Applied Mathematics News

Applied math majors and students involved with Kappa Mu Epsilon (KME), the Math Honor Society, had the opportunity to relax and watch a great movie from 2008 about blackjack. Snacks were served as the students relaxed and learned about a connection between memory, numbers, and winning millions of dollars.

“21” is a fact-based story about six MIT students who were trained to become experts in card counting. These six students took a trip to Vegas and won millions of dollars. Oddly enough, ‘counting cards’ is not illegal, but casinos across the nation have picked up on it and began to deny service to those suspected of counting cards. The biggest reason for denial of service is because it takes away from the casino’s profit and makes an unfair experience for others at the table.

If you have any questions about how to get involved in KME, please contact Dr. Benjamin Wilson, bwilson2@stevenson.edu.

Michou Kaku, Professor of Theoretical Physics at the City College of New York, recently visited Stevenson as part of the Baltimore Speaker series. At SU, he met with students and then gave a talk on String Theory and why he became a physicist and futurist. Applied Math sophomore Gerald Roman (left, bottom picture) had the opportunity to sit down with him before his speech to connect on a more personal level. He enjoyed being able to have a one-on-one conversation with someone who is world famous. Gerald shared, “I learned a lot and am very grateful to have spent this time with him.”

Stevenson Applied Math senior Sarah Modzelewski combined for over 60 saves in two games to help the Women’s Hockey team remain undefeated. In Beverly Massachusetts, the Mustangs had strong defense shutting out Endicott on two consecutive games. Stevenson won the opening game of the doubleheader 2-0 where Sarah had 27 saves and her first season shutout. The following day, the defense continued as Stevenson tied Endicott 0-0 and Sarah recorded 35 saves. In 6 games and over 350 minutes played this year, Sarah has only allowed 4 goals while recording 128 saves. Best of luck to Sarah and the rest of the Women’s Hockey team!

Applied Math freshman Luke McKeogh is enjoying his first semester at SU. He’s enjoying his classes and is having a great time on the Golf Team. This year, the team has 14 students on the roster and 8 of them are freshmen. This gives Luke and his teammates a chance to build a great team over the next few years.

Dr. Mark Branson entered this years’ annual Chili Cookoff with an interestingly named chili: Dr. Branson’s 10log(1000)cos(pi/3)squroot(9) Alarm Chili. The chili had a pungent aroma of ginger, cinnamon, and coriander before it even hit the pallet of the judge’s mouth. The pulled chicken combined with over 10 other seasonings gave this chili a strong and unique flavor. The judges must have also enjoyed this different spin on a chili, because it won the award “Most Unusual” among all 13 contestants. Congratulations on this delicious victory!