I am SO BORED... so I've been looking up random stuff on YMN and other sites.  

I'm also reading, well re-reading, An Introduction to the History of Mathematics by Howard Eves.

But either way.  There was an interesting discussion on the Physics Forums, which I have come to frequent, about comparing Einstein to Newton.  A student was given an assignment to compare these two scientists and "prove that Newton is better than Einstein"... what kind of teacher gives an assignment like that?  

Prove that one is better than the other?  

But then I got to thinking about how one might approach the problem of comparison.  

Well, if you could create a one-to-one mapping of accomplishments, you could prove they are equal - right?  But how do you measure accomplishments like that?

Long story short, you can't compare at all.  They had different ideas around at the time.  Of course inventing Calculus is a BIG DEAL, so I have a partial-ness for Newton now that I didn't have when I was in high school.  

Actually, I had never heard of Newton's name being attached to anything besides Gravity before college.  Then the whole Newton-Calculus thing became a big deal.  

In HS I wasn't into math as much as I'm into it now.  I was really into Chemistry and PHYSICS.  Man I loved Physics.  I could probably still move over, but WHY?  Math is so much more interesting and you can do so much more with it.  

Well, then for some odd reason, I started thinking about the Joint Meetings.  In my preparation for the SACNAS conference, SACNAS is the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science.  Every year at their national meeting, which is really one of the only big things they do, they have a poster session for undergrads and graduate students have the option of presenting either a poster or an oral presentation.  

I wish I could present my stuff orally, because I think that's the best way to present my information.  

But, I'm working on something new, at least for me.  

I found a problem in the Monthly that seems perfect for me (I won't tell you which one, but it's kind of an old problem and involves Modulus work) because I'm heading in the Algebra/Topology/Number Theory direction.  That's a lot of different types of math, I KNOW, but I'm really interested in that kind of stuff.

I was pretty bent on Algebraic Geometry a couple months ago, but I can't let the Number Theory go and the more I learn about Topology, the more interesting it seems.

But my newest intended research project will be centered around Algebra.  My prof. for Modern Algebra will be my mentor and he thinks I didn't get enough out of Modern Algebra.  I totally agree, this is the kind of guy that built a new semi-group for his master's thesis, so I'm super psyched.  

Before I jump the gun and talk more about this research topic, etc.  Let me explain how I'm being funded (give credit where credit is due).  Well, at my school we don't have a senior thesis or anything yet.  The department is working towards getting a senior seminar, mostly because of me.  

I'm a McNair Scholar, this paragraph is for those of you who don't know about McNair.  The Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program is a program funded by the Department of Education that is intended to assist students who fit into these groups: Minority, Low-Income, First-Generation college students.  So because I am minority, low-income and a first-generation college student - I fit the bill and I'm in.  OH, they also have to SERIOUSLY want a Ph.D., at least at my school it's like that.  I know of other programs that just care about students going into graduate school, but our school is into the Ph.D. thing.  

Within my first semester at school, I had switched majors from doubling in English and Communication Arts with a concentration in Journalism, because I wanted to be a Journalist, to Math, wanting to be a university professor.  How do I become a professor?  I get a Ph.D., do research and wow, that's me.  

McNair will fund me for at most 2 projects, so I'm cashing in on the second one.  Another very positive thing about McNair is that they give you research stipends... money to study.  Money to study math, doesn't that rock!?!

So when I took Modern Algebra (switching gears here) I really became enthrawled with the idea of groups and rings, my first McNair project dealt partially with Galois groups, but that material was too upper-level for me to really understand it to any depth.  So we're going to be working a bit on that and brushing that up, while I'm doing this project.  

I'm also going to be taking Intro to Topology, independent study, in the fall with one of the other professors, and applying to graduate school.

The department has been wondering, "where do I want to go?"  Mostly because they care, we have about 6, wait 5, one left this semester, faculty members.  I've never had an upper level math class that had more than 10 students.  The math department is VERY close.  

In the entire school, I've never had a class with more than 30-40 students.  Our classes max out at like 45 I think.

It's a really small school.

But it's really nice for the students, because we get a LOT of personal attention.  

So back to the SACNAS conference and the Joint Meetings... lol

So I did present at the SACNAS conference last year, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to throw together a poster for this year.  

But what I DO want to do, is present at the Joint Meetings.  

I went to the Joint Meetings this last year and was so excited.  I LOVED it.  

We took a few members of math society with us and got to go to a lot of sessions.  My modern algebra prof drove the way and we met up with a niece that he has that lives in Atlanta, she's also a mathematician.  

I've never in my entire life seen so many mathematicians.  It was definately easy to get lost with all the mathematical wonder.  

I would highly recommend that almost anyone go to the Joint Meetings at least once in your lifetime.  Unless of course you are clostrophobic and can't stand to be around large groups of people, then maybe you shouldn't go.

But I'm left wondering, how to I prepare my paper for the Joint Meetings.  Of course I don't know if my abstract will be accepted, as it has for the SACNAS conference and the MAA Texas Section meeting.  BUT, I do know that I will submit one this year.  

I was meaning to last year, because some of the contributed paper sessions had really interesting topics - but never got around to it.  

I could just do some historical-type paper, because I already have some prepared from my History and Philosophy of Mathematics course.  We had to write Literature Reports, which I turned into research papers which ended up being a lot harder than they actually are.  She wanted reflection, I was seeking analysis.  It wasn't a good mix.  

I ended up turning in a few late, which made me wonder whether or not I could actually get the "A" in her course.  

So I'm seeking any advice about preparing an oral presentation for the Joint Meetings.  I've done oral presentations before, but most of the presentations I've done have looked like power point presentations and in reality, that's not the majority of what I saw at the Joint Meetings this last year.  

I found this post: http://concerns.youngmath.net/story/2004/10/20/115636/36 on preparing your Dissertation for Publication, but I haven't found anything on YMN about preparing an oral presentation.

There is some talk about having MORE poster presentations for mathematicians, I did find that one.  But I'm, surprise surprise from the former debater / extemporaneous speaker, more comfortable giving a paper in oral form than with the poster.  I don't even know if this is an option at the Joint Meetings, but last time I looked at the guidelines I couldn't find anything that said undergrads couldn't do contribute a paper to a contributed paper session.

Either way, someone please reply.  Otherwise I'll be forced to change this really long diary entry into a story that you'll have to read somewhere anyways.