{"612799":{"#nid":"612799","#data":{"type":"news","title":"The Mathematics of ... Donuts? ScienceMatters Episode 9, Starring Dan Margalit ","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EEpisode 9\u0026nbsp;of ScienceMatters\u0026#39; Season 1 stars \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/people.math.gatech.edu\/~dmargalit7\/index.shtml\u0022\u003EDan Margalit\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp; Listen to the podcast or read the transcript\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cos.gatech.edu\/science-matters\/season-1-episode-9-mathematics-donuts\u0022\u003E\u0026nbsp;here\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EDan Margalit is a\u0026nbsp;professor in the School of Mathematics.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EMargalit\u0026#39;s\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.math.gatech.edu\/users\/dmargalit7\u0022\u003Eresearch\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;area is topology. He studies the\u0026nbsp;properties of shapes that persist even when the shapes are stretched or bent.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EFor example, two metal rings that are linked\u0026nbsp;stay linked even if you bend or stretch the metal. A typical question in topology is the following: Someone hands you two rings made of metal; if you are allowed to bend and stretch the metal, can you pull the rings apart or not?\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EMost of Margalit\u0026#39;s research in topology is about surfaces. The surface could be that of a ball or a donut. Surfaces are central in mathematics. They can describe the possible motions of a robot arm or all the possible solutions of a polynomial.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EMargalit\u0026#39;s particular research is on the symmetries of surfaces. Some symmetries of surfaces are easy to understand. But when bending and stretching are allowed, the symmetries are\u0026nbsp;more challenging.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EFor Margalit, \u0026quot;mathematics is important because it describes the world in a beautiful and coherent way.\u0026nbsp;Even the most far-fetched and abstract mathematical ideas can make their way into everyday life.\u0026quot;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EIn Episode 9, Margalit talks about the beauty of mathematics and offers advice to overcome \u0026quot;math phobia.\u0026quot;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ETake a listen at \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cos.gatech.edu\/science-matters\/season-1-episode-6-theres-moth-my-video-game\u0022\u003Esciencematters.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EEnter to win a prize by answering the question for Episode 9:\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAccording to Episode 9, what group of people can\u0026rsquo;t tell the difference between a coffee cup and a donut?\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ESubmit your entry by 11 AM\u0026nbsp;on Monday, Oct. 22, at\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cos.gatech.edu\/science-matters\u0022\u003Esciencematters.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Beauty and creativity in mathematics"}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EDan Margalit describes the beauty and creativity in his research area, topology, while we reveal its connection to the oldest of math jokes. Margalit also offers ways to help students overcome fear of mathematics.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Dan Margalit describes the beauty and creativity in his research area, topology."}],"uid":"30678","created_gmt":"2018-10-15 23:32:34","changed_gmt":"2018-10-24 16:37:23","author":"A. Maureen Rouhi","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2018-10-16T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2018-10-16T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"610790":{"id":"610790","type":"image","title":"Dan Margalit gives a tutorial on the Seven Bridges of K\u00f6nigsberg problem","body":null,"created":"1536002219","gmt_created":"2018-09-03 19:16:59","changed":"1536002219","gmt_changed":"2018-09-03 19:16:59","alt":"","file":{"fid":"232555","name":"2018 Dan Margalit 7BK.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/2018%20Dan%20Margalit%207BK.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/2018%20Dan%20Margalit%207BK.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":433971,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/2018%20Dan%20Margalit%207BK.jpg?itok=uNwOk2Ui"}}},"media_ids":["610790"],"related_links":[{"url":"https:\/\/cos.gatech.edu\/article\/sciencematters-podcast-arrives","title":"ScienceMatters, the Podcast, Arrives"}],"groups":[{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"1279","name":"School of Mathematics"}],"categories":[{"id":"42911","name":"Education"}],"keywords":[{"id":"177832","name":"ScienceMatters"},{"id":"4896","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"170196","name":"Dan Margalit"},{"id":"173647","name":"_for_math_site_"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EA. Maureen Rouhi, Ph.D.\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nDirector of Communications\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nCollege of Sciences\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["maureen.rouhi@cos.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}