Summary report for the 2011/2012 school year

The following is a summary report for the 2011/2012 school year of Math Circles. We are excited to share with you our journeys to school boards around the province. This year we visited many new schools and returned to schools which we visited previously.

Math Circles 2011/2012 Year End Summary Report

Math Circles events at Dal in the 2011/2012 school year

Events will be held from 5:30-7:30pm in the Chase Building, Room 119 (Student Learning Centre) of Dalhousie University. We will serve pizza, so please RSVP so that we know how many pizzas to purchase for each event.

Here is our planned schedule for the 2011/2012 school year. All dates are subject to change. If you and your school have a specific date conflict, please let us know and we will try to accommodate your needs!

September 21, 2011 
Karyn McLellan & Danielle Cox

Topic: Fibonacci and the Golden Ratio

Join Karyn and Danielle in the first Math Circles event of the new school year! We will be exploring the mathematics of the Fibonacci numbers and Golden Ratio. We will even listen to some Fibonacci number inspired music!

October 18 & 19, 2011 
Alain Gamache

Topic: Numeral Systems

Join Alain on a journey that will take you to the very first systems of numerals in ancient civilizations. Learn the needs that lead the Egyptians to develop clever arithmetics methods to fill their everyday needs, the origin of our system for measuring time and why CDLIV*XXVII is not as easy as it looks! We will also try to understand what is the big deal with the 12/21/12. This presentation will be in French on Oct 18 and in English on Oct 19!!

November 16, 2011 
Rebecca Milley

Topic: Primes

Join Rebecca for a "prime time" Math Circles event! Learn how prime
numbers were found by ancient Greeks, and how huge primes today are the
secret to internet encryption! We will learn some divisibility "tricks",
prove that there are an infinite number of primes, and explore one of the
oldest unsolved problems in mathematics: the Goldbach Conjecture!

December 14, 2011 
Hoda Chuangpishit,Karyn McLellan & Rebecca Milley

Topic: Permutations and Combinations

Before you take off for the holiday break, join the Math Circles gang for the last event of 2011. We will be exploring the topic of permutations and combinations through fun problem solving activities!

January 18, 2012 
Ethan Mombourquette

Topic: Logic & Reasoning

Come learn that math is not all numbers! Join Ethan as he introduces us to formal logic, applies it to some fun activities like the “wolf, goat, cabbage” problem and introduces the idea of 'proof' in a nonthreatening way!

February 22, 2012
Dr. John Grant McLoughlin (UNB)

Topic: The Wonder of Numbers

Please join us to share in meeting some of the wonders of numbers through mathematical games, problems, proofs and more. Whether it be curious properties of numbers, the lovely manner in which numbers work together, playfulness in a game, the beauty of patterns and pictorial representations, or a poem, know that your view on numbers will be enriched through a recreational mathematical evening. 

Teachers from elementary to postsecondary levels are also welcome to attend.

March 21, 2012 
Karyn McLellan

Topic: Pi

We all know Pi is the ratio of a circles circumference to its diameter and that mathematicians around the world celebrate Pi day, but why else is this number so important and interesting? In this talk we will do some activities that generate Pi in a surprising way, learn about the quest to find more and more digits of Pi and will see why people love Pi.

April 18, 2012 
Chris Levy

Topic: Take it to the Limit

Adding numbers is easy right? What about adding an infinite number of numbers together? We all know that 1+1+1+1+1+...+1 is infinity. But what about adding other series of numbers? Could we possibly get an actual number as the answer, or just infinity, or rather something else? In this talk we will explore this concept by looking at some fun related problems such as the bouncing ball problem and Zeno's paradox.


April 25, 2012 (Truro) 
Danielle Cox

Topic: The Game of NIM

Come and explore the world of combinatorial game theory! We will be playing the game of NIM and through trying to solve the game, we will encounter some interesting mathematical surprises!

May 16, 2012
Hoda Chuangpishit

Topic: Hotel Infinity

Join us while we explore Hilberts Hotel! What if we owned a hotel with an infinite number of rooms and every room was occupied. Could we fit one more person in our hotel? 100 more people? A bus load of people? The answer may surprise you!

June 6, 2012
Alain Gamache
Topic: e

What do time of death, infinity, a hanging chain, derangements and compound interest all have in common? They all involve one of the most beautiful constants in mathematics: e. This constant has long been in the shadow of pi; let the warm and bright end of the year sun shine some light on this mysterious number that can make the imaginary become real!