Two area graduates receive scholarships from the Grand Rapids Community Foundation
Sept. 22, 2016; WKTV
Two area graduates — one from Wyoming and one for Kentwood — were listed as among the 2016 scholarship recipients from the Grand Rapids Community Foundation.
2015 Lee High School graduate Monica Rivera received the Achille & Irene Despres, William & Andrea Scholarship which she will use toward her associate of science degree. She is a sophomore at Grand Rapids Community College.
GRCC has received our PACE (Personal Assessment of the College Environment) survey results. We are now offering “Putting Input Into Action” sessions for employees to learn more about the results and to talk about what improvement looks like. We hope to see you at one of our sessions where you can take advantage of the opportunity to engage in the discussions around improvement.
The Visual Arts Department needs volunteers to help greet our guests for ArtPrize and direct them to the GRCC Collins Art Gallery on the 4th floor of the Main Building. We need volunteers from Sept 23 – October 9 on Fridays 12-8, Saturdays 12-8, and Sundays 12-6.
Please contact Katie Budden at kbudden@grcc.edu for sign-up information.
The Grand Rapids Community College Mathematics Department is pleased to announce that it will host its first Mathematics Seminar of 2016-2017 on Tuesday, September 27, 3:00-4:00 PM in 102 Cook. Our speaker, GRCC mathematics instructor Meghan VanderMale, will discuss the mathematics that underlies a variety of magic tricks. The title and abstract of her talk are below.
A significant background in mathematics is not necessary to appreciate this talk, so, as always, everyone is welcome to attend. Join us to enjoy the mathematics of magic and the magic of mathematics!
Pop and cookies will be served at 2:45 PM.
Magical Mathematics
In 1959, when he was 14 years old, Perci Diaconis dropped out of high school to travel with a legendary magician, a slight-of-hand expert. Where did this bold move lead him? It brought him to the world of mathematics, which he found was the key to being able to improve and create his own magic tricks. Now Diaconis is a Mathematics and Statistics professor at Stanford University and has teamed up with Ron Graham, former trampolinist and juggler turned mathematician, to write about the mathematical ideas behind magic tricks. We will be looking at a few of the tricks that they discuss in their book Magical Mathematics: The Mathematical Ideas That Animate Great Magic Tricks. In this talk we will learn about gray code, linear-shift registers, de Bruijn sequences and graphs, and other mathematical ideas behind magic tricks such as Coluria and the Royal Hummer. Not only will you learn some interesting math, you’ll also learn the secrets of some quite elegant card tricks! Most of the talk is accessible to anyone, but those interested in computer science and/or advanced algebra will find a few gems in these tricks.
The daily employee newsletter of Grand Rapids Community College 