May 26On Being Constantly Forced By Friendly Fire To Hide Under The BusI tried very hard not to write this piece, because pieces like this rarely accomplish anything positive, and to the contrary, often result in further harassment and marginalization. But if there is one thing I am truly terrible at in life (and actually, there are quite a few) it is…3 min read3 min read
Aug 18, 2021That Time Everyone Got Mad About Social JusticeAddendum, Sept. 2022: An updated version of our work will appear in the Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics. Addendum, Feb. 2023: The paper is now out. In early August of 2021, some research collaborators and I posted online a white paper that uses empirical methods to study race-based disparities…Social Justice8 min readSocial Justice8 min read
Feb 20, 2021Humanizing Student Group WorkEither as a graduate student, postdoctoral fellow, or faculty member, I’ve been teaching math to college students for nearly 25 years. Dating back to the start of my teaching career, I have always made substantial use of group work in my courses. To guide students through experience of collaborating, I…Teaching3 min readTeaching3 min read
Dec 2, 2020Wrapping up 2020 with social justiceAt the Institute for the Quantitative Study of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity (QSIDE), we use the vanguard of math, data science, and computation to promote social justice. We became an independent 501(c)3 nonprofit organization in 2019, which makes 2020 our first full year of operation. …Social Justice3 min readSocial Justice3 min read
Nov 2, 2020Big Racism in a Small “Progressive” TownI live in Williamstown, Massachusetts, a town of about 8,000 people in the very northwest corner of the state. The north border of town touches Vermont and the west border of town touches upstate New York. On the surface, we’re a progressive place. It is a college town occupied overwhelmingly…Williamstown5 min readWilliamstown5 min read
Oct 31, 2020I’m breaking up with my oppressive professional societyI am a mathematician. Being a mathematician is a funny thing. When I tell people what I do for a living, they typically respond by telling me either “I used to be good at mathematics!” or, with an inevitably disapproving tone, “Oh. I hate math.” Regardless of society’s opinion of…LGBTQ15 min readLGBTQ15 min read
Oct 31, 2020We don’t know how many math professors come from excluded racial/ethnic groups. This is a problem for everyone in this country.If any readers do in fact know of recent, detailed statistics on faculty in the mathematical sciences who come from excluded racial/ethnic groups, please contact us at qside@qsideinstitute.org to let us know. Thus far, no one has been able to provide such information to us. If you are not in…Diversity4 min readDiversity4 min read