K-12

Applied Math in Action

Department graduate students periodically give talks about their research or fun applied math topics to high school students in the Chicagoland-based Schuler Scholars program.

Fall 2016
Several graduate students created interactive workshops introducing applied math concepts at a pre-Calculus level. Activities included:

  • Monte Carlo simulation of wine tank storage using M&Ms
  • Machine learning and Netflix’s techniques for calculating movie preference
  • The law of large numbers: guess the number of Skittles in a jar

Fall 2015
Some graduate students gave presentations about their current research. Topics included:

  • Predator-prey modeling with migration
  • Pattern formation in semi-arid climates
  • Arctic energy balance modelling
  • Sexual selection in ornamented animals