July 25

Thursday at 15:00, at BSM, in Room 005, Bethlen tér

Márta Siklós, Professor of Hungarian Culture at BSM : Hungarian folk art and its modern interpretations


Abstract: This is a subjective and by no means extensive selection of some characteristic motifs and pieces of Hungarian folk music, poetry and art, connected to their modern uses and interpretations in the works of outstanding Hungarian composers, film makers, authors and artists in the 20th century. Besides the enjoyment that the samples of these works (hopefully) give, they also offer a glimpse into issues relevant to the Hungarian history and ways of thinking.


July 18

Thursday at 14:30, at BSM, in Room 005, Bethlen tér

Prof. György Petruska, Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne : Continued fractions and strong Liouville numbers

Abstract:Given an irrational number, how well can it be approximated by rational fraction?
The well known decimal or binary expansions do not provide any reliable information.
The so called continued fraction expansion is the best tool to find the exact answer.
Liouville and strong Liouville numbers are the champions of good rational approximation.


July 4

Thursday 16:00: "N is a number", a movie about Paul Erdős.
Please note that the movie will be shown in the Main Lecture Hall of the Renyi Institute, which you can find according to this map.


June 26

Wednesday at 14:30, in Room 005, Bethlen tér

Prof. Tina Garrett:, St. Olaf College and Budapest Semesters in Mathematics: The Mathematics of Good Will Hunting

Abstract:In the 1997 movie "Good Will Hunting" one math problem catapulted the main character into the mathematical limelight thus setting the stage for the entire film. The problem, posed by a fictional MIT professor, combines elementary graph theory, linear algebra and some basic calculus in a fascinating way. In this talk we will examine the problem scrawled on a hallway blackboard at MIT and see if the movie consultants earned their fee by providing Matt Damon with a correct solution!




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