Joint Mathematics Meetings in Washington, DC January 5-8, 2009

December 23, 2008

Providence, RI:

Over 5,500 mathematicians will attend the annual meetings of the American Mathematical Society (AMS) and Mathematical Association of America (MAA) at the Marriott Wardman Park and Omni Shoreham hotels in Washington, DC, January 5-8. Researchers will present over 2,000 papers from all specialties of mathematics. 

The Press Room will be in the VIP Room of the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, offering free wireless access, fact sheets, the book of abstracts, the complete program of the Meetings, a phone, and a place to conduct interviews. Hours: Monday, January 5 through Wednesday, January 7, 7:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m., and Thursday, January 8, 7:30 a.m.-noon. The press room phone number is 202-745-2127.

The annual meetings provide an opportunity for mathematicians in all fields of mathematics to present talks and participate in panels on topics ranging from high-level research on new approaches to unsolved theoretical problems to recent applications of math to issues such as climate change, finance, medicine, and improving math education. Topics include:

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Climate Change

Education

Innumeracy

Finance

Medicine and Biology

Sports and Games

The Arts

Networks

History (including math films)

Social Sciences

Prizes and Awards

The CNN United States of Mathematics Presidential Debate

Computational Methods in Coastal Engineering

Stability, Consistency, and Convergence: Modern Variations on a Classical Theme

Challenge Response Password Security Using Combinatorial Group Theory

Climate Change
Math helps to understand the complexity of our climate and quantify the amount of climate change. The following sessions address the overall climate as well as particular aspects, such as the climate in polar regions.

SIAM Minisymposium on Mathematical and Computational Challenges in Global Climate and Energy Processes, Tuesday, January 6, 8:00-10:55 a.m., Maryland Suite C, Lobby Level, Marriott. Organizer: Margot Gerritsen (Stanford University). [Note: SIAM stands for the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.]

SIAM Minisymposium on Polar Climate Modeling, Wednesday, January 7, 1:00-5:25 p.m., Maryland Suite C, Lobby Level, Marriott. Organizers: Kenneth M. Golden (University of Utah) and David Holland (Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences-NYU); Moderator: Deborah L. Sulsky (University of New Mexico).

Mathematics of Sea Ice to Help Predict Climate Change, SIAM Invited Address, Kenneth M. Golden (University of Utah), Tuesday, January 6, 11:10-12:00 noon, Marriott Ballroom Salons 1 and 2, Lobby Level, Marriott.

Weatherquakes, Earthquakes, Mathematics and Climate Change, Martin E. Walter (University of Colorado, Boulder), Monday, January 5, 3:40-3:55 p.m., Washington Room 1, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of an MAA Session on Environmental Mathematics.

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Education
Mathematics education is extremely important for our country's future. Mathematicians present talks on training teachers and bringing real-world applications into the classroom.

Power of Three: How the Public, Private, and Academic Sector Need to Work Together to Restore Education in America, MAA Panel Discussion, Wednesday, January 7, 1:00-2:20 p.m., Marshall Ballroom North, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Organizer: Jim Whaley (Siemens Foundation); Panelists: Lydia M. Logan (Institute for a Competitive Workforce), Alexander J. Hahn (University of Notre Dame), Max Warshauer (Texas State University-San Marcos), and Wendy Hawkins (Intel Foundation).

The Future of School Mathematics Education, AMS Committee on Education Panel Discussion, Thursday, January 8, 8:30-10:00 a.m., Wilson Room C, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Moderator: William G. McCallum (University of Arizona); Panelists: Scott J. Baldridge (Louisiana State University), Daniel Chazan (University of Maryland), Solomon A. Garfunkel (COMAP), and Kristin Umland (University of New Mexico).

MAA Session on Productive Roles for Math Faculty in the Professional Development of K-12 Teachers, Monday, January 5, 2:15-6:10 p.m. and Wednesday, January 7, 8:00-10:55 a.m., Washington Room 2, Lower Level, Marriott. Organizers: Dale R. Oliver (Humboldt State University) and Elizabeth Burroughs (Montana State University).

AMS-MAA-MER Special Session on Mathematics and Education Reform, Tuesday, January 6, 8:00-11:50 a.m. and 1:00-4:10 p.m., and Wednesday, January 7, 8:00-10:50 a.m., Maryland Suite B, Lobby Level, Marriott. Organizers: William H. Barker (Bowdoin College), William G. McCallum (University of Arizona), and Bonnie S. Saunders (University of Illinois at Chicago).

