Once again, we bring you a summary (including spoiler alert) of the latest Demystifying the Expert event. To remind everybody, this program brings
together a guest speaker, who is an expert in their field of science, and
comedians from JMU’s very own New & Improv’d, who attempt to... “demystify
the expert.” Questions, games, trivia and improvised skits all contribute to
the fun as the audience learns about the expert’s work. This program is produced and hosted by our own Dr. Anca Constantin and Dr. Klebert Feitosa. Podcasts for this and previous Demystifying
the Expert events can be found here on SoundCloud!
On
November 16, 2017, the Demystifying the Expert event took place at Taylor Down Under, in Madison Union, on JMU campus. Dr. Anthony Tongen
from the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, and Associate Dean for the
College of Science and Math at JMU, was the guest expert for the night, a departure
from the usual line-up of experts in science fields. Here is a direct link to this show.
The members of JMU’s New and Imrpov’d who made us laugh out loud on this date were: Ethan Schulze, sophomore SMAD major, Shelby Imes, a senior journalism
and English major, and Drew Holt, a junior marketing major.
The
first game that the comedians played in order to determine what the expert
studied was "twenty questions." Each comedian took turns asking Dr. Tongen yes or
no type questions to help them deduce what area of mathematical research he
studies. After many a question, Dr.
Tongen finally revealed that his studies fall in the realm of what would be
called mathematical biology.
With some more
open-ended questions, we found out that Dr. Tongen's work with modelling and data
fitting with various populations like those of lemur populations in Madagascar
or guanaco populations in Chile. He uses
many equations and variables to model the population dynamics through many years,
with the help of computers and codes.
With the
second game, which was the fill-in-the-blank game, the comedians guess
words that complete titles of popular science articles that relate to Dr. Tongen’s research.
All
three articles were interesting, with
the most intriguing and seemingly random blank to the comedians being ‘Robin Hood.’ In the context of the title, ‘Robin Hood effects’ on motivation in math,’ Dr. Tongen explained how different groups of students reacted to programs implemented by schools to increase the study of mathematics. The name ‘Robin Hood,’ as he clarified, referred to how increased attitudes towards learning math resulting from the program were seen in schools where students’ parents did not view math as important as those who did. The term ‘Robin Hood’ here denoting the redistributive nature of more increases being seen by those who did not see math as important when compared to those who had already regarded math as important.
the most intriguing and seemingly random blank to the comedians being ‘Robin Hood.’ In the context of the title, ‘Robin Hood effects’ on motivation in math,’ Dr. Tongen explained how different groups of students reacted to programs implemented by schools to increase the study of mathematics. The name ‘Robin Hood,’ as he clarified, referred to how increased attitudes towards learning math resulting from the program were seen in schools where students’ parents did not view math as important as those who did. The term ‘Robin Hood’ here denoting the redistributive nature of more increases being seen by those who did not see math as important when compared to those who had already regarded math as important.
The jargon game that followed, during which the comedians guess what certain acronyms
mean, or discuss the meaning of terms that are used in daily life but have a different meaning in
the expert’s field. Here, the comedians did well in guessing the more technical
meanings of the Dr. Tongen’s jargon, such as "normal," "elementary," and "well-defined."
Finally,
the audience got to learn more about the Dr. Tongen outside of his life as a mathematician
with the Two Truths and a Lie game. During this game, the comedians and
audience found that, while Dr. Tongen might not have been kidnapped at one
point by the Mexican cartels, he did have to skirt around them during his time
there researching monarch butterflies.
In addition, they learned that he was and remains active in advocating
for minorities in mathematics, with some interesting research producing
interesting titles such as ‘Does gravity gossip weigh heavily on your local
area network?’
The
final (and most improv'd) event of the night was the skit in which the comedians played out an
imagined day in the life of the research lab of Dr. Tongen with some mandatory
quotes from movies relating to mathematics such as A Beautiful Mind, The Imitation Game, and Good Will Hunting. The skit involved a lot of references to trips
in Mexico, some emotional heartache in a struggle for Dr. Tongen’s affections,
and a heartwarming resolution for all parties.
It was a terrifically humorous final recap of all that the audience, and the comedians, had
learned in a whimsical, impromptu scene.
We look forward
to seeing you at the next, and final Demystifying the Expert event for the spring
semester at 7:00 PM on Thursday, March 29, 2018, in a brand-new location at Pale Fire Tap Room in Downtown
Harrisonburg!
