A new experiment in a new era.

A great strength of the Mathematics and Statistics department here at Williams is the removal of classical boundaries. The two towers of research and teaching are not separated into distinct domains but integrated in one structure. Our conversations in the hallways, during our lunch hour, or over coffee range from discussing current research trends, to visual artworks in mathematics, to topics for undergraduate research, to constructing the ideal math curriculum, to the art of consulting for businesses, to the appropriate use of technology.

This blog, published by our faculty, is foremost here as a record for us in the department. In some sense, it is a collection of journal entries keeping track of our thoughts and ideas. For communicating ideas in the mathematics and statistics communities, the common media have been conference talks and journal articles. Neither of these options provides the freedom given by a blog. Moreover, a blog builds in an elegant response system, a sort of letters to the editor column with every article.

Our vision is to add a new entry every few weeks.  These postings will include informal musings, research ideas, and expository notes such as our first posting by Professor Frank Morgan on the Black-Scholes equation.  We hope the words we write are a benefit not just to us, but to the mathematics and statistics community as a whole.  You are invited to join us.