From the Trenches: Middle School Teachers Look at Their Training, MAA Panel Discussion, Wednesday, January 7, 2:30-3:50 p.m., Marshall Ballroom North, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Organizers: Florence D. Fasanelli (AAAS) and George M. Rosenstein (Franklin & Marshall College); Panelists: Beth Cole (St. Patrick Episcopal School), Michelle Johncock (Edmund Burke School), Brieta Dougherty-Brill (Maya Angelou Public Charter School), and Marcia Cole (Clark Elementary School); Moderator: Hyman Bass (University of Michigan).

Using "Real World Problems" to Guide Mathematics Learning: Challenges in Instructional Practice and Research, Joan Ferrini-Mundy (National Science Foundation), Thursday, January 8, 1:05-1:35 p.m., Washington Room 2, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of the MAA Session on Guided Discovery in Mathematics Education.

MAA Session on Teaching Calculus in High School: Ideas that Work, Tuesday, January 6, 8:00-11:55 a.m., Washington Room 3, Lower Level, Marriott. Organizers: Dan Teague (North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics) and John F. Mahoney (Benjamin Banneker Academic High School).

Online Homework Systems: A Pedagogical Prospective, MAA Committee on the Teaching of Undergraduate Mathematics Panel Discussion, Tuesday, January 6, 2:30-3:50 p.m., Marshall Ballroom East, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Organizers: Ellen E. Kirkman (Wake Forest University) and Cheryl Miner (Nebraska Wesleyan University); Panelists: Andrew G. Bennett (Kansas State University), Ellen E. Kirkman, and P. Gavin LaRose (University of Michigan).

MAA Session on Developmental Mathematics Education: Helping Under-Prepared Students Transition to College-Level Mathematics, Thursday, January 8, 8:00-10:55 a.m., Washington Room 6, Lower Level, Marriott. Organizers: J. Winston Crawley and Kimberly Presser, both from Shippensburg University.

Mathematics and Democracy, Kira Hamman (Pennsylvania State University, Mont Alto), Wednesday, January 7, 8:40-8:55 a.m., Washington Room 5, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of the MAA Session on Quantitative Literacy Across the Curriculum.

AMS Session on Mathematics Education, Wednesday, January 7, 1:00-3:55 p.m., Tyler Room, Mezzanine Level, Marriott.

How Mathematics Can Contribute to Solving the Problems Facing the World: Building Civic Engagement into Mathematics Courses as a Way to Motivate and Inspire Students, Victor J. Donnay (Bryn Mawr College), Wednesday, January 7, 4:20-4:35 p.m., Washington Room 2, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of an MAA Session on College Algebra: Focusing on Conceptual Understanding, Real-World Data, and Mathematical Modeling.

New Ways to Compare NFL Players Using Model Building, Jacqueline Brannon Giles (HCC Central College), Wednesday, January 7, 5:40-5:55 p.m., Washington Room 2, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of an MAA Session on College Algebra: Focusing on Conceptual Understanding, Real-World Data, and Mathematical Modeling.

Using Linear Algebra for Image Processing, Paul Raymond Bouthellier (University of Pittsburgh-Titusville), Tuesday, January 6, 9:00-9:15 a.m., Washington Room 6, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of the MAA Session on Innovative and Effective Ways to Teach Linear Algebra.

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Innumeracy
Without a sense of number, it's easy to arrive at improper conclusions. These talks address the issue of innumeracy in the U.S.

Math Mistakes that Make the News, Heather A. Lewis (Nazareth College), Monday, January 5, 8:30-8:40 a.m. Washington Room 5, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of an MAA General Contributed Paper Session.

Toward a Numerate Culture: A Quantitative Literacy Project, D. Scott Dillery (Lindsey Wilson College), Wednesday, January 7, 10:00-10:15 a.m., Washington Room 5, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of the MAA Session on Quantitative Literacy Across the Curriculum.

Facing Up to the Realities of Quantitative Illiteracy: Do You Know What Your Students Do NOT Know about "Basic" Mathematics?, Betsy Darken (University of Tennessee at Chattanooga), Wednesday, January 7, 8:00-8:10 a.m., Wilson Room A, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Part of an MAA General Contributed Paper Session.

