Find out what's going on around campus at: |
July 21: William Kapell Competition–Final Concerto Round with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Aug. 3: 4th Annual Wrenn Scholarship Scramble Sept. 1: Maryland Football vs. Villanova
Sept. 13: Maryland Football vs. West Virginia
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Don't miss this closing Kapell performance featuring three finalists performing with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of conductor David Lockington. Competition winners will be announced. |
 Securing a Faculty Competitive with the Best
 Founding IPST Director Leaves an Enduring Legacy
"My father was very concerned with building an excellent institute and looking to the future," says Martin's daughter, Mary Helen Goldsmith, Professor Emerita of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at Yale University. "He was always looking for new opportunities to attract outstanding people to Maryland." Even as his responsibilities increased, Martin never lost touch with students. "He loved teaching, from freshman to graduate students. He enjoyed getting students excited about mathematics and the impact their work could have," Goldsmith adds. Simon Levin Ph.D. '64 mathematics, the George M. Moffett Professor of Biology at Princeton University, was a first-year graduate student when he began working with Martin. "What I wanted to do—use math to solve biology problems—was a relatively new idea for mathematicians and Professor Monroe unfailingly encouraged me. The most important and subtle lesson he taught me was be open to different areas of research," says Levin. Martin is his model when it comes to guiding students. "I have mentored more than 40 students. With each one, I think of all of the time he spent with me discussing my research, and I remember the independence he encouraged." Maryland Department of Mathematics Chair James Yorke, leader of the institute's top-ranked chaos group and one of Martin's recruits, recalls his buoyant, inquisitive nature. His choice of faculty had a permanent, positive effect on research in the mathematical sciences at Maryland. "Every university brags about an interdisciplinary component, but it is often quite limited," says Yorke. "That simply is not true at Maryland, and IPST has played a significant role in pushing beyond those insular approaches." On Martin's retirement in 1972, his colleagues and students endowed the Monroe H. Martin Prize, an international prize honoring outstanding young mathematicians in applied mathematics. Frank Olver served as chair of the Monroe Martin Prize Committee for more than three decades and he recalls Martin's attendance at nearly every lecture by the prize winners, virtually all of whom have gone on to pursue successful careers in mathematics. "He was always interested in helping younger mathematicians and anxious to keep finding new talent," recalls Olver, who attended Martin's 100th birthday celebration just weeks before his death. For as long as he was able, Martin continued to conduct math research as part of his daily activities. "He never lost his passion for mathematics; discovering a new mathematical proof was exciting and beautiful to him," says Goldsmith.  | |||||
