Professor of Mathematics Christine von Renesse, Ph.D., and junior Julianna Campbell recently published an article in the Journal of Mathematics and the Arts titled “Learning to love math through the exploration of maypole patterns.”
The journal is published by Taylor & Francis Online, a division of Informa UK Limited, where professors and scholars publish their research online from a variety of academic disciplines such as mathematics, literature, bioscience, technology, humanities, law, and urban studies.
“It was really fun and exciting for both of us when we found a new conjecture and could prove it,” said Dr. von Renesse. “Our research built on the work we had started in the Math Explorations course, which had led to a maypole exhibit in the STEAM art show [at the University]. I find it incredibly rewarding to help non-math majors see what mathematics really is about and that it can be creative and exciting.”
The professor and student met in a Mathematical Explorations course, discovered the phenomena, and planned an independent study to pursue their research. Dr. Von Renesse and Campbell’s article explores how seeing maypole dancing from a mathematical perspective in the classroom assists liberal arts students with the excitement to study mathematics further. Additionally, they explore the general class structure and pedagogy, as Campbell shares personal experiences from her independent study and Fall 2016 course.
“It was an interdisciplinary approach to learning and it changed my life,” said Campbell. “My independent study with Professor von Renesse allowed me to study math in an inquiry-based way, using my writing skills and trusting my natural inclinations toward curiosity.”
The article appeared in Volume 13, 2019, Issue 1 and 2: Mathematics and the Arts in Education of the online journal. This summer, Dr. von Renesse and Campbell will present further research at the Bridges Linz Conference in Linz, Austria July 16–20. The theme of the conference is “Mathematics, Art, Music, Architecture, Education, and Culture.”