Nagle Lecture Series
Nagle Lecture Series Inaugural Statement
The following was the announcement of the creation of the Nagle Lecture Series in 1996.
Mathematics is more than 4000 years old, and yet it has more open problems today than in all of its pre-20th century history. These are problems that, on one hand, are important to the interests of society and, on the other, require fundamental advances in thinking. They are also problems which can be of general interest to the educated public.
For each of the next three years, we will draw attention to the social and cultural significance of modern mathematics through a series of high-profile, general-interest lectures by world-famous mathematicians. These lectures will be broadly publicized and available for (and appropriate for) television broadcast. We expect this series to: (1) increase student interest in and enrollment in mathematics here at USF; (2) enhance regional appreciation of USF's offerings in science and math; and (3) generate opportunities for our students and faculty to interact with regional industry.
This program builds on a similar, unnamed, program of distinguished speakers, organized in 1994-95 by Professor Richard Stark, which included Dr. Ron Graham (of AT&T's Bell Labs), Professor Fan Chung (Princeton), and the late Professor Paul Erdös (Hungarian Academy of Sciences). It is to be called the Nagle Memorial Lecture Series, in honor of Professor R. Kent Nagle (of our department). Kent was a professor of mathematics at USF who could effectively communicate at all levels, imparting his love for the subject and its beauty with the same ease to undergraduates, graduates, pre-college students, public school teachers, and his colleagues here at USF.
In this spirit, the series is designed to attract the interest of the academic and non-academic communities. Via lectures presented by world-renowned mathematicians and mathematics educators, the university and community college population, along with public school students and teachers, will be enlightened about the latest developments in mathematics education and research. These lectures will be presented on Thursday evenings so as to be convenient for the Hillsborough community as well as visitors from neighboring counties. It is expected that attendance at each year's sequence of five or six lectures will also provide certification points for teacher licensing. The lectures will also be taped for television broadcast.
The series will not only bring greater visibility to our college and department, it will provide an important vehicle for communicating and discussing current issues in mathematical education and research, as well as the value of mathematics to a technological society. In short, it will provide a link between the public and the university which will benefit both.
Soon after the first announcement of speakers was made.
R. Kent Nagle Memorial Lecture Series
The Nagle Memorial Lecture Series was established in honor of the late R. Kent Nagle, a mathematician deeply interested not only in mathematics in itself, but also in mathematics education and the impact of mathematics on society. In this spirit, the NMLS has invited world renowned scholars to speak on such matters in lectures designed for the general public.
Logistics
Time: Thursday evening 7:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Place: The University Lecture Hall, at USF Tampa
Contact: Ed Saff; phone (813) 974-3795; fax (813) 974-2700
Speakers & Dates
Harold Stevenson
September 19, 1996
Asia's Young Achievers in Mathematics
Peter Borwein
October 17, 1996
Mathematics in the Presence of Computers:
The Rapidly Changing Face of Pure Mathematics
George Andrews
November 14, 1996
Ramanujan, Sums, and the Lost Notebook
Robert Devaney
TBA
Persi Diaconis
March 20, 1996
Mathematics and Magic Tricks
John Conway
TBA