Ruonan Xu (Rutgers University)

Ruonan XuTBA

Radical Cartography: Visual Argument in the Age of Data, Professor William Rankin of Yale University

Recreational swims provide a fun and engaging way for children and parents to practice new skills, stay active, and enjoy quality time together in the pool with the MIT community.No Z Center (MIT Recreation - Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center) membership is required to participate.A parent or caregiver must accompany children in the water. Per Z Center policy, each adult may supervise up to two children at a time.Children must be at least 6 months old to join. If younger, they must be able to hold their head up comfortably. Registration is here. Only for MIT Spouses and Partners Connect members.

Speaker: Zander Kelley (IAS)Title: Bounds for 3-ProgressionsAbstract:Suppose you have a set A of integers from {1,2,...,N} that contains at least N/C elements. Then, for large enough N, must A contain three equally spaced numbers (i.e., a 3-term arithmetic progression)? In 1953, Roth showed that this is indeed the case when C is roughly loglog(N), while Behrend in 1946 showed that C can be at most 2^(√(log N)) by giving an explicit construction of a large set with no 3-term arithmetic progressions. Since then, the problem has been a cornerstone of the area of additive combinatorics. Following a series of remarkable results, a celebrated paper from 2020 due to Bloom and Sisask improved the lower bound on C to C = (log N)^(1+c), for some constant c>0.This talk will describe our work which shows that the same holds when C is roughly 2^((log N)^(1/12)), thus getting closer to Behrend's construction.Based on joint work with Raghu Meka.

Preparing for a research talk, investor pitch, or interview? Eager to polish your three-minute thesis video, podcast, or public talk? In this NEW, six-session workshop series, learn to refine your speaking and presentation skills across a range of contexts. Whether your audience is intimate or enormous, expert or novice, we will help you find strategies to capture and keep their attention. Each interactive session will invite you to implement tips on tailoring your content, delivery, and visual aids to develop your confidence, clarity, and charisma. At the end of six meetings, you will have solid advice and experience with introducing yourself and your topic, tailoring your talk to diverse audiences, structuring your content, streamlining your flow, practicing effectively, and fielding questions.Session 1: Tue, April 1, 4:00-5:30 p.m. First Impressions Session 2: Thu, April 3, 4:00-5:30 p.m. Engage Your Audience Session 3: Tue, April 8, 4:00-5:30 p.m. Structure Your Presentation Session 4: Thu, April 10, 4:00-5:30 p.m. Tell Your Story Session 5: Tue, April 15, 4:00-5:30 p.m. Enhance Your Presentation Session 6: Thu, April 17, 4:00-5:30 p.m. Finish Strong: Conclusions and Q&A