USD Magazine, Summer 1997

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CENTRAL VV ith parking at a premium at USD, faculty, students and campus visitors no doubt were pleased to see construction workers tending to two new projects, a 376-space parking lot and a 1, 100-space parking structure. A line of dump trucks wail lo be loaded with dirt that will be hauled off campus. The lot near the valley's student housing and across the street from Torero Stadium is being cleared for con– struction of a five-story, 1,100-space parking stnu:lure. The structure is scheduled lo open in January 1998. l

of society was aptly demonstrated in the first seminar, held March 11, by Derry Connolly, a researcher with Eastman Kodak Company. Although Connolly got a laugh when he held up a role of toilet paper, he quickly proved that winding any type of product is serious business. The formulas involved in putting film, videotape, paper and plastic products onto rolls are critical in preventing defects. New mathematical models are always needed to keep the industries that wrap products running smoothly, Connolly added, noting that production of an important new tape product for IBM was recently stalled because of a winding problem. A second guest, free-lance textbook editor Susan Gerstein, visited USD on April 15 and offered tips for breaking into the field of publishing and tricks of the editing trade. As professors and students voiced a litany of complaints about the quality of many math texts, Gerstein showed the math

gathering of students and professors how math majors make important contributions to solving medical problems such as cancer and arthritis. Bloom, who constructs com– puter models of cell interactions with drugs for Agouron Pharmaceuticals, discussed how to break into the biotechnology field and demonstrated the complex equations involved in her computer modeling system. Friedman says that math majors also have landed work in telecommunications, engineering, actuarial work and yield man– agement, a new specialty through which airlines and rental car companies analyze their price structures. At a time when pro– fessional organizations are just beginning to study these opportunities, she hopes to keep USD's math majors ahead of the curve. "The world needs math majors," Friedman says. "It's up to professors to show students the way into fields where they can use mathematics in a valuable way."

new miracle drug, you should thank a math major, because these benefits are possible only through practical application of math– ematics. "Math majors solve crucial problems in today's world," says USD math professor Jane Friedman. "Many students wonder if they can do anything with a math degree other than teach. The truth is, mathematics has a wide variety of applications." To demonstrate those opportunities, Friedman, with funding from the Committee on Academic Initiatives, held on-campus seminars this semester with three prominent mathematicians. The trio of professionals gave firsthand reports on the need for math majors outside the academic arena. The information in these "Careers in Math– ematics" workshops was geared not just to students, but to their professors. "Even people with doctorates have trouble getting jobs in academia," Friedman notes. "Faculty must be aware of other

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