Assessing Quantitative Literacy Using a Wide Range of News Stories, Milo Schield (W. M. Keck Statistical Literacy Project), Wednesday, January 7, 4:40-4:55 p.m., Washington Room 6, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of the MAA Session on Assessment of Student Learning in Undergraduate Mathematics.

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Finance
The two sessions and the talk below involve many financial subjects, such as portfolio management and handling risk.

AMS Special Session on Financial Mathematics, Wednesday, January 7, 8:00-10:50 a.m., Washington Room 4, Lower Level, Marriott; Thursday, January 8, 8:00-10:50 a.m. and 1:00-5:50 p.m., Delaware Suite B, Lobby Level, Marriott. Organizers: Erhan Bayraktar (University of Michigan), Tim Siu-Tang Leung (Johns Hopkins University), and Birgit Rudloff (Princeton University).

AMS Session on Financial Mathematics, Wednesday, January 7, 1:00-4:40 p.m., Hoover Room, Mezzanine Level, Marriott.

Mathematical Models for Call Options on Stocks, Nicole Stawasz (King's College), Wednesday, January 7, 1:30-1:40 p.m., Wilson Room B, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Part of an MAA General Contributed Paper Session.

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Medicine and Biology
Hear how mathematics relates to topics such as the spread of disease and the modeling of chemotherapy drugs.

AMS Special Session on Recent Advances in Mathematical Modeling in Medicine, Monday, January 5, 2:15-6:05 p.m., Virginia Suite C, Lobby Level, Marriott. Organizers: David Chan, John W. Cain, and Rebecca A. Segal, all from Virginia Commonwealth University.

On the Dynamics and Control of Drinking: The Role of Control Theory in Combating Relapse and Other Factors, Carlos Castillo-Chavez (Arizona State University), Wednesday, January 7, Marriott 9:30-9:55 a.m., McKinley Room, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Part of an AMS Special Session on Dynamical Systems and Differential Equations: Theory and Applications.

Metapopulation Models in Tick-borne Disease Transmission Modeling, Holly D. Gaff (Old Dominion University), Monday, January 5, 8:30-8:55 a.m., Maryland Suite C, Lobby Level, Marriott. Part of the SIAM Minisymposium on Mathematical Modeling of Natural Resources.

Modeling HIV Outbreaks: The Male to Female Prevalence Ratio in the Core Population, James A. Yorke (University of Maryland), Monday, January 5, 4:45-5:10 p.m., Balcony A, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Part of an AMS Special Session on Difference Equations.

Hidden Symmetries in Virus Architecture and Their Implications on Virus Assembly, Thomas Keef (University of York), Tuesday, January 6, 8:30-8:55 a.m., Park Tower Suite 8226, Marriott. Part of the AMS Special Session on Mathematical Models of Biological Structures and Function.

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Sports and Games
From improving college football rankings to using game theory to get a date, these sessions demonstrate how mathematics figures into better performance in sports and games.

MAA Session on Mathematics and Sports, Tuesday, January 6, 8:00-11:55 a.m. and 1:00-3:15 p.m., Washington Room 1, Lower Level, Marriott. Organizer: Howard L. Penn (U.S. Naval Academy).

MAA Session on Mathematics of Games and Puzzles, Tuesday, January 6, 9:00-11:55 a.m. and 1:40-2:15 p.m., Washington Room 4, Lower Level, Marriott. Organizer: Laura A. Taalman (James Madison University).

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The Arts
The arts are the focus of two invited addresses, three sessions, and an exhibit.

Making Math out of Style, MAA Invited Address, Daniel N. Rockmore (Dartmouth College), Wednesday, January 7, 9:00-9:50 a.m., Marriott Ballroom Salons 1 and 2, Lobby Level, Marriott.

Geometreks, MAA Invited Address, Ivars Peterson (MAA), Thursday, January 8, 10:05-10:55 a.m., Marriott Ballroom Salons 1 and 2, Lobby Level, Marriott.

MAA Session on Mathematics and the Arts, Monday, January 5, 8:00-10:55 a.m., and Thursday, January 8, 8:00-10:55 a.m. and 1:00-5:35 p.m., Washington Room 4, Lower Level, Marriott. Organizer: Douglas E. Norton (Villanova University).

MAA Session on Performing Mathematics, Monday, January 5, 2:15-5:40 p.m., Washington Room 4, Lower Level, Marriott. Organizers: Timothy P. Chartier (Davidson College) and Karl Schaffer (De Anza College).

