Being a weblog devoted to a variety of topics. Including Mathematics. And Mathematical Finance. Sometimes with homework.

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Settlers of Catan

The CMU Gaming Club is hosting a Settlers of Catan tournament. It will take place Friday, February 15, from 9pm-1am.

If you've never played Settlers of Catan, it's a pretty fun game. It's quick to learn, involves a little bit of skill and a little bit of luck. And it's different every time you play, which is kind of neat. It's one of my more favorite games. If I had my 'druthers, though, I'd play Advanced Civilization.

A Couple Things

First, the solutions to HW#2 are now available from the Course Documents section of the Blackboard site.

Second, Victoria Noquez has moved her office hours half an hour earlier. They are now Monday and Wednesday, from 4:30-5:30pm.

Friday, January 25, 2008

Assignment for Week #3

I've posted the assignment for Week #3. You can follow the link from the Schedule Page.

Incidentally, I have also posted the solutions to HW#1 on the Blackboard site. They are in the "Course Documents" section. I'll post the solutions for each assignment there, usually on the Tuesday following the due date.

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Update to HW#2

I've removed problem 1.4.44 from this week's assignment. It will show up on HW#3. There is one thing I didn't get to cover today that is necessary for that problem.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

You Can't Beet That

Does this count as a technological advance?

via Boing Boing

Monday, January 21, 2008

What a Waste

Sweet Juniper! has pictures of the Detroit Public Schools Book Depository.

What a waste.

Engines of our Ingenuity: Operateions Research

Engines of our Ingenuity is a short segment that airs on some NPR affiliates. I first discovered it while I was a graduate student in Houston. (It is produced by the University of Houston's College of Engineering.) I really got to enjoy it, and I missed it when I moved to Pittsburgh.

No to worry, though. Engines of Our Ingenuity is now available as a podcast. You can also subscribe via iTunes, if you care to do so.

Even if you don't, you may want to listen to episode 2316, which discusses Operations Research. It discusses what it is, the origin of the name "operations research" and why this field is important.

If you find that interesting, you can search the entire list of episodes (each tagged with keywords). There is bound to be something of interest to you.

Recitation Section C - Room Change

The room for the room for Recitation Section C has been changed from the cavernous BH 136A to the more comfortable Porter Hall 225B. This takes effect starting tomorrow, January 22.

Friday, January 18, 2008

Assignment for Week #2

I've posted the reading and homework assignment for Week #2. You can follow the link from the Schedule page.

I've also made some edits to the Schedule page. I've adjusted the topics to reflect the fact that we spent two days on Section 1.3. I've also changed the color of the sections we have not yet covered to grey. As we go through, I'll change each section to black as we cover it. Then you should know exactly where we are as we go through the semester.

Bad Mood

Well, I accidentally left my iPod home today. I had to listen to the radio, of all things. Can you imagine? "The Costas Minute" is about the lamest waste of radio spectrum I can imagine. Get this: The rivalry between Magic Johnson and Larry Bird was made more dynamic by the other players on their teams. He could have been talking about shoelaces; I would be no less interested. What wonders do you think the ride home has in store?

Okay, I just had to get that off my chest.