Charlotte Mathematics Club
Newsletter, Fall 2000

Fall is almost here--we just about survived the uncommonly hot, sticky summer.... It's time, once again, to rustle up some mental muscle, sharpen our pencils and our wits, and pound some math problems into submission with the help of old and new Math Club friends.

Read on to find out how to join in on the fun....

Outline:
  • Background
  • Who
  • When
  • Time & Place
  • Who's in charge?
  • Acknowledgements
  • Where are they now?
  • Related Groups & Events
  • Ponder these
  • Contacts

    • Background:
    The Charlotte Mathematics Club was begun in 1987 by Dr. Harold Reiter for the purpose of providing enrichment and challenges for students who have a strong interest and ability in mathematics. The club meets approximately once a month from September to May. At club meetings, students work individually and in small groups to solve problems from various areas of mathematics. Occasionally there is a presentation of a special topic, as well.

    In February the club attends the College of Charleston Math-Science Weekend and participates in the Tournament of Towns ("T of T"), a Russian competition, in November and March. Depending on interest, other possible competitions for this year include the ARML Power Question and the Mandelbrot Competition. The December meeting is a pizza & welcome-back-alumni event, and we gather in May for an end-of-year picnic; location for the picnic is TBA.

    For more information about the CMC, see our Beginner's Guide to the Charlotte Math Club.

    Who:
    We invite young people who are interested in joining together with other highly motivated students from Charlotte-Mecklenburg and surrounding areas. Our club members are typically in eighth grade or higher and are taking Algebra, Geometry, or higher level mathematics courses. Student backgrounds include public, private, parochial and home-school environments.

    When:
    Meeting dates for 2000-2001 are:

    September 30 February 17 (tentative)
    October 28 February 23-25 (C of C trip; tentative)
    November 18 March 17
    December 16 (10 am - 1 pm)April 28
    January 20 May 26 picnic (place TBA)

    Time & Place:
    Meetings start at 9:30 and end promptly at 12:30 pm. Parents, please arrange to pick up your student no later than 12:40. Unless otherwise noted, our meetings are at Providence Day School (PDS), located at the corner of Rama Rd. and Sardis Rd.

    Who's in charge:
    The club is administered by the CMC Coordinating Committee (see "Contacts" below). Stephen Davis and Harold Reiter lead activities at our meetings, with able assistance from Susan Schaeffer and Anne Tally.

    Acknowledgements:
    There are no dues, although each student is asked to bring $1 to the December meeting to be used for a thank you gift for PDS. The CMC is indebted to those that have donated time, space and funds. PDS has been a gracious host for many years, and we have benefited in the past from the generous contributions of Pepsi Cola (the Halton Foundation), Okuma Machinery, Clariant Corporation and other, anonymous, benefactors. Thanks also to supportive parents and other friends of the club.

    Where are they now?
    Congratulations to club members who have recently matriculated on... Masha Bessonov, James Mao, Tim Mao, and Jamie Shin will be attending NCSSM this fall. Brendan Janssen is at CPCC; Will Lloyd is at Wake Forest University; Behrooz Mostafavi is at UNC-Chapel Hill; Shaun Pack, Anand Patel, and Lori Peacock are at Duke University; Frances Schaeffer is at Agnes Scott College; Lauren Schoenheit is at the College of Charleston. Please share news of other club alumni! See the CMC web site for updates and more alumni news.

    Related Groups & Events:
    Since 1990, the Mecklenburg Math Club (MMC) has provided a mathematical enrichment for students in grades 4 through 6. In recent years the MMC had funding and facility support from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School System, but this support was not renewed this year. (UPDATE: The MMC has been revived! Meeting dates are November 4, December 2, January 6, February 3, March 3 and April 7, at the Regional Scholars Academy, 9100 Olmstead Drive (UNCC area). Contact Michelle Burgess at (704) 687-3507, 9am-5pm weekdays or by e-mail at mlburgess @email.uncc.edu.)

    The American Mathematics Contest->8 (formerly AJHSME) (AMC->8) will be administered in schools on Tuesday, November 14. Remind your math teacher about the AMC->8; the deadline for registration is mid-October. Tuesday, February 13, 2001, is AMC->10 and AMC->12 day!

    MATHCOUNTS Piedmont Chapter competition at UNCC will be in February, 2001.

    Some of our members also compete in the USA Computing Olympiad (USACO; http://usaco.uwp.edu); contact them for further information.

    Ponder these...
    1. An alley is flanked by the vertical walls of two tall buildings. A ladder, y feet in length, is placed with its feet against the base of one building and leans against the building on the other side of the alley. Another ladder, z feet in length, is placed similarly, but it crosses the alley in the opposite direction, and the two ladders touch, side-by-side, above the alley. If the alley is a feet wide (a < min {y, z}), how high above the alley is the point where the two ladders touch?

    2. The bases of a trapezoid have integer lengths. Prove that one can cut the trapezoid into triangles of equal areas.
      (Source: Spring 2000 Junior A-level Tournament of Towns Competition)

    Contacts:
    The CMC Coordinating Committee (CMC^3?)...
    Stephen Davis: 704-894-2343 (w); 704-894-2005 (fax);
    704-892-1394 (h); stdavis@davidson.edu
    Harold Reiter: 704-547-4561 (w); 704-510-6415 (fax);
    704-364-5699 (h); hbreiter@email.uncc.edu
    Susan Schaeffer: 704-552-2869 (h); susans@conninc.com
    CMC homepage: http://www.davidson.edu/math/cmc.html
  • Background
  • Who
  • When
  • Time & Place
  • Who's in charge?
  • Acknowledgements
  • Where are they now?
  • Related Groups & Events
  • Ponder these
  • Contacts