Events and Outreach Programs

The AMS and other organizations sponsor special events and organize outreach programs to promote awareness of mathematics and inspire young mathematicians. Many of the events are free and open to the public. Please contact the sponsoring organizations for further information. The AMS Public Awareness Office encourages students, teachers, parents, librarians and the general public to visit the websites below.

AMS Events and Outreach Programs
Washington, D.C. Office Organized Events
Joint Policy Board for Mathematics Public Awareness Programs
Meetings of Other Organizations, Conferences
Ongoing Public Awareness Programs for All
Special Events, Contests and Competitions
Archive

AMS Events and Outreach Programs:

Who Wants to Be a Mathematician. This game for high school students, developed by AMS Public Awareness Officer Mike Breen and William Butterworth (DePaul University), has been presented at the annual Joint Mathematics Meetings, on Pi Day (3/14) in Rhode Island, and after the Arnold Ross Lectures.

Mathematical Moments. This program offers a series of more than 70 downloadable posters that promote appreciation and understanding of the role mathematics plays in science, nature, technology and human culture. Browse through the Moments by topic--and see how mathematics is applied to science, nature, technology, and human culture--by language--several have been translated into Chinese, Spanish, French, German, Russian, Polish, Japanese, and Portuguese--and by medium--many feature audio interviews with experts, such as the Moment on sea ice which has an interview with Ken Golden of the University of Utah who talks about his research into sea ice and his adventures in Antarctica and the Arctic.

Washington, D.C. Office Organized Events:

The AMS office in Washington D.C. organizes and reports on congressional briefings, town meetings, and regular congressional visits to discuss policy, funding and education issues, and on the annual joint AAS-AMS-APS Public Service Award, which is presented at a Capitol Hill reception to individuals who have performed outstanding public service in support of science. The office also hosts an annual breakfast for the recipients of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Teaching (for high school teachers).

Joint Policy Board for Mathematics Public Awareness Programs:

Mathematics Awareness Month, each April. The JPBM chooses a theme and the responsibility for producing the theme materials rotates among the three JPBM societies: the American Mathematical Society, the American Statistical Association, the Mathematical Association of America, and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. The announcement, sample news release and poster are mailed to mathematics departments, and a theme essay, downloadable poster and additional resources on the topic are posted online.

The JPBM Communications Award. This award is presented annually to a journalist or other communicator who, on a sustained basis, bring accurate mathematical information to nonmathematical audiences.

Meetings, Conferences and Events of Other Organizations:

Mathematics at the 2008 SACNAS National Conference in Salt Lake City. The AMS was a special session sponsor and provided information about graduate programs, careers, internships and job opportunities in mathematics. The meeting included the AMS contest Who Wants to Be a Mathematician, mathematics workshops, sessions for K-12 teachers, invited addresses by mathematicians, graduate student presentations and undergraduate posters in mathematics.

American Association for the Advancement of Science 2009. Speakers from several disciplines, including mathematics, gave talks at this meeting which took place in Chicago in February.

The Fifth European Congress of Mathematics (5ECM) was held July 14-18, 2008, in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

In 2008 the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research in collaboration with Initiative Wissenschaft im Dialog (WiD), Deutsche Telekom Stiftung und Deutsche Mathematiker-Vereinigung (DMV) is proclaiming the ninth year of science--Math Year. The aim is to give mathematics a better image. There will be many events during the year. Please check them on www.jahr-der-mathematik.de.

Young Mathematicians Conferences, hosted by the Ohio State University, for undergraduate students involved in REUs and similar research programs anywhere in the U.S., as well as their mentors, to present their research in short talks and poster presentations. Each conference is held during a week end in August, and features plenary lectures with introductions into advanced and exciting topics in mathematics by accomplished presenters.

International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM) 2006. This meeting--at which the AMS hosted an exhibit--took place August in Madrid, Spain.

SIAM Annual Meeting. The 2008 meeting took place in San Diego.

Mathfest 2004. Read about the summer meeting of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA), held in Providence, RI, and Mathfest 2002 held in Burlington, VT.

Public Awareness Programs for All:

The Poster Project. This website displays a series of posters promoting women in math and the physical sciences.

The SACNAS Biography Project. The website profiles Chicano/Latino and Native American scientists, mathematicians and engineers, and is organized by scientist name, by subject/discipline, by grade level, and by women scientist.

Special Events, Contests and Competitions:

Abel Prize Ceremony. The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters awards the Abel Prize each May. This prestigious prize of almost one million dollars (US) is announced each March and was first awarded in 2003.

Association for Women in Mathematics Essay Contest: Biographies of Contemporary Women in Mathematics. To increase awareness of women's ongoing contributions to the mathematical sciences, the Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM) sponsors an annual student essay contest, open to middle school through undergraduate students, for biographies of contemporary women mathematicians and statisticians in academic, industrial, and government careers. See the website to read the prizewinning essays.

Clay Mathematics Institute Public Lectures and Special Events. See this page for information about the Institute's public lecture series, including lectures on the Millennium Prize Problems.

Institute for Mathematics and Its Applications. This institute hosts workshops, symposia, and a series of occasional public lectures on topics of general interest.

Mathematical Sciences Research Institute (MSRI). MSRI hosts and co-sponsors public events, lectures, and the Cinemath film series throughout the year.

Attention High School Students and Teachers! This page includes links to research projects for students, information on careers in math, and various competitions. Additional online resources (guides, servers, people and more) can be found on Math on the Web.

The AMS invites institutes and organizations to send press releases about special events, ongoing programs and websites that are of general interest to paoffice@ams.org.