Coordinator: Dr. P. K. Joshi, Prof. Savita Ladage, Prof. Sugra Chunawala and Dr. Anisha Malhotra-Dalvi
http://www.hbcse.tifr.res.in/graduate-school
01Sun
Coordinator: Dr. Rajesh Khaparde
01Sun
Coordinator: Dr. Rajesh Khaparde
02Mon
Coordinator: Prof. Anwesh Mazumdar
05Thu
Coordinator: Prof. Jyotsna Vijapurkar
Manya Raman Sundström, Umeå University
Mathematicians routinely say that mathematics is beautiful, and that this beauty is part of what motivates them to discover new mathematical truths. This raises the obvious question, do we make sufficient use of the aesthetic power of mathematics to motivate our students? In this talk we will look at a few examples of proofs of standard theorems which have been judged more or less beautiful by mathematicians. We are interested not so much in recognizing that they are beautiful, but in discussing why. Are there principles which we can use to design curricula that make students more likely to experience a sense of wonder, pleasure, and excitement similar to that of mathematicians? We will draw on the work of Alison Gopnik and Johnson & Steinerberger to discuss what might be evolutionary advantages to having certain kind of arguments and explanations. While we will not enter deeply into the debate of whether mathematical judgements of beauty are objective or subjective, we cannot help but point out that the recent literature makes the case for the objective nature being more attractive than we might otherwise have thought.
Manya Raman Sundström is an Associate Professor of Mathematics Education at Umeå University (and formerly Rutgers University.) She has a masters' degree in mathematics and PhD in mathematics education from UC Berkeley, with Alan Schoenfeld as advisor. Her research has focused on the learning of proof, and more recently on mathematical aesthetics. She works part-time with Curiosum, a new Science Center in Umeå, designing activities that allow children and adults to have mutli-sensory experiences of mathematics.