To Punt or Not to Punt (UMAP)
"The Cowboys deserved to lose" [Associated Press 1995]. This terse assessment by John Madden, esteemed sportscaster w...
Using the Shannon Sampling Theorem to Design Compact Discs (UMAP)
Have you ever wondered how music is stored on a compact disc and then reproduced? Mathematically, the music can be vi...
Why the Player Never Wins in the Long Run at LA Blackjack (UMAP)
To get around an old California law that prohibits the game of "21," California card casinos introduced a variation o...
Bounds on a Bug (UMAP)
In the game of Cootie, players race to construct a "cootie bug" by rolling a die to collect component parts. Each coo...
Chasing a Polar Goose (UMAP)
A goose due east of its nest begins to fly home. It always flies directly toward the nest at constant airspeed b, but...
Classroom Scheduling Problems: A Discrete Optimization Approach (UMAP)
Every year, colleges and universities face the problem of assigning classrooms to satisfy the needs of courses, facul...
Combinatorics and Campus Security (UMAP)
One day I received electronic mail from our director of campus security [Gilbraith 1993]: I have a puzzle for you tha...
Communication Games and the Canadian Constitution (UMAP)
In Canada, the passing of a constitutional amendment requires a resolution of the Canadian Parliament accompanied by ...
Efficient Signal Transmission (UMAP)
We describe how digital signals can be transmitted by analog carrier signals. This is the method of pulse code modula...
Error Correction and Compact Discs (UMAP)
In 1878, Thomas Alva Edison obtained the patent for the phonograph, a device to record sound (audio information). The...
Experiments in Lavatory Dynamics (UMAP)
Until very recently, most Bush toilets were controlled by a mechanism whose workings were filled with differential po...
Fair Legislative Representation (UMAP)
Political scientists who study comparative government have charted a staggering variety of legislative systems. In de...
Farmer Klaus and the Mouse (UMAP)
Farmer Klaus and the Mouse [Goßen and Rubin 1997] is a cooperative board game for children ages 3 and up that has bo...
Finding Optimal Piano Fingerings (UMAP)
While preparing to perform a piece of music, a pianist must work out a fingering for the piece. Sometimes, the optima...
Forecasting Populations (UMAP)
In almost any country in the world, it would be of considerable interest to many quarters in society to know how the ...
Get Me to the Church on Time--Well, Mostly, Anyway' (UMAP)
There is an old Latin proverb, common in translation in Germany, that "Those who live closest to the church arrive la...
Graphing the Berry Patch (UMAP)
As part of the promotion for its new Berry Berry Kix cereal, General Mills included on the cereal box a game called "...
Mathematical Developments in 1994 (UMAP)
The most significant mathematical development in 1994 occurred near the end of the year, when Andrew Wiles (Princeton...
Mathematical Developments in 1995 (UMAP)
The year 1995 was a relatively quiet one in mathematics. Mathematicians confirmed and celebrated the revised proof by...
Mathematical Developments in 1996 (UMAP)
After several years of suspense and excitement about the proof of Fermat's last theorem, the achievements in 1996 wer...
Mathematical Developments in 1997 (UMAP)
Mathematics in 1997 was marked by the celebration of achievements and by the contemplation of philosophical questions...
Mathematical Developments in 1998 (UMAP)
Mathematics in 1998 saw the resolution, at last, of Johannes Kepler's simple sounding conjecture about sphere-packing...
Mathematical Modeling in Chemical Engineering (UMAP)
We give an example, using first-year calculus and least-squares curve-fitting, of the use of mathematical modeling in...
Travel Demand Forecasting and Analysis for South Texas (ILAP)
Physical Concepts Examined: 1. Trip Attractions 2. Trip Distributions 3. Trip Modal Choice 4. Trip Route Choice Tab...
Ramp Metering of Freeways (ILAP)
Concept of freeway ramp control. Independent ramp metering technique. Integrated ramp metering technique. Table of ...
Mathematical Model for a Mission to Mars (UMAP)
The United States space agency NASA is planning to send a robot vehicle to Mars. The basic mission will be similar to...
Pancakes, Graphs, and the Genome (UMAP)
In 1975, Jacob Eli Goodman posed the following problem in the American Mathematical Monthly under the pseudonym of Ha...
UMAP Journal 16.3, Fall 1995 - The 1995 MCM Contest Edition
Table of Contents: PUBLISHER'S EDITORIAL Once More into the Breach MODELING FORUM Results of the 1995 Mathematica...
Tuition Prepayment Plan (ILAP)
You have heard about the South Carolina Tuition Prepayment Program (SCTPP) (htpp://www.scgrad.org), but you wonder if...
UMAP Journal 24.4 Winter 2003 Edition
Table of Contents: EDITORIAL We Have Already Been to the Future ARTICLES Efficient Signal Transmission and Wavele...
The Spread of Forest Fires (UMAP)
We create a simple discrete probabilistic model for spread of a forest fire. We examine the conditions for which the ...
Getting the Salt Out (ILAP)
When two water (or other solvent) volumes are separated by a semi-permeable membrane, water will flow from the side o...
Vehicle Emissions (ILAP)
Cars, trucks, motorcycles, and buses emit significant quantities of carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC), nitrogen...
UMAP / ILAP Modules 2003-04: Tools for Teaching
Table of Contents: INTRODUCTION UMAP MODULES Predicting Opportunities for Viewing the International SpaceStation D...
Consortium 86, Spring/Summer 2004
Table of Contents: FROM THE EDITOR'S DESK Just Say No (To Filtering) HENRY'S NOTES Why Does A Truck So Often Ge...
A Guided Tour of Daily Geometry (UMAP)
Daily Geometry: So close and yet so fabulous. Starting at your own home, you will discover intriguing and useful fact...