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The Prison Mathematics Project, Introducing Myself

  • 1.  The Prison Mathematics Project, Introducing Myself

    Posted 08-13-2022 04:24 AM
    Greetings!
    My name is Christopher Havens, not a stranger to MAA, but definitely a stranger to this blog. I'm a mathematician who loves researching in number theory--in specific, I study Diophantine analysis and my passion is in the beauty of continued fractions. One of the things that I love most about them is their convergents, because of all the beautiful structural properties that occur. These result in my personal favorite area, the theory of leaping convergents. Somebody once said that a continued fraction is the heart of an irrational number, and I agree all the way. In fact, I would say that not only is the continued fraction the heart of an irrational number, but they're beautiful and pure in the sense that their leaping convergents have a pulse which beats to the rhythm of an arithemtic pattern. My other interests are humanitarian.. I love topics of Justice and the role of mathematics in self-identity and desistance from the criminal element. Strange interests? Probably..but only because I've experienced such a profound transformation through the study and exploration of mathematics. As a result of my own transformation - which happened in an isolation cell of a prison - I founded the 501c3 organization called the Prison Mathematics Project (PMP), where we act as a beacon for prisoners across the United States and Canada who are active in pursuing mathematics and active in their self-development. We are an organization of human flourishing which serves an unlikely demographic and which specializes in the teaching and learning of mathematics in highly restrictive environments.
    I also love topics like:
    What does research look like for incarcerated individuals?
    What does it look like to study mathematics in prisons?
    I'm grateful to introduce myself to an inclusive community. Several years ago, I was exploring mathematics and was filled with wonder and awe. But with all of the beauty around me, I saw this landscape in black and white because I had never experienced the effect that community can add to our journey through numbers. Thank you all for adding that color despite my living behind the walls of a prison. Until next time.
    Christopher R Havens
    Executive Troublemaker
    Prison Mathematics Project
    Prison Mathematics Project
    Prisonmathproject remove preview
    Prison Mathematics Project
    The Prison Mathematics Project (aka the PMP) is a 501(c)(3) organization that was first conceptualized in early 2012 when a prisoner named Christopher Havens began studying mathematics for the very first time during his time in solitary confinement.
    View this on Prisonmathproject >

    chavens28@gmail.com

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    Christopher Havens
    Executive Director-Prison Mathematics Project
    Monroe Correctional Complex
    Monroe WA
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