DATE: SEPTEMBER 12, 2002
Available online at http://people.whitman.edu/~hundledr
The Senior Class of 2003 (Updated):
Matlab: We now have installed 10 student licenses of Matlab
and the Neural Networks toolbox! They are installed on the last two
rows of computers (from the door)- just log in and type matlab
The "student license" means that you may use the program for coursework,
but not research. We still have our two professional grade licenses
if you need to do research with Matlab- See Doug Hundley for more
details.
We've changed some of the operating systems around- in particular, Windows will only be available on one machine, sloth.
Use Mozilla to browse the web! It's the icon with the red dinosaur.
The scanner is hooked up to hope. Use xsane to run it.
Try out the new version of emacs!
Welcome the new addition to the Mathematics Department!
Jim Cotts has joined us for 2002-2003, replacing, for a half year each, Russ Gordon and Larry Anderson. After teaching mathematics at Brandon College in Canada for three years and at Southern Utah University for 30+, Jim decided to "hang up the chalk and erasers" and spend more time exploring Utah's canyon country. But within a year, he and his wife Terri moved to Walla Walla, only to find that Whitman needed someone for this year. As Jim puts it, "I guess I showed up at just the right time, and I am delighted to be here." He will be teaching Calculus and Linear Algebra. "I still love being in the classroom" he adds, "and this is a wonderful way to integrate into the Walla Walla community at large."
While Jim's main focus during his Utah teaching years was in Statistics, he says "Though Statistics is obviously very useful, and is definitely really neat stuff, I also still love pure mathematics for its grace and elegance."
During his tenure in Utah, Jim spent sabbatical years in Colorado, South Carolina and Australia. "I guess that year in Australia has to be a career highlight for me", Cotts comments. "That and the two weeks I spent in the then Soviet Union in 1983 with 20 other math. educators from around the U.S. Both were incredible!"
Outside of the academic environment Jim's interests include being an avid hiker, a compulsive gardener, an insatiable traveler, having been to thirteen countries, and an absolute devotee of classical music.
Our colleague and chair, Larry Anderson, has announced his retirement beginning next January 2003- this Fall may be your last chance to take a class from him!
Russ Gordon is on sabbatical this year.
David Guichard is our Department Chair this year.
In general, all math majors should sign themselves up for membership in the Mathematical Association of America (MAA). It's an excellent organization, and it will keep you in touch with what's happening in the math community-everything from interesting mathematics to issues in education and teaching. For more information, go to their website at http://www.maa.org. To see what's going on, you can also go directly to their news and events page at http://www.maa.org/news/news.html
If you're interesting in applied math, or wonder what mathematicians do in industry, you might also consider joining the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM). For more information, go to their website at http://www.siam.org. SIAM also lists Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) sites. If you were too late this year to apply, make a note for next year- applications are usually due in February and March, so one normally needs to start working on them in January!
Both of these organizations are very welcoming to students, and offer substantial discounts for membership.