Computer Science Colloquium, 2002-2003

Dept. of Mathematics - Caesarea Rothschild Inst. - Dept. of Computer Science

Invite the public to two talks on
COMPUTER-GENERATED MATHEMATICS
by
Prof. Doron Zeilberger
Rutgers University
30th October 2002

`High-School' Geometry

Date:
Wednesday, January 8, 2003
Place:
Room 1621 of the Science & Education Building, University of Haifa
Time:
16:10 PM
Abstract:
The first lecture will discuss the webbook `Plane Geometry: An Elementary School Textbook' (ca. 2050) [available at: http://www.math.rutgers.edu/~zeilberg/GT.html], written entirely in the computer-algebra programming language Maple, and supposedly generated automatically by my computer Shalosh B. Ekhad.

Constructing `Elegant' Alphametics

Date:
Thursday, January 9, 2003
Place:
Room 3502 of the Science & Education Building, University of Haifa
Time:
11:00 AM
Abstract:
The second lecture is dedicated to the memory of my uncle Hans Weiss (1902-1983), and to my aunt Briggite Weiss (b. Jan. 6, 1913), tivadel lekhaim arukim. It will describe my recent Maple package called `Otiot Umisparim' that solves so-called cryptarithms, more common in Israel than in the United States (since both Yediot and Ma'ariv have them every Friday, while in the States they can only be found in specialized puzzle magazines), where one is given an addition/subtraction, or long multiplication (or division) problem, where each digit has been replaced by a unique letter, and one has to reconstruct the numerical original. I was annoyed by the fact that the puzzles given in the `Otiot Umisparim' column in Yediot (compiled by Yossi HarShoshanim) and `Imra Kfula' in Ma'ariv (compiled by Mimi Ilan) usually only have two lines that are real words, while the remaining lines are gibberish. A cryptarithm each of whose lines in a genuine word is called an alphametic. Using my Maple package, my computer generated, completely automatically, hundreds of such alphametics.

(Personal note: I was introduced to cryptarithms by my uncle Hans Weiss, who, more than forty years ago, when I was eleven, showed me how to solve them. I then became addicted to doing them and latter was able to do many of them in my head. I believe that I became a mathematician because of my early love of cryptarithms and hence thanks to my uncle Hans.)


Shuly Wintner
Last modified: Sat Jan 4 18:17:26 IST 2003