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ACMS Updates

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The following info was recently sent to members of the ACMS.

1. 2023 Joint Math Meetings Reception – ACMS will once again be hosting a reception at JMM. The reception will be from 6-7:30 PM on Thursday, January 5th at the Marriott Copley Place, Salon G . Karl-Dieter Crisman (Gordon College) will be our guest speaker and his talk will be from 6:30-7 PM. At the conclusion of his talk, we will break out into small groups for dinner and discussion at various local restaurants. Please contact ACMS Vice President Kristin Camenga with any questions.

Abstract for Karl-Dieter Crisman’s talk:

Mersenne Matters: Mathematics, Music, Monotheism, and More

Marin Mersenne is usually considered, when he is considered at all in mathematics, in one of two ways. Either he is the inspiration for the latest newly discovered (and enormous) “Mersenne Prime,” or he is the interlocutor who helped induce Fermat and Descartes to properly, and “publically” discuss their methods of tangents.

But who was Mersenne, what did he do, and why does he matter? This talk will give an overview of his life and the important roles he played in the history of science and music, with many examples from his own writings. We’ll especially look into why a monk, from an order devoted to being the least of all, saw his explorations of things like pure mathematics and practical acoustics as being so closely related to his writings in defense of the faith.

2. Dues Updates and Price Changes – The board has voted to raise the annual price of dues from $20 annually to $30 annually. This change will take place March 1, 2023. You are welcome to pay your 2023 dues, as well as pay in advance for future years, at the current rate any time before March 1. If you have any questions regarding your current dues status, please contact ACMS Executive Secretary Mike Janssen.

3. Brabenec Lectureship – Dates and locations have been determined for the inaugural Brabenec Lectures to be given by Russ Howell. March 13-16 Russ will be making stops at Huntington, Taylor, and Indiana Wesleyan. March 23-24 Russ will be at Lee University. Thank you to all the schools who applied to host Russ. Look for an email in the new year (around February/March) providing details on Russ’s talks as well as an application/nomination process for the ’23-’24 Brabenec Lecturer. The board plans on a rough timeline of announcing the next lecturer around Memorial day, a mid-July deadline for schools to apply to host, and announcing the host schools in August. Again, look for more information starting in February/March of 2023. 

4. Application for Hosting the 2026 ACMS Conference – As we look forward to the 2024 conference at Dordt, we are beginning the process of accepting applications for a 2026 host. Please complete this form if you are interested in hosting. In keeping with the geographic rotation of each conference (APU 2022 – west, Dordt 2024 – central), preference will be given to schools considered “east.”

5. Consider Donating to ACMS – please consider donating to ACMS. ACMS is now recognized as a 501(c)3 non-profit and can offer the tax benefit of donations. Visit us online and click the “Donate to ACMS” button on the right hand side bar.

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ACMS Preliminary Call for Papers

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Visit ACMSonline.org for details

Conference of the Association of Christians in the Mathematical Sciences

Indiana Wesleyan University, May 29-June 1, 2019

 The 22nd Biennial ACMS conference will be held at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana May 29-June 1, 2019. In the coming months, conference details will be posted at the acmsonline.org website.

Call for Papers: At this time we are accepting proposals for talks. Proposals must include the presenter’s name, presentation title, and an abstract of at most 250 words. Please provide your abstract in Word or TeX/LaTeX. Most presentation timeslots will be 15 minutes plus a 5 minute transition time between speakers. Some timeslots of 25 minutes with a 5 minute transition will be available; please indicate if you would like to be considered for one of these longer presentations. Applications will be processed on a rolling basis in order to help those applying for funding at their institution; we will attempt to notify you within 2 weeks of submission whether your proposal has been selected for the conference (except for a longer pause during July 2018).

We are looking for presentations in the following general categories. Research talks should be targeted to an audience primarily of non-specialists.

