The Mathematics Honor Society
Massachusetts Gamma Chapter
Bridgewater State University
Established on May 10, 1972
by the late Dr. Murray Abramson
then chair of the Mathematics and Computer Science Department
Marina Koshivas Mongeau
Dr. Jacqueline Anderson, 2013-
Dr. Annela Kelly, 2013-present
Dr. Laura Gross, 2010-present
Π Μ Ε
2014 Abramson Colloquium &
Pi Mu Epsilon Induction Ceremony
Sunday, April 6, 2014, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Conant Science Building Room 120
Introduction by Dr. Laura Gross
Ms. Terry Mullen & Ms. Kerrie Pratt, '15, (Math Majors)
Speaker: Dr. Erik Demaine, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, MIT
Title: Algorithms Meet Art, Puzzles, and Magic
When I was six years old, my father Martin Demaine and I designed and made puzzles as the Erik and Dad Puzzle Company, which distributed to toy stores across Canada. So began our journey into the interactions between algorithms and the arts (here, puzzle design). More and more, we find that our mathematical research and artistic projects converge, with the artistic side inspiring the mathematical side and vice versa. Mathematics itself is an art form, and through other media such as sculpture, puzzles, and magic, the beauty of mathematics can be brought to a wider audience. These artistic endeavors also provide us with deeper insights into the underlying mathematics, by providing physical realizations of objects under consideration, by pointing to interesting special cases and directions to explore, and by suggesting new problems to solve (such as the metapuzzle of how to solve a puzzle). This talk will give several examples in each category, from how our first font design led to building transforming robots, to how studying curved creases in origami led to sculptures at MoMA. The audience will be expected to participate in some live magic demonstrations.
Dr. Demaine's Biography:
Erik Demaine is a Professor in Computer Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Demaine's research interests range throughout algorithms, from data structures for improving web searches to the geometry of understanding how proteins fold to the computational difficulty of playing games. He received a MacArthur Fellowship as a “computational geometer tackling and solving difficult problems related to folding and bending—moving readily between the theoretical and the playful, with a keen eye to revealing the former in the latter”. He appears in the recent origami documentary Between the Folds, cowrote a book about the theory of folding (Geometric Folding Algorithms), and a book about the computational complexity of games (Games, Puzzles, and Computation). His interests span the connections between mathematics and art, particularly sculpture and performance, including curved-crease sculptures in the permanent collection of Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York.
Approximation algorithms via contraction decomposition, by Erik D. Demaine, MohammadTaghi Hajiaghayi, Bojan Mohar. Ljubljana : Univ. of Ljubljana, Inst. of Mathematics, Physics and Mechanics, Dep. of Mathematics, 2006.
Between the folds: a film about finding inspiration in unexpected places [Video]. Performers include Dr .Erik Demaine, Marty Demaine, and others. Call Number: TT870 .B48 2009. Request at Circulation Desk.Martin Demaine
Fixed-parameter algorithms for the (k, r)-center in planar graphs and map graphs, by Erik D. Demaine, Bergen: Dept. of Informatics, Univ. of Bergen, 2003.
Games, puzzles, and computation, by Robert A Hearn; Erik D Demaine, Wellesley, Mass.: A K Peters, Ltd., 2009.
Geometric folding algorithms: linkages, origami, polyhedra, by Erik D Demaine and Joseph O'Rourke, New York : Cambridge University Press, 2007.
The geometry of origami : from science to sculpture, by Erik D Demaine, Museum of Mathematics.; Simons Foundation. [DVD] New York, NY: Museum of Mathematics, 2011.
A lifetime of puzzles: a collection of puzzles in honor of Martin Gardner's 90th birthday, by Martin Gardner, Erik D Demaine, Martin L Demaine, and Tom Rodgers, Wellesley, Mass.: A K Peters, 2008.
In Memory of Dr. Murray Abramson
Dr. Murray Abramson, a faculty member from 1966 to 1987. He had chaired the Mathematics and Computer Science Department for years when he passed away in 1987. He held a bachelor's degree from Brooklyn College, a master's from Syracuse University, and a doctorate from Columbia University.
"Quiet and gentle, he was beloved by his students and fellow faculty members. He served the college on the tenure and curriculum committees for many years and was especially interested in the foreign student exchange program. Possessed of an ever-curious mind, he read widely and enjoyed auditing college courses in the areas of art and music." -- from his Memorial and Diorama Presentation held at the Clement C. Maxwell Library on February 6, 1988.
A Development of the rational number System, a programmed text, by Murray Abramson. Boston: Holbrook Press, 1970
First and second level examination of the tenth annual Olympiad High School Prize Competition, by Murray Abramson and Hugo D'Alarat, 1974.
Instructor's manual for a development of the rational number system, 1970
Language of sets - teachers manual. Performance data & Interpretation: Donald A . Cook. Lesson plans: Murray Abramson, 1963
Programming instruction in a development of the rational number system, doctoral dissertation, 1968
(Source: University Archives)
A very realistic portrayal of the third and final day of the Battle of Gettysburg, this diorama was made by Dr. Paul Abramson in memory of his brother Dr. Murray Abramson. The 13,000 tiny figures representing Lee's army of 75,000 men and Meade's amy of 97,000 are meticulously painted by hand and the land features carefully and faithfully put in place.
The diorama is currently located near the balcony of the third floor of the Maxwell Library. Please visit the library's Archives/Special Collections for more information.