Math Drudge

In 1742, German mathematician Christian Goldbach wrote, in a letter to famed mathematician Leonhard Euler, that he believed “Every integer greater than two can be written as the sum of three primes.” In subsequent correspondence, the stronger version “Every even integer can be expressed as the sum of two primes” was suggested, as well as . . . → Read More: Terence Tao releases partial solution to the Goldbach conjecture

Many are familiar with the 1997 defeat of Garry Kasparov, the world’s reigning chess champion, by IBM’s “Deep Blue” computer [1997 NY Times article]. This feat was hailed as a major milestone in the development of artificially intelligent computer systems.

But even this feat was overshadowed by the 2011 defeat of the two most successful . . . → Read More: Computer challenges human crossword puzzle solvers

Geoff Wain, a mathematics educator at Leeds University, is promoting an initiative to organize a museum of mathematics in the U.K.

Wain notes the successful Mathematikum in Giessen, Germany, which opened in 2002 and now attracts 150,000 visitors per year, and the Museum of Mathematics in New York City, which is slated to open . . . → Read More: Researchers seek UK home for mathematics museum

In response to the use of citation data in research assessments such as Excellence in Research for Australia, the International Mathematical Union (IMU) and the International Congress on Industrial and Applied Mathematics (ICIAM) are considering producing a mathematics journal rating system to mitigate the exploitation of commercial or national rating methods, see also the 2008 . . . → Read More: Proposed mathematical journal rating system

Professor Jonathan M. Borwein delivered the keynote talk Teaching and Researching with Collaboration Tools and Technology as part of the 2011 Australian Learning and Teaching Council workshop, “Effective Teaching, Effective Learning in the Quantitative Disciplines,” held 29-30 Sep 2011 at the University of Wollongong, NSW, Australia. This practical, hands-on and interactive workshop immediately followed the . . . → Read More: Borwein gives talk on teaching and learning