History of Mathematics: 2007 Student Paper Contest Winners

Aristotle once said, "If you would understand anything, observe its beginning and its development."  With that in mind, the History of Mathematics Special Interest Group of the MAA (HOM SIGMAA) has sponsored an annual student paper contest, calling for undergraduates to submit their best work on some aspect of the history of mathematics.

This year, Rory Plante of Roger Williams University and Douglas Smith of Miami University (Ohio) topped nearly 20 competitors to win the fourth annual contest.

Plante's paper, titled "The Libra Astronomica and its Mathematics," examines Carlos de Sigüenza y Góngora's 1690 work, Libra Astronómica, which contains the earliest known use of decimal notation and logarithms in print in the New World.

Smith's piece, titled "Lucas's Theorem: A Great Theorem," discusses French mathematician Édouard Lucas, the mathematical environment in which he worked, and his theorem's importance in combinatorics.

"We always have a very diverse group of papers, and they are all very good and fun to read, but the two winners really stood out this year," said Amy Shell-Gellasch, HOM SIGMAA Program Coordinator.

Both winners received a one-year MAA student membership and a $30 gift certificate to the MAA bookstore.

The purpose of the contest is to increase awareness of and interest in the history of mathematics among undergraduates. The contest is open to all undergraduate students, and papers are judged on their content, presentation, and grammar by a panel of specialists.

"I am a history of math person and I always liked the Association for Women in Mathematics and their biography contest, so that sparked the idea of our contest," Shell-Gellasch said.

The deadline for the fifth annual Student Paper Contest in the History of Mathematics will be late March 2008.—R. Miller