Earlier this semester the two-student team of Christopher Shartrand and Jeremy Topolski was among 5,636 teams worldwide to participate in the 2013 Mathematical Contest in Modeling (MCM), sponsored by the Consortium for Mathematics and Its Applications.
The department recently was informed that Chris and Jeremy's solution was judged "Meritorious," putting them in the top 16 percent of the participating teams. Dr. Lan Cheng, associate professor of applied mathematics, serves as faculty advisor for Fredonia's MCM teams.
The MCM challenges teams of students to clarify, analyze, and propose a solution to one of two open-ended problems. This year, the teams received the problems at 8:01 pm on Thursday, Jan. 31, and solutions had to be submitted by 8:00 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 4.
Mr. Shartrand is a junior, majoring in Applied Mathematics, with a concentration in Statistics and Operations Research. He hails from Ballston Lake, N.Y., is a member of the national honorary mathematics society Pi Mu Epsilon, and has been chosen by the mathematics faculty to receive a Frank Olson Scholarship for next year.
Mr. Topolski is a senior, majoring in Computer Science and Mathematics. He is also a member of Pi Mu Epsilon and a winner of the Arthur Danese Mathematics Award.