  • Computer Science / Computer Science Education
  • Mathematics / Mathematics Education
  • Statistics / Statistics Education
  • Interaction of Faith and Discipline

There will be dedicated tracks in Computer Science as well as in Statistics/Data Science.

Proposals should be sent to melvin.royer(at)indwes.edu by February 15, 2019 with “ACMS proposal” in the subject line. Proposals received after February 15 will be considered if space remains.

Refereed Proceedings: Please note that the 2019 ACMS Proceedings will be refereed. To allow authors time to incorporate audience feedback into their paper, all submissions to the Proceedings will be due September 15, 2019. Submissions for the Proceedings should be in TeX or LaTeX; more details will be provided at a later date.

Topic Discussions: We are also accepting topics suggestions and volunteer leaders for several group discussions on subjects of common interest. These can also be sent to melvin.royer(at)indwes.edu.

Costs: We are in the process of finalizing the cost of the conference but we estimate the costs to be approximately $140 for faculty and $50 for students for those registering before February 28, 2019. Room and Board (Wednesday dinner – Saturday breakfast) estimates are:

  • Meals, single or shared room with linens and pillow
    • Faculty: $175 per person
    • Students: $90 per person
  • Tuesday night room: $25 per person

Preconference Workshop: There will be two preconference workshops during the day of Wednesday, May 29. The estimated cost is $40 for faculty and $20 for students which includes Wednesday breakfast and lunch. The two workshops are

  • Professional development for graduates students and early career faculty
  • Programming and using R

We hope to start taking online conference registrations in August 2018. If you need to register before that time for funding purposes, please contact Jeremy Case jrcase(at)taylor.edu.

John Roe (1959-2018)

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At the end of March I was saddened to learn of the passing of John Roe, a professor of mathematics at Penn State University whom I had gotten to know through the Association of Christians in the Mathematical Sciences. John moved from England to the United States in 1998 to join the math faculty at Penn State University.  Even while he was still in England, John was a ACMS member, but after his move to the US, he became increasingly active, attending the summer conferences, serving as a Board member, and speaking at one of the joint meetings receptions.
From the opening lines of his obituary:
John Roe — mathematician, teacher, rock climber, theologian, activist, and follower of Jesus — has departed from family and friends as well as the pain of cancer and has begun “a more focused time of peace and joy” with his Lord.
I felt blessed every time I interacted with John. Below is an excerpt from a post on the 20th ACMS Conference:
20th ACMS Conference Day 2

The day began with another excellent devotional from John Roe (who has graciously contributed his thoughts on GodandMath.com in the past). Personally, I feel blessed after every time I hear John Roe speak – he just has a way about him that seems infused with grace and deep spiritual understanding. John led us through Ephesians 3:14-19 with particular focus on the four dimensional analogy used by Paul:

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Some of John’s points:

  • When thinking of the love of God, don’t think in abstractions. Think of the concrete. Think of the cross.
  • Wideness – if you fold your arms across your chest this is the typical position of religion; inclusive and safe. If you stretch your arms wide open this is the position of Christ on the cross.
  • Longness – (a dimension of time perhaps) God’s patience and love are endless. God’s love wins because it endures more than we do.
  • Highness – The son of Man was lifted up. Christ does not shrink from being on display in that shameful place; He doesn’t hide.
  • Deepness – How deep Christ went – down to earth, down to the grave. How deep in our own hearts are the places that He can reach. He went there and He proclaimed freedom there.

To me, John Roe was a concrete example of the love of Christ. He will be missed here on earth but we rejoice in knowing that he is in the presence of his savior.

All to the glory of God
Succeed at home first
Communicate every day
Seek the heart of worship
Move out of the comfort zone
Teach from the heart
Prepare the ground for insight
Start with what matters most
Love alone endures

 

You can read John’s post as a guest contributor to GodandMath regarding his interest in the mathematics of sustainability: “Creation Care as a Focus for a General Mathematics Course.”

Here he is live and in person in a TEDx talk.

Mathematics for Sustainability will be published by Springer in May 2018.