Colm Mulcahy facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Professor Emeritus Colm Mulcahy
Mulcahy kicking off Math Awareness Month in 2014
Alma mater	University College Dublin, Cornell University
Spouse(s)	Vicki Powers
Scientific career
Institutions	Spelman College

Colm Mulcahy (born in September 1958) is a mathematician from Ireland. He is also a professor, writer, and public speaker. He even enjoys doing magic tricks! He used to teach at Spelman College and is now a Professor Emeritus there.

Colm Mulcahy loves many areas of math, like algebra and geometry. But he is especially interested in mathemagical card tricks. These tricks use math to create amazing illusions. He also enjoys learning about the history of math, especially the work of Irish mathematicians. He is a big fan of the famous math writer Martin Gardner. In 2024, he won an award from Maths Week Ireland.

Becoming a Math Expert

Colm Mulcahy studied math at University College Dublin in Ireland. He earned his first two degrees there in 1978 and 1979. Later, he went to Cornell University in the United States. He earned his PhD, which is a very high degree, in 1985.

From 1988 to 2020, Professor Mulcahy taught math at Spelman College. This college is in Atlanta, Georgia. He was even the head of the math department for a few years. He also helped create a special archive. This archive keeps the history of mathematicians from Spelman College. In 2014, he helped organize Mathematics Awareness Month. This event helps people learn how fun and important math is.

Sharing Math with Everyone

Colm Mulcahy loves to share his passion for math. He has written for many popular websites. These include the Mathematical Association of America and Scientific American. He has also created puzzles for famous newspapers. You might have seen his puzzles in The New York Times or The Guardian.

He is part of the Advisory Council for the Museum of Mathematics in New York City. This museum is a fun place to explore math. He also led an organization called Gathering 4 Gardner, Inc. This group celebrates the work of Martin Gardner. Professor Mulcahy also created a special collection. It is called the Annals of Irish Mathematics and Mathematicians. It shares the stories of math in Ireland.

The Magic of Math Tricks

Professor Mulcahy is well-known for understanding how math makes card tricks work. From 2004 to 2014, he wrote a column called Card Colm. This column was all about math and magic, especially card tricks. His book, Mathematical Card Magic: Fifty-Two New Effects, collects many of these ideas. He has also appeared on Numberphile. This is a popular online video series about numbers and math.

Colm Mulcahy has something called an Erdős number of 2. This is a fun way to connect mathematicians. It means he worked with someone who worked with a very famous mathematician named Paul Erdős.

Celebrating Martin Gardner

Colm Mulcahy was a friend of Martin Gardner. Martin Gardner was a famous writer for Scientific American. He wrote about math, magic, and puzzles. Professor Mulcahy is a key part of Gathering 4 Gardner. This group honors Martin Gardner's many contributions. It is often called G4G. The group first met in 1993. Since 1996, they meet every two years.

In 2013, Professor Mulcahy created the official website for Martin Gardner. He also led the committee that celebrated Martin Gardner's 100th birthday. Mulcahy has worked hard to promote events called Celebration of Mind. These events are also inspired by Martin Gardner's ideas. Today, there are over 100 of these events each year. They happen all around the world!

Irish Math History

Professor Mulcahy often writes about the history of math in Ireland. He is very active in Maths Week Ireland. This is the world's largest program to help people learn about math. He is also involved with the Irish Mathematical Society.

He created and manages the Annals of Irish Mathematics and Mathematicians. This project tells the story of math in Ireland over four centuries. It has hosted monthly blogs since 2016. Maths Week Ireland now sponsors this project. They have also created yearly Irish Mathematics Calendars since 2016.

Awards and Recognition

In 1997, Colm Mulcahy received the Allendoerfer Award. This award is for excellent writing about math. He won it for an article explaining how wavelet image compression works. Another article he helped write was about Martin Gardner's 100th birthday. It was featured in a book called The Best Writing on Mathematics 2015.

In 2024, he received the Maths Week Ireland Award. This award honors people who do great work to help the public understand math. When he accepted the award, Professor Mulcahy shared his thoughts:

Math is like a language that helps us understand the world. It explains the sun, moon, planets, and stars. It helps us understand the calendar and the ocean tides. Math is about looking closely, being curious, and finding patterns. It helps us explain why things are symmetrical or why coincidences happen. Math also helps us navigate on Earth and in space. And it helps us make good predictions about the future.

Family Life

Colm Mulcahy is married to Vicki Powers. She is also a mathematician. She studies algebraic geometry and election theory. They both had the same PhD advisor at Cornell University. His name was Alex F. T. W. Rosenberg.