National Museum of Mathematics facts for kids
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| Established | November 17, 2009 (chartered) |
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| Location | 225 Fifth Avenue Manhattan, New York City |
| Public transit access | New York City Subway:
Port Authority Trans-Hudson: HOB-33, JSQ-33 (via HOB), or JSQ-33 to 23rd Street MTA New York City Bus: M1, M2, M3, M55, M7, M20 |
The National Museum of Mathematics, also known as MoMath, is a super cool museum in New York City dedicated to math! It's located in Manhattan and opened its doors on December 15, 2012. The museum has more than thirty fun, hands-on exhibits. MoMath's main goal is to help everyone understand and enjoy mathematics more. One of its most famous exhibits is a special tricycle with square wheels. Believe it or not, this tricycle rides smoothly on a wavy surface called a catenary curve!
Contents
History of MoMath
How the Museum Started
Before MoMath, there was another math museum in the United States called the Goudreau Museum. It was on Long Island and closed in 2006. Because of this, a group of people, led by Glen Whitney, decided to create a new math museum.
They worked hard and got permission from the New York State Department of Education in 2009. In less than four years, they raised over $22 million to make their dream a reality!
Finding a Home for Math
With the money they raised, MoMath rented a large space. It was about 19,000 square feet (1,800 m2) in the Goddard Building. This building is located at 11–13 East 26th Street in the Madison Square North Historic District. Even though there were some disagreements about the building plans, the city approved the construction.
The current leader of the museum's board is John Overdeck. He is also a co-chairman at Two Sigma Investments.
MoMath's New Locations
During the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, the museum had to close its original location on 26th Street. In March 2024, MoMath moved to a temporary spot at 225 Fifth Avenue. The museum has also announced that it will move to an even bigger space in 2026. This new home will be at 635 Avenue of the Americas in Chelsea, Manhattan. It will be about 34,365 square feet (3,192.6 m2) in size!
Fun Programs at MoMath
MoMath offers several exciting programs that bring math to life.
- Math Midway is a traveling show with interactive math exhibits. Imagine riding a square-wheeled tricycle that rolls smoothly over a wavy track! Another exhibit, the Ring of Fire, uses lasers to show cool shapes when they cut through 3D objects. There's also an "organ function grinder" where you can create your own math functions and see what happens. Math Midway first appeared at the World Science Festival in 2009. It traveled all over the country and was seen by over half a million people! In 2016, the Math Midway exhibit was sold to the Science Centre Singapore.
- Math Midway 2 Go (MM2GO) is a smaller version of Math Midway. It includes six of the most popular exhibits from the original show. MM2GO started visiting science festivals, schools, and libraries in the fall of 2012.
- Math Encounters is a monthly talk series hosted by MoMath and the Simons Foundation. These talks used to be at Baruch College but moved to MoMath's visitor center in March 2013. Every month, a different mathematician is invited to give a lecture. Past speakers include Google's Director of Research Peter Norvig and journalist Paul Hoffman. Topics have included "The Geometry of Origami," "The Patterns of Juggling," and "Mathematical Morsels from The Simpsons and Futurama." These talks are designed to be interesting and easy to understand for high school students and adults. The first lecture was on March 3, 2011.
Cool Exhibits to Explore
In October 2016, MoMath opened an exhibit called The Insides of Things: The Art of Miguel Berrocal. This exhibit showed a collection of puzzle sculptures by Spanish artist Miguel Ortiz Berrocal. Each sculpture can be taken apart into many small, interlocking pieces. Inside, you might even find a tiny piece of jewelry or another surprise!
From May 22 to October 27, 2024, MoMath hosted Mathemalchemy. This was a special traveling art exhibit that celebrated how art and mathematics connect. The display was quite large, about 20 by 10.5 feet (6.1 by 3.2 m) and nearly 9.5 feet (2.9 m) tall. It had over 1,000 parts that showed off abstract math ideas. It also included funny math puns and hidden "Easter eggs" for visitors to discover!
Special Guest Mathematicians
Distinguished Chair for Public Math
MoMath created a special position called the Distinguished Chair for the Public Dissemination of Mathematics. This role invites famous mathematicians to share their love of math with everyone.
On August 2, 2018, Manjul Bhargava, a professor from Princeton and a winner of the Fields Medal (a top award in math), was the first person to hold this position.
After Dr. Bhargava, Peter Winkler, a professor from Dartmouth College, became the Distinguished Chair for 2019–20.
In July 2020, Alex Kontorovich, a professor from Rutgers University, was announced as the Distinguished Chair for 2020–21. Dr. Kontorovich gave talks about the history of math ideas and how math and music are related.
The Distinguished Chair for 2021–22 was Steven Strogatz. He is a professor from Cornell University and is known for his math books and broadcasts.
The fifth Distinguished Chair, announced in June 2021, is Tim Chartier. He is a professor at Davidson College and also a professional mime! MoMath also announced that Ingrid Daubechies, a professor from Duke University, will be the Distinguished Chair for 2023–24.
See also
- Mathematica: A World of Numbers... and Beyond – a classic exhibit about math concepts, created by Ray and Charles Eames
- Mathematics education in the United States and in New York
- Science tourism