AMS Special Session on Mathematics and Mathematics Education in Fiber Arts, Wednesday, January 7, 1:00-5:50 p.m., McKinley Room, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Organizers: Sarah-Marie Belcastro (The Hampshire College Summer Studies in Mathematics) and Carolyn A. Yackel (Mercer University).

Mathematical Art Exhibition, Open during exhibit hours: Monday, January 5, 12:15-5:30 p.m., Tuesday, January 6 and Wednesday, January 7, 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m., and Thursday, January 8, 9:00-12:00 noon. Organizers: Robert Fathauer (Tessellations Company), Nathaniel A. Friedman (ISAMA and SUNY Albany), and Anne Burns (Long Island University and C.W. Post University).

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Networks
The interconnectedness of the Internet and of much gathered data increases the importance of the study of networks and their properties. The session and talk below deal with many applications of networks.

AMS Special Session on the Mathematics of Information and Knowledge, Tuesday, January 6, 9:00-11:45 a.m., Delaware Suite A, Lobby Level, Marriott. Organizers: Ronald R. Coifman (Yale University), James G. Glimm (AMS president, SUNY at Stony Brook), Peter W. Jones (Yale University), and Stephen Smale, Toyota Institute. The three talks in this session are:

• Topological Sensing: Doing More with Less in Sensor Networks via Topological Data, Robert Ghrist (University of Pennsylvania), 9:00-9:45 a.m.
• Google and the Vapnik-Chervonenkis Dimension, Stuart Geman (Brown University), 10:00-10:45 a.m.
• Internet Topology Inference, Paul Barford (University of Wisconson-Madison), 11:00-11:45 a.m.

(Note: Three other parts of this session run Monday, January 5, 9:00-10:45 a.m. and 2:15-6:15 p.m., and Tuesday 1:00-4:20 p.m.)

Counting Objects in Dense Sensor Networks: A Topological Integral Transform, Yuliy Baryshnikov (Bell Laboratories), Tuesday, January 6, 3:00-3:20 p.m., Maryland Suite A, Lobby Level, Marriott. Part of an AMS Special Session on Topological Methods in Applied Mathematics.

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History
Along with talks and a session on intriguing math history are some films, including one about Lewis Carroll.

Lewis Carroll in Numberland, MAA Special Dramatic Presentation, Robin Wilson (The Open University), Tuesday, January 6, 6:00-7:30 p.m., Regency Ballroom, Omni Shoreham Hotel. Wilson is also presenting The Story of Maths in two parts, Tuesday, January 6, 3:00-4:00 p.m., Marshall Ballroom South, Mezzanine Level, Marriott, and Wednesday, January 7, 3:00-4:00 p.m., Marshall Ballroom East, Mezzanine Level, Marriott.

Wolfgang Doeblin---A Mathematician Rediscovered, AMS Special Film Presentation, directed by Agnes Handwerk and Harrie Willems. When faced with imminent capture by the Nazis, Doeblin burned his math notes and took his own life. One lost notebook of his work was discovered recently, revealing how far ahead of his time he was. Wednesday, January 7, 7:00-8:30 p.m., Marriott Ballroom Salons 1 and 2, Lobby Level, Marriott.

Surprises from Ramanujan's Lost Notebook, George E. Andrews (AMS president-elect and Pennsylvania State University), Wednesday, January 7, 2:30-2:55 p.m., Washington Room 3, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of an MAA Invited Paper Session on the Beauty and Power of Number Theory.

An Interactive Demonstration of the Navajo Code of World War II, Neil P. Sigmon (Radford University), Monday, January 5, 4:55-5:10 p.m., Washington Room 5, Lower Level, Marriott. Part of the MAA Session on Cryptology for Undergraduates.

