LUMS Math Circles - math quest and leaning tower

Math Quest: A Circle of Fun

This session marked the inaugural event of our LUMS Mini Math Adventures series, designed for younger students. It was led by Mr. Muhammad Shoaib Khan and Mr. Muhammad Javaid Qayoom.

Highlights:

Setting the Stage: Mr. Javaid kicked things off by asking students what motivated them to attend, sparking interest even among the hesitant participants.
Mathematical Magic: The instructors performed an intriguing "magic" trick with four-digit numbers, astonishing students by correctly predicting the final sum—a clever demonstration of number manipulation.
Cracking Codes with Permutations: Students explored permutations and applied their newfound skills to crack secret codes, with chocolate prizes for successful decoders!
Equations with a Twist: Using playing cards, students discovered how “unknowns” and “conditions” work together to solve problems—learning that n-unknowns need n-conditions for a unique solution.
A Sweet Finale: The session concluded with certificate distributions and delightful donut boxes for all participants.

Here are some highlights from the event:

Leaning Tower of Mathematics

This dynamic session, led by Dr. Shaheen Nazir and Dr. Imran Anwar, delved into mathematical concepts through puzzles, experiments, and historical insights.

Highlights:

Decoding Sequences: Students tackled a challenging sequence puzzle, uncovering hidden patterns and earning chocolate prizes for their problem-solving prowess.
The Balancing Act: A hands-on experiment with rods and weights helped students explore barycenters, connecting abstract math to real-world applications.
Tower of Stacks Challenge: Participants built a leaning tower with wooden blocks, calculating how far they could extend the top block without toppling the structure—uncovering the fascinating harmonic series along the way.
Mathematics of the Ancients: Students visualized Egyptian fractions and geometric series through creative activities like dividing unit squares.
The Eruption of the Harmonic Series: A captivating demonstration of the divergence of the harmonic series, inspired by Neil Oresam’s elegant proof.
The Music of Mathematics: The session concluded with a unique exploration of how the harmonic series connects to music, with participants listening to mathematical sequences through a sequencer simulator.

Both sessions were a resounding success, brimming with curiosity, discovery, and fun.

A heartfelt thank you to our dedicated instructors—Dr. Shaheen Nazir, Dr. Imran Anwar, Mr. Muhammad Shoaib Khan, and Mr. Muhammad Javaid Qayoom, —for their inspiring sessions. We are also deeply grateful to Ms. Noreen Sohail and Mr. Qamar Hussain for their invaluable organizational support.

Finally, special thanks to Mr. Muhammad Javaid Qayoom for putting together this wonderful recap.

Here are some highlights from the event: