Requirements
for Students Desiring to Do Mathematics Research Projects Under My
Direction
I am happy to direct students on mathematical research projects
provided the students agree to and abide by the following conditions:
1. The student must be responsible, self-motivated, and
respectful of my time.
2. So that I have ample time to develop a suitable project for
your work, you must contact me by the registration period during the
semester preceding the
semester that you wish to begin work. Do not contact me at the
beginning of a semester and ask me to direct your work during that same
semester.
3. You must take the initiative to contact me no later than the
week before the semester
begins regarding our meeting times during that semester. If I
contact you first, then please respond promptly.
4. Before our work begins, please become proficient in
typesetting mathematics using either Microsoft Word with Equation
Editor, Mathematica, or
LaTeX. I will be happy to help you get started; but by the time
our work begins on your project, you must be able to typeset
mathematics.
5. When we are scheduled to meet, then we are to meet. Do
not cancel an appointment without giving me at least one day’s
notice. If you cancel an appointment without giving me proper
notice, or if you simply fail to show up, then I may stop direction of
your
work at that time. And if you make a habit out of canceling
our meetings, then I definitely will cease direction of your work.
6. You must work continually on your project. Do not
procrastinate or put off your work for weeks at a time. Your
project is to be scheduled into your work week like any other class or
obligation.
7. Every week I will ask for the latest update of your
work. It should include any revisions or additions that we have
discussed.
8. If I design a project for you, then its intellectual copyright
belongs to me and you are allowed to use the material for your work
with my permission. But if I cease being your director, then the
permission to use my material is revoked.
If you are a serious student and are willing to work diligently, then I
will try my best to find a project that is of interest to you and I
will direct your work through its completion.
Directed
Masters Theses
Extensions of Random Bowling
– Jennifer Hohn, in progress.
A Generalized Random Walk with a
Betting Scenario – Michael Russell, May 2007. Main
results to be published jointly as A Generalized Martingale Betting
Strategy in Missouri Journal of
Mathematical Sciences.
Uniform Convergence of Standardized
Special Distributions – Marcia Lami, May 2002.
New Theories in Random Walks –
Lina Jichi, December 1998.
Generalized One-Dimensional Random
Walks With Negative Binomial Stopping Times – Mark Rogers, May
1997. Main results were published jointly as Generalized
Random Walks with
Negative Binomial Stopping Times, New
Zealand Journal of Mathematics, Volume 30, 2001, p. 69 – 79.
Directed
Senior Research Projects (MATH 498)
A Geometric Betting Challenge – Frank Polivka, Spring 2008.
A Goodness of Fit Test on a Queue: Is It a Poisson Distribution?
– Catherine Wilson, Spring 2008.
A Truncated Geometric Distribution – Quinn Thomas, Fall 2007.
Using the Math: Satellite Orbits – James Overton, Fall 2007.
Mean and Standard Deviation in Random Bowling – Jennifer Hohn, Spring
2007.
Hypothesis Testing for Exponential Distributions – Jennifer Jones,
Spring 2007.
A One-Sided Boundary Problem for Two-Dimensional Simple Random Walks –
Aziz Bah, Summer 2005.
Average Extrema of Geometric Random Walks – Justin Grieves, Spring 2005.
A Distribution of Geometric Averages – Jennifer Helm, Fall 2004.
Increasing the Accuracy of Confidence Intervals for Exponential Means –
Mark Mabry, Fall 2004.
Averages and Probabilities for Casino Betting Games – Leslie Adams,
Fall 2004.
Binomial Bowling – Patrick Brown, Spring 2004. Published jointly
in Missouri Journal of Mathematical
Sciences, Volume 18, Number 1, 2006, p. 17–25.
Approximating Pi with the Golden Ratio – Stacy Patrick, Fall
2003. Published jointly in The
Mathematics Teacher, Volume 99, Number 7, March 2006, p.
472–477.
Other
Undergraduate Research Directed (MATH 398/Honors Augments)
Distribution of a Circular Random Walk – Matt Dawson, Fall 2004.
Based upon an idea of Professor David Benko and used
with his permission.
Game Theory – Ben Brewster, Fall 2004.
Actuarial Mathematics – Chris Brasfield, Spring 2004.
Doubling Random Walks – Wes Daughtry, Buddy Lagani, Fall 2001.
Linear Algebra with Mathematica – Amy Jones, Mark Thomas, Kevin
Patrick, Spring 1995.
Stopped Random Walks – Lon Maynard, 1993–94. Published jointly as
Stopped Random Walks: Areas and Lengths, The Pi Mu Epsilon Journal, Vol. 9,
Spring 1994, Number 10, p. 654–661.
Send questions or comments to
Dr. David K. Neal
Department of Mathematics
Western Kentucky University
Bowling Green, KY 42101
270 - 745 - 6213
david.neal@wku.edu
All contents copyright (c) 2007. The David K. Neal
Group
of Companies, Ltd.