Infinite Sums: Partners

In our day-to-day lives, it can be hard to notice math’s presence beyond cash register arithmetic. How might we begin to change this? Moreover, how can math be a tool to understand the mechanisms of our environments and lived experiences in new, deeper ways? How can math enhance our lives and serve our communities beyond just the numbers?

One answer is to support trusted community leaders to take on the role of ‘math ambassador.’ By providing them with the resources they need to feel confident in leading math engagement efforts, we’re creating more onramps to lifelong, positive relationships with math.

We’ll announce more partnerships in the coming months.

Museums are spaces of wonder and exploration for children and adults alike. Children’s museums have long provided a space for intuitive, hands-on learning for young people. Science centers and museums have provided innovative and perspective-shifting experiences with science for decades.

But what about math? It’s not thought of as blockbuster subject matter — but we think it should be. Through strategic partnerships with children’s and science museums, we’re working to reimagine the math engagement experiences these institutions can provide. Whether it’s live events, mobile labs or parental engagement programs, these initiatives will present math as something surprising, visual and alive in the world around us.

Math has been a point of inspiration for artists for centuries. Specifically, symmetry has long been a source of study in both art and science. Whether as a modeling constraint in computational research or a pattern in nature, we see symmetry all around us, all the time. The next iteration of our Triangle Program, which supports creative collaborations between artists and scientists, will focus on just that.

In addition to the Triangle Program, we’re supporting organizations that center math’s role in culture — including fashion, music, design and more.

Libraries are so much more than treasure troves of literature — they’re gathering spots, hubs for research, community centers and more. But libraries, especially those situated in rural parts of the country, face increasingly significant challenges. Then there’s the math challenge — it’s seen as difficult and hard to engage with. To address this, we’re providing support, including microgrants and toolkits, to rural libraries to create meaningful math events and experiences.

This work will be led by the Association for Rural & Small Libraries, in partnership with SciStarter.

Math’s presence in the plant world is unmistakable. Fibonacci sequences appear across plant biology as a growth pattern that optimizes light, space and reproduction. Succulents and vegetables like broccoli are brilliant displays of fractals. The propagation of plants speaks to their seemingly-infinite ability to regenerate and survive. All of this and more is on display in botanic gardens across the country.

Led by the San Antonio Botanical Garden, Infinite Sums is supporting Math in Bloom, a national program that will connect people to the mathematics inherent in nature. Each participating botanic garden will create interactive experiences to celebrate mathematical beauty.

There are many films and pieces of digital media that tell stories of brilliant mathematicians and the nature of numbers and statistics. And many of them are great. But what if we opened ourselves to new stories about math — stories of the unexpected ways that math shape the human experience?

We’re partnering with filmmakers and artists to tell more of these stories. From patterns in the ways we experience emotion to the geometry of sound, we invite you to experience math on an emotionally-resonant level.