April 2011
Unraveling Complex Systems

Sample Press Release

Mathematics Awareness Month, April 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, contact:
[name, title]
[organization]
[phone]
[email]

[Organization] Announces Activities for Math Awareness Month

The theme for Mathematics Awareness Month April 2011 is Unraveling Complex Systems

CITY, STATE, DATE, 2010 -- [School/organization] will be participating in the annual observance of Math Awareness Month through [a number of activities - give general statement of participation, to be elaborated on below].

"Unraveling Complex Systems" will be the theme for Mathematics Awareness Month, April 2011, as per a joint announcement from the American Mathematical Society, the American Statistical Association, the Mathematical Association of America, and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. Mathematics Awareness Month is sponsored by the Joint Policy Board for Mathematics (JPBM).

How do epidemics spread, birds flock, and stock markets operate?

Many of these answers fall within the realm of mathematics.

From natural entities such as living cells, insect colonies and whole ecosystems to man-made inventions like power grids, transportation networks and the World Wide Web, we see complex systems everywhere. Deciphering the mathematics behind such systems can unravel well-structured networks and discernible patterns in natural and artificial structures. That is the idea behind Mathematics Awareness Month, April 2011.

Understanding these complex systems can not only help us manage and improve the reliability of such critical infrastructures of everyday life, but can also allow us to interpret, enhance and better interact with natural systems. Mathematical models can delineate interactions among components of these systems, analyze their spontaneous and emergent behaviors, and thus help prevent undesirable developments while enhancing desirable traits during their adaptation and evolution.
In an effort to improve our understanding of such systems, the Joint Policy Board of Mathematics has chosen the theme, “Unraveling Complex Systems” to highlight the role of mathematics in the discipline. The 2011 Mathematics Awareness website will have articles and other resources to help explain the math behind such diverse systems as our dynamic response to HIV infections to production links that determine product trade between countries.

Articles and essays, as well as 8.5 x 11" copies of any of the four 2011 posters can be downloaded at www.mathaware.org.

To order the 2011 Mathematics Awareness Month Poster, call the SIAM Customer Service Center at 215-382-9800, fax your request to 215-386-7999, or send an email to liberatore@siam.org, with the subject "MAM 2011 Poster Order."

Please include your name, shipping address, and credit card number (Visa or MasterCard) and expiration date. All orders for the poster must be prepaid.

There is a $5.00 charge for shipping and handling for the first poster; add $1.00 for each additional poster.

Mail orders may be sent to:

Arlette Liberatore
Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics
3600 Market Street, 6th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA

About Math Awareness Month and JPBM

Mathematics Awareness Month, held each year in April, was created to increase public understanding of and appreciation for mathematics. It began in 1986, when President Reagan issued a proclamation establishing National Mathematics Awareness Week. Activities for Mathematics Awareness Month generally are organized on local, state and regional levels by college and university departments, institutional public information offices, student groups, and related associations and interest groups.

The JPBM is a collaborative effort of the American Mathematical Society (AMS), the American Statistical Association (ASA), the Mathematical Association of America (MAA), and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM).