Niagara University Student Presents at Math Conference

Senior math major Duncan Miller presented his work, "Seeing the World Through the Lens of Mathematics," at the Mathematical Association of America Seaway Section Meeting, which was held at the Rochester Institute of Technology on Oct. 5, 2024.

Miller discussed moduli spaces of graphs in the context of recent breakthrough work of Karen Vogtmann and Michael Borinsky, highlighting the basic geometric and topological properties of these structures, which serve as a crucial framework in analyzing the behavior of complex systems and their underlying metrics.

"Mathematics to me is analyzing what God was doing when making our universe," Miller said. "Speaking at Seaway allows me to connect with more people who feel similarly."

In addition to Miller, NU math education major Alex Pikel and math faculty members Dr. Marlo Brown and Dr. Joel Louwsma attended the conference. The trip was supported by NU's Academic Innovation Fund.

"This conference is an excellent opportunity for students to present work off campus," said Dr. Louwsma. "I'm very glad Duncan took advantage of this, and I was impressed by his presentation. Attending this conference is also a great opportunity to make connections with students and faculty from other institutions in the area, which can help students as they consider future career or educational opportunities. It also gives a sense of the breadth of mathematics beyond the topics covered in standard undergraduate courses."

The Seaway Section of the Mathematical Association of America covers Upstate New York, most of the province of Ontario, and the province of Quebec. Every semester, it holds a conference at an institution in the region. This semester's conference program consisted of four plenary lectures, shorter presentations in parallel sessions, a discussion about the role of AI in mathematics, and a game night.