It is just over a year since the pandemic forced the Colleges to switch to fully remote learning in the middle of the Spring 2020 semester. It has been a long and in many ways difficult year. A lot has happened, but no news about the 2020–21 academic year has made it onto this web site.

The Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, like the rest of the Colleges, has been offering a mix of in-person, remote, and hybrid courses this year. With no Winter Break or Spring Break, the semesters have seemed long, and many of us — students and faculty alike — are feeling at least a little burnt out. However, we are encouraged by the rollout of Covid vaccines, and we hope that things will be mostly back to normal next Fall.

The department was joined this year by a new Visiting Professor of Computer Science, Hanqing Hu. Professors Alden Gassert and William Simmons continued as visiting professors (Professor Simmons for the Fall semester only). Professors Gassert and Hu will return as visiting professors next year. The Math Intern for the year was Hadley DeBrine WS'20.

The REU that was canceled last summer will go forward this year. Unfortunately, both the Department's Fall picnic and its Spring dinner were canceled this year, but we look forward to resuming both events next year.

Update: Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the 2020 REU has been canceled. However, an REU is planned for summer 20201.

The Department will host a Natural Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) in Mathematics in Summer 2020. The National Science Foundation funds REUs at colleges and universities around the country. This will be the third year that the program has been offered at Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

Ten students will take part in the REU. Most of the students come from other colleges, but for each of the past two summers, one HWS student has participated: Nick Mckenny H'20 in Summer 2018 and Connor Parrow WS'21 in Summer 2019.

Topics this summer will include algebra with Professor Biermann, graph theory with Professor King, Neural Networks with Professor Hao, and mathematical virology with Professor Forde.

Applications are due by February 14. Visit http://math.hws.edu/REU/index.html for more information.

The Library has posted an on-line exhibit about the history or computers and computing at Hobart and William Smith Collges, Computers at HWS: A History. The history starts in 1966, when the Colleges' installed their first computer. And has sections on each of the following decades through 1994–2013, including the beginnings of the computer science major in 1984.

Mark Curiel (H '17), who was a mathematics and music double major, has just finished his Masters in mathematics at San Jose State University. He researched with Dr. Elizabeth Gross (an algebraic statistician), and wrote a thesis on chemical reaction network theory which involves edge colorings in a special hypergraph. In August he heads to the University of Hawaii to work on his PhD!

In 2018, Professor Rusinko, together with Professors Forde and King, won a grant to run a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) in mathematics at HWS. The REU runs for nine weeks each summer with ten students, at least eight of which are from other institutions across the country. In the summer of 2018, mathematics major Nick Mckenny ’20 participated in the REU and this summer mathematics major Connor Parrow ’21 is participating. The majority of the mathematics faculty in the department will be participating as research mentors at some point over the course of the grant. During the summer of 2018, Professor Rusinko lead research in mathematical phylogenetics, Professor Biermann lead research in algebraic combinatorics, Professor Gassert lead research in number theory, and Professor King lead research in graph theory. This summer, Professor Rusinko again is leading research in mathematical phylogenetics, Professor Bell is leading research in graph theory, and Professor Forde is leading research in mathematical virology. Students experience researching closely with a faculty member and a team of peers, practice and hone their mathematical writing and presenting skills, participate in a colloquium series of invited speakers, and travel to graduate schools to learn about specific programs and the graduate experience in mathematics. Below is a picture of the Summer 2018 group at the final dinner and poster session.