National Museum of Mathematics
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| Location | 11 East 26th Street, New York City, New York, United States |
|---|---|
| Director | Glen Whitney |
| Website | http://www.momath.org/ MoMath |
The Museum of Mathematics, nicknamed MoMath,[1] is a museum dedicated to mathematics that is scheduled to open on December 15, 2012 in the Madison Square North Historic District, in New York City. When open, the museum will be the only museum dedicated to mathematics in North America, and will feature thirty to forty interactive exhibits.[2] The mission of the museum is to "enhance public understanding and perception of mathematics."[3]
History
In 2006 the Goudreau Museum, at the time the only museum dedicated to mathematics in the United States, closed its doors.[4] In response to the closing a group of interested parties met to explore the opening of a new museum. This group, led by the museum's current executive director Glen Whitney, decided to open their museum in New York City. The group raised over 22 million dollars in under four years.[5] With this funding a 19,000 sq ft space was leased at 11 East 26th Street. Despite some opposition to the architectural plans within the local community,[6] permission for construction was granted by the Landmarks Preservation Commission and New York's Department of Buildings. The Museum of Mathematics is scheduled to open on December 15, 2012.
Current Projects
Math Midway is a traveling exhibition of math-based interactive displays. The exhibits include a square wheeled tricycle that travels smoothly over a curved path, the ring of fire, which uses lasers to intersect three dimensional objects with a two-dimensional plane to uncover interesting shapes, and an organ function grinder which allows users to create their own functions and see the results.[7] The Math Midway has been displayed three times at the World Science Festival in New York City. It hosted more than 25,000 visitors at its stop in Dallas, Texas. The Math Midway will continue to travel and make stops at museums of science and industry across the continent.
Math Midway 2 Go (MM2GO) is a spinoff of Math Midway. MM2GO includes six of the most popular Math Midway Exhibits. MM2GO began traveling to schools, community centers, and libraries in the autumn of 2012.[8]
Math Encounters is a monthly speakers series presented by the Museum of Math and the Simons Foundation.[9] The lectures take place at Baruch College in Manhattan on the first Wednesday of each month. Every month a different mathematician is invited to deliver a lecture. Lecturers have included Google’s Director of Research Peter Norvig, journalist Paul Hoffman, and computer scientist Craig Kaplan. Examples of topics are “The Geometry of Origami”, “The Patterns of Juggling”, and “Mathematical Morsels from The Simpsons and Futurama.”[10] The lectures are meant to be accessible to middle school students while being interesting to adults. The first lecture occurred on March 3, 2011. Nineteen lectures had been delivered as of October 3, 2012.[11]
References
- ^ Ralph Gardner Jr. (2011-03-09), Making Math Fun (Seriously), Wall Street Journal
- ^ Colvin, Jill (2009-04-11). "new-math-museum-hopes-make-numbers-fun-for-kids". www.dnainfo.com. New York.
- ^ About us, www.momath.org
- ^ www.mathmuseum.org
- ^ Chang, Kenneth (2011-06-27). "One Math Museum, Many Variables". New York Times. New York.
- ^ Johnson, Mary (2012-01-26). "Landmarks Commission Gives Thumbs Up to MoMath Facade Plans". www.dnainfo.com. New York.
- ^ Andrea Christie Elkin (February 2012), Math Carnival Time, www.nctm.org
- ^ Math Midway 2 Go, mathmidway.org
- ^ Math Encounters: Craig Kaplan on Math and Art, mrhonner.com
- ^ Eberhart, Jennifer (2012-03-20). "Museum of Mathematics prepares for future home". Examiner. New York.
- ^ Math Encounters, momath.org
External links