In support of math month this November, the math department is hosting a calculator drive beginning on the first of November.
Math professors, Dr. Polly Schulle and Jenelle Reynolds, will lead this event.
“We take all calculators like TI (Texas instruments), Casio, all kinds, graphing or not-graphing. We want to have a surplus of calculators to use in our tutoring centers and some professors let the students use the calculators during the semester,” Reynolds said.
The drive, named “Calculators Count,” has four drop-off areas which include: Pirtle Technology Center, Room 220; Jenkins Hall, Room 1108; the TRiO room on the third floor of Rogers Student Center; and Potter Hall, Room 105.
The drive will take place Nov. 1-18. Any and all calculators will be accepted.
“Calculators Count” isn’t the only isn’t the only way students can participate in math month this year. There are several events hosted on campus to encourage critical thinking among the student body.
The Logic Puzzle Competition will be each Monday starting Oct. 25 through Nov. 15.
Math Department Chair Chris Chappa said, “A new logic puzzle will be made available to students, faculty, and staff. They will be posted at bulletin boards around campus. Faculty will also be able to distribute puzzles to the students. Participants will send solutions to [email protected] by noon each Friday.”
Each week participants will be entered in a drawing for a $25 restaurant gift card. Afterward, students will be placed in a drawing for a bigger prize, which is to be determined.
Guest speaker Monte Floyd Hancock Jr. will be presenting from 6-7 p.m. Nov. 4. This event is open to students from different colleges and high schools in the community.
“The presenter describes for the lay-person audience interesting cases from 40 years of innovative mathematical modeling of human and artificial intelligences. Behavior modeling of human and robotic agents is depicted through images and animations in hyperspace,” Chappa said.
Snacks will be provided prior to the presentation. Location is to be determined.
The “Math Madness” event will be held on Nov. 10 for arithmetic and algebra and Nov. 11 for calculus. Registration is from 5:30-6:30 p.m. and the competition portion will be from 6-8:30 p.m.
“Students will compete in a preliminary event,” Chappa said. “The top 16 students will then be ranked 1st through 16th. In the finals, students will compete head-to-head, one problem at a time, in single-elimination fashion, similar to the NCAA March Madness basketball playoffs. All students who make it to the semifinals and finals will win prizes. The winner of each event is guaranteed to win at least $100 cash.”
Refreshments will be provided to all participants.
From 6-8:30 p.m. Nov. 16 and from noon-1 p.m. Nov. 19, students are invited to enjoy tacos and play games with their peers and TJC faculty during the “Let’s Taco ‘Bout Math Games Week.” The location will be rooms 107, 109, and 111 in Potter on Tuesday and room 109 on Thursday.
For more information contact Chappa at [email protected].
