots, as well as a Virtual Reality (VR) track with an Oculus Rift & HTC Vive along with other VR & Augmented Reality (AR) gear such as a Microsoft HoloLens and Magic Leap available for the public to try out and develop on. Bob works at building connections with the local community and the library, along with fostering cooperation between libraries around the State of Florida and beyond.

This presentation will talk about how to use Alexa to help with everyday math and beyond. As a bonus you will learn how to create your own Alexa skill to help with studying.

Thursday, April 8^th

1 PM

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Baking…it’s as easy as Pi

Lauren Culligan

I am currently a student at Palm Beach State College and will be transferring to FAU in the Summer to pursue a degree in Mathematics. Prior to studying at PBSC I was a linguist in the U.S. Air Force. When I am not doing my math homework I enjoy cooking and baking as well as hiking and fishing.

Math and baking go hand in hand. Join me to discuss how fractions, ratios, timing, and temperature all play an important role when creating the perfect cookie.

Thursday, April 8^th

2 PM

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