ETH - Cortona Week - Beauty in the Art of Mathematics

After graduating in mathematics from the university of Louvain (Belgium), Marie Milis obtained a Master of Arts in "mathematics, with special emphasis in math education" at the University of Washington (Seattle – USA) on a Fulbright scholarship. While in Seattle, she lived in a Zen monastery.
She teaches mathematics and religion in a school for young people with difficult backgrounds, multiple failures and exclusions. She gives special attention to the meaning of mistakes made while learning mathematics.
With her husband she has created an association called "Initiations", offering workshops and retreats dealing with personal growth and spirituality.

What is ‘the beauty of mathematics’? No-one dissents from the idea that maths could be beautiful – whatever that might mean. But many have no awareness of what it might feel like to experience this beauty. Shall we try together to get a taste of it?

The purpose of this workshop is to experience what mathematics is, and maybe discover some of its beauty. Designed for everyone, even people who are afraid of maths, a good part of the workshop will deal with the mistakes we make. So we will not only discover the beauty of maths under bright light; we shall also have an opportunity to praise maths 'shadows. Please, bring to the workshop the mistakes you have made while working on some problem solving. Anything – even what you may have dismissed as just a temporary lack of attention. If we are to make the awe for beauty come alive in us, it will be necessary to observe without judgment our very simple dealings with maths.

Working with mathematics requires and teaches certain attitudes and qualities: concentration, steadiness, precision, imagination, humour… They may all be part of maths' beauty. Let's look into the question of beauty and mathematics through our experiences whether "good" or "bad".

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