Colloquium

Title: Adinkra Heights and Color-Splitting Rainbows Speaker: Ursula Whitcher, American Mathematical Society Abstract: Adinkras are decorated graphs that encapsulate information about conjectural relationships between fundamental particles in physics. If we color the edges of an Adinkra with a rainbow of shades in a specific order, we obtain a special curve that we can study usingalgebraic […]

Title: “The science of Mathematics is not crystallized into text-books” : The Bryn Mawr Mathematical Journal Club (1896 — 1924) Speaker: Jemma Lorenat, Pitzer College Abstract: As mathematics departments in the United States began to shift toward standards of original research at the end of the nineteenth century, many adopted journal clubs as forums for […]

Title: Graph Complexes and Moduli Spaces of Curves Speaker: Siddarth Kannan, UCLA Abstract: I will begin by defining a certain combinatorial object called a graph complex. Then I will give a brief introduction to the moduli space of curves. The study of the geometry of this moduli space has occupied several generations of mathematicians, across […]

Title: Math as Art and Recreation Speaker: Peter Kagey, HMC Abstract: Recreational Mathematics is an area of math which is rooted in exploration and playfulness, and includes puzzles, games, art, and more. This talk takes a closer look at these ideas, emphasizing how a foundation of curiosity and play can lead to insightful connections with various […]

Title: Shrinkage Estimation for Causal Inference and Experimental Design Speaker: Evan T. R. Rosenman, Assistant Professor of Statistics, Claremont McKenna College Abstract: Passive collection of observational data -- in settings such as medicine, insurance, and e-commerce -- is a ubiquitous feature of modern life. For statisticians, these ever-proliferating datasets are both promising and perilous. Observational […]

Title: Mirror Symmetry and Zeta Values Speaker: Sheel Ganatra, University of Southern California Abstract: Mirror symmetry is a conjectural correspondence, born out of ideas in string theory, between two geometries of very different nature. In its earliest mathematical appearance, mirror symmetry was used to make predictions for certain numerical measurements of one space in terms of […]

Title: Evolution of an Intriguing Recreational Math Problem Speaker: Shawn McMurran, California State University San Bernardino Abstract: Besides being popular and entertaining, recreational mathematics problems are often of historical interest. In this presentation we will highlight the origin and evolution of one such simply stated yet deep problem. The problem emerged during the eighteenth century […]

Title: A Group-Theoretic Ax-Katz Theorem Speaker: Pete L. Clark, University of Georgia Abstract: The Chevalley-Warning Theorem is a result from 1935 asserting that the number of solutions to a low degree polynomial system over a finite field is divisible by the characteristic of the field.  It is an important result -- it includes a conjecture […]

Title: Teaching Equity-minded Active Mathematics: A model for Instructional Change Speaker: ​Amelia Stone-Johnstone, Department of Mathematics, California State University, Fullerton Abstract: Active learning has been championed as a mechanism for greater student learning and participation in STEM. However, recent studies have demonstrated how active learning without an explicit equity focus may harm students from historically […]

Title: A Survey of Diophantine Equations Speaker: ​Edray Herber Goins, Professor of Mathematics and Statistics, Pomona College Abstract: There are many beautiful identities involving positive integers. For example, Pythagoras knew $3^2 + 4^2 = 5^2$ while Plato knew $3^3 + 4^3 + 5^3 = 6^3$. Euler discovered $59^4 + 158^4 = 133^4 + 134^4$, and even […]

For the next CCMS Colloquium on April 3rd Wednesday, we invite all MATH faculty, and students intending to enroll in upper division math courses to attend the Fall 2024 Course Preview Session of all the upper division math courses offered across the consortium in Fall 2024. Faculty, We strongly encourage you to attend so that […]

Title: Structural Ramsey Theory and Logic Speaker: Lynn Scow, Professor of Mathematics, California State University, San Bernardino Abstract: The connection between Ramsey theory and logic goes back to Frank P. Ramsey's 1929 paper in which he announced his famous Ramsey theorem for finite sequences.  This theorem states that for any partition of all sequences of length […]