Mathematics Alumni
Newsletter
Summer 2004
Visit the Mathematics
Department Web Site
at
www.math.du.edu
University of Denver
Inside this issue:
Greetings From The Chair
Greetings From The Chair
1
A Note From Jim Hagler
1
Quantum Structures 2004
2
Alumni Updates
3
Elida Nosenzo
3
Tea At The Greene
4
Hockey Night 2004
4
Real World Seminar
4
Math Puzzler
4
This newsletter is
published semiannually
and your submissions
are welcome.
If you have an article or information
that might be of interest to other alumni
and you would like to have it published
in the newsletter, please send it to:
Don Oppliger
DU Math Dept
2360 S. Gaylord
Denver, CO 80208
[email protected]
Please include your name, mailing
address, and email address so we can
contact you.
This newsletter may be
read on-line at
www.math.du.edu
If you would prefer to receive an
email notification when each edition
is published rather than a printed
copy, please let us know by sending an email to [email protected].
Each spring the Department takes pleasure in
recognizing its outstanding students. This year,
Cy Holladay received the Herbert J. Greenberg
award for Outstanding Achievement in Mathematics; Brandon Haenlein and Julie Raffety
shared the Outstanding Fourth Year Student
award; Clare Armstrong, Thomas Greene
and Jacob Harper shared the Outstanding Third
Year Student award; Anuradha Bhatia and
Denis Lapitski shared the Outstanding Second
Year Student award; and Holly Bau received the
Outstanding First Year Student award.
Over the years we have observed that our majors are inclined to be passionately engaged in
a remarkably diverse array of interests, both
within mathematics and outside it. Without attempting to be comprehensive, we note that Cy
and Brandon will start graduate study in mathematics this fall at DU, and that Clare is contemplating the Peace Corps. We also note that
Jacob is spending the summer at an REU
(Research Experience for Undergraduates) pro-
A Note From Jim Hagler
During the 2004-5 academic year, Rick Ball
will be on a very well deserved sabbatical,
which will be based in Prague. Rick served
first as co-chair of the old Mathematics and
Computer Science department during the last
year of its existence and has been the chair of
the Mathematics Department since we became a department in autumn of 2001. His
tenure as chair has coincided with important
times in the life of this department and it is not
exaggerating to say that our current success
is due largely to Rick’s vision and style. One
of his innovations that will almost certainly be
permanent is that our infrequent department
meetings are held over snacks at a restaurant.
More importantly, Rick has managed to balance his administrative responsibilities with an
ject at Iowa State, and that Anu will spend
next fall abroad. Finally, we would like to point
out that although there are, on average, only
twelve Boettcher scholarships awarded to
Colorado students each year, Holly and Tom
are two of three Boettcher Scholars currently
majoring in mathematics, and a fourth Boettcher math major, Tom Gieck, graduated last
year.
We would like to extend our heartiest congratulations to all of our outstanding students.
amazingly active
and productive
research program.
He has many,
many collaborators and his work
spans areas involving ordered
algebra and ordered structures,
logic, and at least two different branches of topology. On behalf of the entire department, I’d
like to wish Rick a productive mathematical and
personal year in Prague. We all look forward to
emails, to updates, and to his return to Denver
late next summer.
(Editor’s note: Jim Hagler will be Acting Department
Chair during Rick’s absence.)
Quantum Structures 2004 attendees outside Boettcher Hall
Quantum Structures 2004
During July 17-22, 2004, the Mathematics Department hosted
Quantum Structures 2004, the biennial meeting of the International Quantum Structures Association (IQSA). A total of 87
attendees from 16 different countries participated. The entire
conference provided an excellent opportunity for a stimulating
exchange of ideas among researchers from a wide variety of
disciplines. The department is proud to have hosted one of the
most important scientific conferences at DU in recent memory.
The IQSA, founded in the early 1990’s, currently has over 130
members in 16 countries. Members are from departments of
mathematics, physics,
engineering, philosophy,
and neurobiology, as well
as practicing computer
engineers. Its purpose is
study of the foundations
of quantum mechanics in
all its forms, including
topics from mathematics,
psychology, cognitive
science, philosophy of
science and biology.
Outgoing president, Prof. Stan
Gudder, addresses the conference
during the concluding session
Drs. Frank Schroeck and
Stan Gudder of the DU
Mathematics Department
were members of the organizing committee for
this year’s conference
and worked very hard through the year to make this conference a success. Special thanks is owed to Paula Gudder who
spent countless hours organizing the conference and ensuring
the smooth running of the conference once it was underway.
