Two NCC students study math in Hawaii
When it comes time to swap "what I did this summer" stories, two North Central College students will be telling tales of studying math in paradise.
Senior Dana Lacey and junior Taylor Spino participated in a Research Experience for Undergraduates program at the University of Hawaii at Hilo. The Pacific Undergraduate Research Experience in Mathematics program, known as PURE Math, presented the opportunity to learn, research and be mentored with students from many different universities.
"Math REU's are very competitive, but students from North Central have an edge. After all, out of the 24 total students in this program from all over the United States and Guam, two were from North Central," said Lacey, who lives in Yorkville.
PURE Math was her second REU opportunity.
Lacey participated in the eight-week resident research program, and Spino participated in the five-week intern pre-research program. Both groups focused on an area of advanced algebra.
As a resident, Lacey was paired with two other seniors, who spent seven weeks researching a question of their choosing. Class time incorporated faculty lectures on math conferences, graduate school, the Graduate Record Exam and other summer math programs. Each week included invited guest speakers.
"The speakers would present a topic in mathematics and give a 'journey' talk," Lacey said. "They would describe how they became interested in mathematics, survived graduate school and arrived at their careers today."
As an intern and first-time REU participant, Spino was introduced to mathematics topics that aren't typically covered in college courses. After two weeks of classroom lectures and group work, Spino teamed up with two other juniors and a sophomore in the program to conduct a final research project.
"I wanted to be involved in an REU because research experience is a very important part of getting into and being prepared for graduate school," said Spino, a Plainfield resident.
Both Lacey's and Spino's PURE Math research culminated in a final presentation of their findings to the program participants and faculty at the university. Lacey plans to present her team's technical paper at math conferences and at North Central this academic year.
"After taking part in the program, I'm much more confident in mathematics and find research much less intimidating," Spino said. "The faculty and students all cared so much about mathematics and making others successful in their research. It was great to be a part of that."
Their time in Hawaii didn't consist solely of academic work. When they weren't researching, Lacey and Spino had opportunities to explore Hilo and tour the island.
"On the weekends, the program organized trips to places like the beach and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park," Lacey said. "We also took farmers market trips to try island fruit and shave ice. A few brave souls even went ziplining and cliff diving. We were on a big island, so we never ran out of things to do."