Charlotte Mathematics Club
Newsletter, Winter 1997-98

College of Charleston Math & Science Weekend:

Note: The CMC policy with respect to all competitions is...

If your school is attending, you must participate with your school.

Each year, for the past 7 years or so, CMC has taken a group of students to Charleston to participate in the College of Charleston Math and Science Weekend. This year, the "C of C" weekend is February 20--21. We drive to Charleston on Friday afternoon to arrive in time to check into our accommodations (the Hampton Inn Riverview in Charleston) and make our way over to the Friday evening computer programming contest. The math and science competition begins at 9 am Saturday with the "Level" tests (there are three levels for students from Algebra through Pre-Calculus and beyond) and continues into mid-afternoon with various team and individual events. Lunch at the college cafeteria is included in the registration. The contest concludes with an awards ceremony at about three o'clock. Following the close of the contest, our group usually explores the Market area of Charleston, and then we go to a good local restaurant for dinner. The evening activity has traditionally been bowling at a local bowling alley. Sunday morning we get up and eat breakfast and then leave for home.

The rooms at the Hampton Inn all have a king-sized bed and a sleep-sofa. We are planning to have three students in each room. Also, the hotel has a complimentary breakfast buffet.

The club provides transportation (by van and/or cars) for members who decide to participate, and pre-pays the registration fees for the contest. Each member who attends the C of C is responsible for paying for his or her own food and incidental expenses, as well as for lodging and a contribution towards gas and other costs that are paid by the club. The expenses for the student are $45 for two nights lodging, $10 for the gas/other costs contribution, the cost of meals (about $15-25), and $5-10 for bowling and/or snacks.

Signing up: Space is limited and you must pre-register by January 26. Pre-registering means

• Declaring your intent to Stephen Davis, Harold Reiter, or Susan Schaeffer, and
• Paying a $20 deposit. (The remaining $35 is due on departure.)

When we know who is coming we will follow up with details on transportation and the necessary release and personal information forms.

Service Opportunity:

The annual MathCounts Chapter Competition at UNCC will be held on February 7, 1998. The contest is sponsored by the professional Engineers of NC, but they are always delighted to have student volunteers to help them out on contest day from about 8 or 9 am until early afternoon. If you are in at least the 9th grade and are interested in helping out with the upcoming contest, please let Mrs. Schaeffer know as soon as possible.

The Mecklenburg Math Club can always use student helpers. Check out the MMC info below for meeting dates and times. For more information call Sheila Hinson at the UNCC Mathematics & Science Education Center, 704-547-4857.

Spring 1998 CMC Schedule:

Meeting dates for Spring 1998 are:

January 17	March 21 (T of T)
February 20-21 (Charleston)	April 18
May 2 (1--6 pm: picnic at Marion Diehl Park)

Time & Place:

Meetings start at 9:30 and end promptly at 12 noon. Parents, please arrange to pick up your student no later than 12:10. Unless otherwise noted, our meetings are at Providence Day School (PDS), located at the corner of Rama Rd. and Sardis Rd.

Calendar of Related Events:

    Jan 17    CMC meeting
    Feb  7    MathCounts South Piedmont Chapter Competition at UNCC
    Feb 10    AHSME
    Feb 20-22 College of Charleston Math & Science Weekend
    Mar  7    Wylie Mathematics Tournament at Furman
    Mar  9    UNCC Math Contest (State Regional: Comprehensive)
    Mar 21    CMC meeting
    Mar 28    CCDS Math Contest (State Regional: Alg. 1, Geom., Alg. 2)
    Apr 19    CMC meeting

The Mecklenburg Math Club (MMC) is a group for students of grades 4 through 6. Meeting dates for the MMC during Spring 1998 are: Jan. 24, Feb. 21, Mar. 21, and Apr. 25. Meeting time is 9:30-noon on these dates. The club meets at Northridge Middle School, 7601 The Plaza, Charlotte, NC. The school is located near the intersection between Harris Blvd. and The Plaza. The school's telephone number is 343-5015. The club is sponsored by UNCC Math-Science Center. This year, the MMC is again participating in the Math Olympiad for Elementary Schools. If you have younger siblings, tell them about the MMC. The MMC now has a web site: http://www.math.uncc.edu/~hbreiter/clubs/mmc.htm.

Ponder this...

Here's a problem from the Fall 1997 Tournament of Towns (Junior A-Level):

The sequence {x_n} is defined by these conditions:

x1 = 19;   x2 = 97;   x(n+2) = xn - 1/x(n+1)

Prove that some term of this sequence is equal to 0. Find the index of this term.

Contacts:

The CMC Coordinating Committee (CMC³?)...

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/academic/math/cmc.html

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