John H. Conway
The inimitable John H. Conway was the John von Neumann Chair of Mathematics at Princeton University. He obtained his BA and his PhD from the University of Cambridge (England). He was a prolific mathematician active in the theory of finite groups, knot theory, number theory, combinatorial game theory, and coding theory. He also contributed to many branches of recreational mathematics, notably the invention of the Game of Life.
Heidi Burgiel
Heidi Burgiel holds a Ph.D. in Geometry from the University of
Washington and a Master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her professional activities range from mathematical fiber arts through computer systems administration. Over the past 30 years she has worked at the University of Washington, the University of Minnesota, the University of Illinois at Chicago, the Boston Museum of
Science, Boston University, Bridgewater State University, the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, the
University of Massachusetts at Lowell, and Lasell University.
Chaim Goodman-Strauss
Chaim Goodman-Strauss is Outreach Mathematician at the National Museum of Mathematics (MoMath). Born and raised in Austin, Tex., he earned his Ph.D. in Knot Theory at UT Austin in 1994 and served through 2022 on the mathematics faculty at the University of Arkansas. He has held visiting positions at the Geometry Center at the University of Minnesota, Princeton University, and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.
Chaim is a leader in the study of aperiodic tilings and tiling theory, most recently on the team bringing David Smith’s “hat” monotile to the world. Goodman-Strauss is a mathematical illustrator and sculptor, producing participation math-art builds for numerous festivals such as the Gathering for Gardner, NY Math Fest, Bamboopalooza, and more.