Other members of the Department who assisted the committee
were Assistant to the Chair, Liane Beights, graduate students
Dan Daly and Melissa Butler, and Prof. Jim Hagler.
DU Mathematics Department presenters at the conference
were Rick Ball, who presented a paper entitled “Forbidden
configurations in the spectra of MV-algebras,” Frank Schroeck
who spoke on “A retrospective on quantum mechanics on
phase space,” and Stan Gudder who presented “Open problems for sequential effect algebras.” Stan is the outgoing president of IQSA and a special session of the conference was held
to honor him. At this session, talks were given by Philippe Martin from Switzerland, Werner Stulpe from Germany, and Mark
Balas from Boulder. These distinguished researchers were
either PhD students of Stan’s or came to DU to work with Stan
as post-doctoral fellows. Also attending were some of Stan’s
other PhD students and DU alumni Jocelyne Marbeau (PhD,
1990), Loren Haskins (PhD, 1972), Dexter Strawther (PhD,
1974), and Julia Zerbe (PhD, 1979).
The conference concluded with a panel discussion examining
what had been learned at the conference and suggestions for
enhancements at the next IQSA conference, to be held in
Europe in 2006. This panel consisted of a mathematician, a
philosopher, a physicist, and an engineer. The discussion was
stimulating, lively, informative and thought provoking.
(Continued on page 3)
Quantum Structures 2004
(Continued from page 2)
In the midst of this, there was still an opportunity for
some relaxation. On Tuesday, July 20, there was a bus
excursion to the Rocky Mountains. The attendees visited
Golden, the Red Rocks Amphitheater, and Breckenridge,
Colorado and had an opportunity to hike to the summit of
Loveland Pass at an altitude of around 12,000 feet.
We’re happy to report that, in the days immediately after
the event ended, the organizers received a number of emails with rave reviews on the content, organization, and
smooth functioning of the conference.
Conference attendees at Breckenridge, CO
Alumni Updates
We are pleased to pass on the information that Brent Hailpern (BS-1976), who is with the IBM Thomas J.
Watson Research Center, was recently named a Fellow of the ACM. The announcement is at
http://www.acm.org/announcements/itachievers.12-12-03.html. You can also visit Brent’s Web site and learn more at
http://www.research.ibm.com/people/b/bth/.
Brent Hailpern
Don Mackison
Don Mackison (BA-1961) got in touch with us and let us know what has been going on with him since he
left DU.
“I was at DU for two years, from '59 to '61, and left with a BA in Math. Went to grad school at CU in Applied Math for a year, then worked
for the Applied Physics Lab at Johns Hopkins University.
“Returned to Boulder to work for Ball, and then got an MS and PhD in Controls & Systems at CU, where I have been teaching since 1980.
“The best math courses I took at DU were taught by Frank White, Bob Amie, Nyle Utterback and Glenn Miller from DRI- advanced calculus, potential theory, and such.
“Two of the best grad courses I ever had were Classical Mechanics and Calculus of Variations at Johns Hopkins.
“When I started the PhD at CU I had a doctoral level education in applied math/mathematical physics, so control theory was a breeze. My
advisor was Peter Dorato, who had been a classmate at Columbia of Rudy Kalman- so I majored in Kalman at a time when most people
couldn't work problems with Riccati equations.
“From 1980-1990 I taught the graduate control courses in the Electrical Engineering Department at CU, and in 1990 I started a new program in Computer Aided Control Systems Design in Aerospace Engineering, or "how to know and love your Riccati equation."
“On my desk sits a draft of the book "Computer Aided Control Systems Design" which I really need to paste together and get off to the
publisher- calculus of variations, Lagrangian mechanics, rotational mechanics, linear quadratic regulator theory, noise and random processes, and optimal estimation. This text has developed over the last 13 years of teaching this course- because there is no other appropriate text. After I finished the PhD I went to MIT to take their CACSD course, which was taught out of their papers and notes- which had
been a large part of my sources when I was doing thesis work.
In 1967 I spent a quarter at DU, and took a course in random processes from someone whose name I forget. Years later I found that gentleman was a grad school classmate and best friend of my doctoral advisor at CU, Peter Dorato. What goes around, comes around.”
We would be happy to hear from more of you. Send a paragraph or two and let us know what you have been doing. Send information to: Don Oppliger, DU Math Dept., 2360 S. Gaylord, Denver, CO 80208. or email to: [email protected]
Elida Nosenzo
At the close of the Spring Quarter this year, Elida Nosenzo left the department to take a position
as an actuary in New York City. Elida joined the department in 2001 and her instructional acumen, energy, and good humor have enriched the department and greatly benefited the students
of DU. She will be sorely missed.
