John Evans and Meral Reyhan were honored at the 21st annual Mathematical Contest in Modeling for their “outstanding” solution to the mathematical challenge. Photo by Kris Qua

A Rensselaer undergraduate team has won the 2005 Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) Award in the Mathematical Contest in Modeling, besting competitors from Harvard University, MIT, and others.

Team members Meral Reyhan, a senior with a dual major in physics and mathematics, and John Evans, a junior majoring in applied mathematics, competed in the 21st annual Mathematical Contest in Modeling (MCM) with 663 other teams representing academic institutions from 10 countries. The MCM contest is administered by the Consortium for Mathematics and Its Applications.

In the MCM contest, competing teams have four days to solve one of two challenging problems by using mathematical tools. Reyhan and Evans tackled a problem requiring teams to propose a model to help determine the optimal number of tollbooths in a barrier toll plaza, “Problem B” in the contest.

The Rensselaer team was designated as “outstanding” in the Problem B category, a designation shared by only seven other teams representing Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Duke University, University of California, Berkeley (2 teams), and University of Colorado.

Each year SIAM officials select one team from each problem group to honor for their winning solution. The Rensselaer team was selected to receive the 2005 SIAM Award in the Mathematical Contest in Modeling for Problem B.

“We are proud of Meral Reyhan and John Evans for their ability to perform at this level as undergraduates,” said G.P. “Bud” Peterson, Rensselaer provost. “Their accomplishment is a testament to an exceptional mathematical sciences department at Rensselaer that prepares our students to creatively apply what they’ve learned in the classroom to solve complex, realistic problems.”

“To succeed in this contest, the team must effectively work together to research, model, and present a creative and coherent solution by connecting mathematical analysis to a real problem,” says Peter Kramer, assistant professor of mathematics at Rensselaer and faculty adviser for the MCM contest. “Meral and John demonstrated their ability to combine teamwork with creativity and knowledge to achieve this impressive honor.”

This year’s contest is the first time a Rensselaer team has been selected to receive the SIAM Award for its mathematical solution.

Originally published in Rensselaer Magazine, Summer 2005

Published July 14, 2005