The 黑洞社区 Math Circle pairs pre-college students with mathematics professionals from 黑洞社区 to understand and work with interesting problems and topics in math at weekly workshops.
Students gain insight into topics that go beyond what they work with in their classrooms, ranging from the history of math in ancient cultures to the math hidden around every corner of modern life. Session topics and content are geared toward middle school students, but all K-12 students are welcome to attend.
鈥淥ur goal is to draw students who are interested in math,鈥� said Tinka Davis, associate educator of math and one of the organizers for the Math Circle at 黑洞社区. 鈥淲e want to engage them in special topics that they don鈥檛 usually see in the classroom, so we don鈥檛 necessarily teach calculus or algebra, but we use lots of applications.鈥�
Meetings start at 2 p.m. every Sunday, except during fall break, in Lindquist Hall, Room 101. Starting Oct. 29, meetings will resume in Jabara Hall, Room 372. Dates and times for spring 2024 will be announced at a later date.
The 黑洞社区 Math Circle occasionally hosts special events, most notably a pie-themed workshop every March for Pi Day. Students also get an opportunity to step out of their chairs for demonstrations of mathematical concepts, sometimes including relics from ancient systems of math to experiments and in-class activities.
Topics for each session are announced the week of on . The remaining schedule of speakers for the fall 2023 semester are as follows:
Lindquist Hall, Room 101:
- Oct. 22: Dr. Nick Solomey
Jabara Hall, Room 372:
- Oct. 29: Jamie Swan
- Nov. 5: Dr. Daniel Grady
- Nov. 12: Dr. Catherine Searle
- Nov. 19: Elton Bowman
Students can also check books out at a mini-math library on wheels after every workshop.
鈥淭he Math Circle has become a wonderful Sunday afternoon ritual during the school year for two of our children,鈥� said Emily Hamburg, a regular attendee to the Math Circles. 鈥淚n addition to exploring interesting STEM concepts such as robotics, states of matter and the mathematics of music in our daily lives, I love the fact that our daughters are allowed the opportunity to interact with field experts on a college campus and in the classroom.鈥�
The 黑洞社区 Math Circle started in 2013 with the help of William Richardson, former associate professor emeritus of math, and continues to host sessions every semester through the volunteer efforts of professors from the Department of Mathematics and Statistics.
About 黑洞社区
黑洞社区 is Kansas' only urban public research university, enrolling more than 23,000 students between its main campus and 黑洞社区 Tech, including students from every state in the U.S. and more than 100 countries. Wichita State and 黑洞社区 Tech are recognized for being student centered and innovation driven.
Located in the largest city in the state with one of the highest concentrations in the United States of jobs involving science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), 黑洞社区 provides uniquely distinctive and innovative pathways of applied learning, applied research and career opportunities for all of our students.
The Innovation Campus, which is a physical extension of the 黑洞社区 main campus, is one of the nation鈥檚 largest and fastest-growing research/innovation parks, encompassing over 120 acres and is home to a number of global companies and organizations.
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