AMS-MAA Special Session on History of Mathematics, Wednesday, January 7 and Thursday, January 8, 8:00-10:55 a.m. and 1:00-5:55 p.m., Marshall Ballroom South, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Organizers: Joseph W. Dauben (Lehman College), Karen H. Parshall (University of Virginia), Patti Hunter (Westmont College), and Deborah Kent (Hillsdale College). Among the talks in this session are:

• The Mathematics in Newton's "Principia Mathematica," George E. Smith (Philosophy Department, Tufts University and Stanford University), Wednesday, January 7, 1:00 p.m.
• Mrs. Bean's Young Ladies: Mathematics Education in Early Modern England, Kathryn James (Beinecke Library, Yale University), Wednesday, January 7, 2:00-2:25 p.m.
• Computing Devices, Mathematics Education and Mathematics - Sexton's Omnimetre in Its Time, Peggy Aldrich Kidwell (National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution), Wednesday, January 7, 3:30-3:55 p.m.
• The Real Iinventor of the Computer, Sanford L. Segal (University of Rochester), Thursday, January 8, 5:30-5:55 p.m.

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Social Sciences
Sessions and talks on different areas of the social sciences, including political and behavioral science.

Mathematics and Public Policy, MAA Panel Discussion, Thursday, January 8, 2:30-3:50 p.m., Marshall Ballroom East, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Organizer: Philippe M. Tondeur (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign); Panelists: Vernon J. Ehlers (U.S. Congress, Michigan), Jerry McNerney (U.S. Congress, California), Douglas N. Arnold (University of Minnesota), and Daniel Ullman (George Washington University); Chair: Philippe Tondeur.

AMS Special Session on the Redistricting Problem, Thursday, January 8, 1:00-6:50 p.m., Balcony C, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Organizers: Daniel Goroff (Harvey Mudd College) and Daniel Ullman (George Washington University).

AMS Session on Behavioral Sciences, Wednesday, January 7, 4:15-5:40 p.m., Tyler Room, Mezzanine Level, Marriott.

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Prizes and Awards
Two special events recognize the achievements of current mathematicians and future ones.

Joint Prize Session, Tuesday, January 6, 4:25-5:25 p.m., Marriott Ballroom Salons 1 and 2, Lobby Level, Marriott. Reception follows at 5:30.

Who Wants to Be a Mathematician, AMS Special Presentation, Washington, Maryland, and Virginia high school students compete for up to $3000, Wednesday, January 7, 10:00-11:00 a.m., Marriott Ballroom Salon 3, Lobby Level, Marriott. Organizers: Mike Breen (AMS) and William T. Butterworth (DePaul University).

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More highlights of the meeting:

The CNN United States of Mathematics Presidential Debate, MAA Special Dramatic Presentation, Colin C. Adams and Thomas Garrity (both of Williams College), Monday, January 5, 6:00-7:00 p.m., Regency Ballroom, Omni Shoreham Hotel. Will this debate, to decide whether the figure-eight knot or the Euclidean Algorithm should lead the world of mathematics, be as exciting as Kennedy-Nixon or Biden-Palin? There's only one way to find out.

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Computational Methods in Coastal Engineering, Jerry L. Bona (University of Illinois at Chicago), Thursday, January 8, 2:30-2:55 p.m., Balcony A, Mezzanine Level, Marriott. Part of an AMS Special Session on Scientific Computing and Advanced Computation.

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Stability, Consistency, and Convergence: Modern Variations on a Classical Theme, AMS-MAA Invited Address, Douglas N. Arnold, (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis), Monday, January 5, 11:10 a.m. to noon, Marriott Ballroom Salons 1 and 2, Lobby Level, Marriott. Listen to Doug talk about how a 1991 collapse of an oil platform relates to his talk (also online is a full preview of his address).

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Challenge Response Password Security Using Combinatorial Group Theory, Benjamin Fine (Fairfield University), Wednesday, January 7, 4:00-4:25 p.m., Delaware Suite A, Lobby Level, Marriott. Part of an AMS Special Session on Algebraic Cryptography and Generic Complexity.

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Also see the full program of the Meetings.

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The Joint Mathematics Meetings are held for the purpose of advancing mathematical achievement, encouraging research, and providing the communication necessary to progress in the field. These meetings serve to preserve, supplement, and utilize the results of the research of mathematicians the world over. Keeping abreast of the progress in mathematics results in the furtherance of the interest of mathematical scholarship and research.

For further information contact:

Contact: Mike Breen or Annette Emerson
paoffice at ams dot org
Phone: 401-455-4000
Fax: 401-331-3842

Founded in 1888 to further mathematical research and scholarship, today the American Mathematical Society has more than 32,000 members.  The Society fulfills its mission through programs and services that promote mathematical research and its uses, strengthen mathematical education, and foster awareness and appreciation of mathematics and its connections to other disciplines and to everyday life.