Interlace Biographical Blurb Guidelines

Biographical Blurbs: Examples and Non-examples

Example: Dr. Carolyn Yackel, Professor of Mathematics at Mercer University, is interested in mathematically characterizing various fiber arts techniques such as temari, knitting, and shibori, and using those characterizations to prove theorems that are reified in the creation of fiber arts pieces. When crafting, she prefers to create objects that both display a mathematical concept and intricately use mathematics in their creation.

Example: dr. sarah-marie belcastro earned her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and did her undergraduate work at Haverford College. She is a free-range mathematician and Director of MathILy, and you can learn more about her at her website http://www.toroidalsnark.net. Within fiber arts, sarah-marie primarily combines mathematics and knitting, whether that results in knitting a model of a mathematical object or in using mathematics to analyze stitches and patterns.

Example: Dr. Mary Shepherd is interested in revealing the fundamental relationships between algebra and the fiber arts of quilting and cross-stitch with a focus on wallpaper patterns and two-color symmetry. She spent much of her career teaching at Northwest Missouri State University and has retired to do research at Arizona State University, where she is an avid runner and involved with several music groups.

Example: Dr. D. Jacob Wildstrom is an associate professor in the mathematics department of the University of Louisville, in Kentucky. He received his Ph.D. from the University of California at San Diego in 2007. His academic specialty is combinatorial optimization of networks, and his artistic work is primarily in the field of crochet. His mathematical explorations into crochet range from analysis of theoretical designs to practical implementations of new constructions.

Non-example: Mary Shepherd, retired mathematician, enjoys cross-stitching, algebra, spending time with her grandchildren, music, and running.

Non-example: sarah-marie belcastro is a free-range mathematician. She is currently Director of MathILy, Research Associate at Bryn Mawr College, and Instructor at the Art of Problem Solving. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and did her undergraduate work at Haverford College. sarah-marie's primary research area is topological graph theory; she is also interested in the mathematics of knitting, dance, infectious disease modeling, pharmacokinetics, and changing the world. She enjoys connecting people to each other, connecting ideas to each other, and connecting people to ideas. sarah-marie has written an introductory discrete mathematics textbook and co-edited three volumes on mathematics and fiber arts.

Note that these non-examples do not specify the author's interests at the intersection of mathematics and fiber arts.