On the bright side, we are pleased to report that this opportunity will allow Elida to live in much closer proximity to her family. We
offer her our heartiest congratulations on this new endeavor and best wishes in all she chooses to pursue.
Tea At The Greene
When the school year begins again, we will continue the tradition of Friday afternoon tea. This is an opportunity for faculty, staff, and students to gather in a relaxed atmosphere at the end of the week. In the past, a
number of alumni have dropped in to share tea and their memories of DU and the math department with us.
We would be pleased to have you join us for tea on a Friday afternoon at 3:00 in the John Greene Hall
lounge. Although no advance notice is required, you might want to contact Liane Beights at (303) 871-3344
to confirm that tea hasn’t been postponed due to a conflicting event. We’ll look forward to seeing you there.
Photo courtesy of the
Brown Palace Hotel
Hockey Night 2004
It has definitely been a big hockey year here at DU. Our Math Hockey Night this year was
on February 28 where we saw the Pioneers complete a two game sweep against the twotime NCAA champions, the Minnesota Golden Gophers. The Pioneers won the game 6-3, but it was close until
late in the third period with the Pioneers holding only a one goal lead. With 5:28 left in the game, the Pioneers
scored and another goal with 1:23 left iced the game for the Pioneers.
The big hockey news, of course, was the Pioneers claiming their first NCAA Men’s Hockey Championship in 35
years. After a rocky start to the season, the Pioneers started playing great hockey and ended the season with an
exciting 1-0 win over Maine in the NCAA championship game.
The graduation dates for the 43 alumni who signed up to attend this year’s hockey night spanned 6 decades. Credit for the
greatest distance traveled goes to Tony and Lura Ercolano (both BS in 1981) who were visiting from Seattle and came to the
game. We’ll be planning another hockey night next winter and all alumni are invited. We do send out notices to all alumni that
we are aware of who live in Colorado to inform them of our Hockey Nights. Hockey Night is typically in February so, if you’re
interested in attending and don’t receive a notice, please let us know and we’ll send you details. Email [email protected].
What do mathematicians do in the
“Real World”? What
can I do with my degree in mathematics? What’s it like out
there?
Real World Seminar
These are questions we try to address in the Real World
Seminar that we typically conduct during the Spring Quarter.
The seminar is geared toward students who are majoring in
mathematics, computer science, engineering and other
technical subjects. A variety of invited speakers provide their
insights into the “Real World” and discuss such topics as
employer expectations and business world realities, how to look
for and obtain jobs, and whether the “Real World” is really like a
Dilbert cartoon.
If you’re interested in speaking to the seminar and sharing your
experience and insights into the “Real World” and, in particular,
sharing an example of what mathematicians do in the business
world, we would like to hear from you. Please contact Don Oppliger by phone at (303) 871-3072 or e-mail at [email protected].
Thanks to Jeff Courchene (BS, 1994) who is an actuary here in
Denver and who has spoken to the class in the past.
Solution to last issue’s puzzler— Note that any cut passing through the center of a rectangle will divide the rectangle equally. Thus, the pizza with the missing
rectangular piece can be equally divided by making a single cut that passes through
the center of the original pizza and the center of the missing rectangular piece. (See the figure to the right.)
Math Puzzler
Responses to the puzzler were submitted by Orasun Brinker (MA, 1945), Jim Shannon (BA, 1957), Clark Bond
(BA, 1960), Bill Brown (BA, 1965), Paul Henkart (BA, 1966), Elie Dick (PhD, 1972), Bill Scruggs (PhD, 1976) and
Helen Cahill, Executive Assistant and Budget Officer for the DU Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics.
Our puzzle-guru is on vacation so hopefully we didn’t miss anybody. Thanks very much for your participation.
Petr Vojtĕchovský of the Math Department and his wife Kari have written some amusing notes about their thought process in solving this problem. The paper can be read by going to the Web site, www.math.du.edu/~petr and selecting the link research, then
the link trifles, and finally the .pdf file, “A problem in fair division”. You will need Adobe Reader to read this file and you can
download a free copy of Adobe Reader from the Web site, http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html.
...............
A New Puzzler— Consider a game in which 15 dots are placed in a line as represented below.
Playing alternately, two players put a cross on any vacant dot. The winner is the first player to complete 3 adjacent crosses anywhere along the line (the crosses do not all have to be made by the winning player). Can either the first or second player adopt a
strategy that will guarantee a win and what is that strategy? Send answers to [email protected].