Jean Pedersen

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Jean J. Pedersen

Jean J. Pedersen (Sep 17, 1934–Jan 1, 2016)[1]​[2]​ was an American mathematician and author particularly known for her works on the mathematics of paper folding.

Education and career[]

Pedersen was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, the daughter of an ophthalmologist and a teacher. She studied home economics changing to a double major in mathematics and physics as an undergraduate at Brigham Young University, before becoming a graduate student in mathematics at the University of Utah under the supervision of E. Allen Davis.[2]​

After completing her master's degree, she moved to San Jose, California, following her husband who worked for IBM. She joined the faculty at the Santa Clara University on a part-time basis in 1966, but shifted to full-time and was promoted to full professor in 1996. She was the first woman to teach mathematics at the university, and the first to be tenured as a mathematics professor.[2]​

Her discovery that the platonic solids could be braided from strips of paper led to Martin Gardner writing about it in the September, 1971 Mathematical Games column in Scientific American.[3]

Books[]

Pedersen's books include:

  • Geometric Playthings (With Kent Pedersen, Dale Seymour Publications Secondary, 1973, ISBN 978-0866513517)
  • Fear No More: An Adult Approach to Mathematics (with Peter Hilton, Dale Seymour Publications, 1982 ISBN 978-0201057133)
  • Build Your Own Polyhedra (with Peter Hilton, Addison-Wesley, 1988)[4]​
  • Mathematical Reflections: In a Room with Many Windows (with Peter Hilton and Derek Holton, Springer, 1996)[5]​[6]​
  • Mathematical Vistas: From a Room with Many Windows (with Peter Hilton and Derek Holton, Springerl 2002)[5]​[7]​
  • 99 Points of Intersection: Examples—Pictures—Proofs (by Hans Walser, translated with Peter Hilton, Mathematical Association of America, 2006)[8]​
  • A Mathematical Tapestry: Demonstrating the Beautiful Unity of Mathematics (with Peter Hilton, illustrated by Sylvie Donmoyer, Cambridge University Press, 2010)[9]​

She and Peter Hilton also translated The Golden Section and Symmetry by Hans Walser from German into English. Both translations were published by the Mathematical Association of America in 2001.[10]​

References[]

  1. ^ "Jean Pedersen (1934–2016)", News, Events & Announcements, American Mathematical Society, February 5, 2016
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Jean Pedersen", Santa Clara Magazine, June 6, 2016, retrieved 2018-10-29
  3. ^ "Plaited Platonic Puzzles" by Jean J. Pedersen, The Two-Year College Mathematics Journal, vol. 4, no. 3, 1973, pp 22-37
  4. ^ Reviews of Build Your Own Polyhedra:
    • Schmidt, Don (February 1989), The Mathematics Teacher, 82 (2): 145, JSTOR 27966155CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
    • Leiva, Miriam A. (April 1989), The Arithmetic Teacher, 36 (8): 58–59, JSTOR 41193678CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
    • Jacob, Wiliam (October 1994), The Mathematics Teacher, 87 (7): 572, JSTOR 27969009CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
    • Provost, Mary D. (September–October 1995), Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, 1 (6): 497–498, JSTOR 41181482CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Review of Mathematical Reflections and Mathematical Vistas:
  6. ^ Review of Mathematical Reflections:
    • Anthony, Joby Milo (August–September 1998), The American Mathematical Monthly, 105 (7): 682–686, doi:10.2307/2589274, JSTOR 2589274CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
  7. ^ Reviews of Mathematical Vistas:
    • Schaefer, Marvin (June 2002), "Review", MAA Reviews
    • Cohen, Marion (May 2003), The American Mathematical Monthly, 110 (5): 455–458, doi:10.2307/3647846, JSTOR 3647846CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
  8. ^ Reviews of 99 Points of Intersection:
    • Ashbacher, Charles (2004–2005), "Review", Journal of Recreational Mathematics, 33 (3): 215–216
    • Poplicher, Mihaela (September 2006), "Review", MAA Reviews
    • Coupland, Mary (2006), "Review", Australian Mathematics Teacher, 62 (3): 32
    • Jensen, John (March 2007), The Mathematics Teacher, 100 (7): 511–512, JSTOR 27972312CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
    • Leversha, Gerry (November 2008), The Mathematical Gazette, 92 (525): 588–589, doi:10.1017/S0025557200184074, JSTOR 27821873CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
  9. ^ Reviews of A Mathematical Tapestry:
  10. ^ Review of The Golden Section and Symmetry:
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