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Research in History and Philosophy of Mathematics pp 205–219Cite as

Birkhäuser

Charter Members of the MAA and the Material Culture of American Mathematics

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Abstract

In the early twentieth century, growing use of numbers, combined with burgeoning high school enrollments and expanding technical education, encouraged the expansion of college mathematics teaching in the United States. It was an era when like-minded educators banded together in professional associations. In 1915, mathematicians met to establish the Mathematical Association of America. Physical objects associated with several charter members of the MAA survive in the collections of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. They well represent the diverse concerns of the early membership. These ranged from research on prime numbers to creating geometric models for the classroom to encouraging recreational mathematics to exploring aspects of the history of mathematics.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. MRC 671, NMAH, Smithsonian Institution, 37012, Washington, DC, 20013-7012, USA

    Peggy Aldrich Kidwell

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  1. Peggy Aldrich Kidwell
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Correspondence to Peggy Aldrich Kidwell .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Mathematical Information and Computer Sciences, Point Loma Nazarene University, San Diego, California, USA

    Maria Zack

  2. Department of Philosophy, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, USA

    Elaine Landry

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Kidwell, P.A. (2016). Charter Members of the MAA and the Material Culture of American Mathematics. In: Zack, M., Landry, E. (eds) Research in History and Philosophy of Mathematics. Proceedings of the Canadian Society for History and Philosophy of Mathematics/La Société Canadienne d’Histoire et de Philosophie des Mathématiques. Birkhäuser, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-46615-6_15

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