Noah Giansiracusa : Reflections on a mathematician's journey into the public eye.

Posted by Laura Schaposnik , part of the Departmental Colloquium.

At

Nov. 15, 2024, 3 p.m.

In

636 SEO

Abstract

During the pandemic I felt I needed a break from my usual research program so on a whim decided to try writing a book aimed at the general public, knowing nothing about how to do so. Unexpectedly, this launched a winding professional journey that over the past five years has included meetings with congressional staffers, guest appearances on CNN, a handful of newspaper op-eds, signing a literary agent, a friendship with a Nobel prize-winning economist, and plenty of Twitter feuds along the way. In this talk I'll share what I've learned from this adventure (including the missteps), distilling practical advice for those wishing to explore some of these professional avenues or others like them. I'll emphasize what role a mathematical background has played in a range of activities (like writing and networking) that don't outwardly appear to involve any mathematics.

Please let Laura Schaposnik at schapos@uic.edu know if you'd like to join Noah for dinner, or if you'd like to meet him during the day. He's doing a lot of interesting interdisciplinary maths: https://www.noahgian.com/