The memory of His Royal Highness
Once upon a time, I met a His Royal Highness the Duke of Kent.
The story of how that happened was pretty cool from my perspective, but every so often I wonder about it from his perspective. The Duke is the patron of the Royal Institution of Australia, and was in Australia just as they were displaying their installation of the Institute for Figuring's Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef. So they organised a special viewing for him, to which a few key people were invited. One of those people was me, since I was the mathematician involved in the project.
I had a short but pleasant conversation with an old man about geometry and what it was like to be a man crocheting in public. We're laughing in the photo, so somebody must have said something funny, though I don't remember what it was. And that was it.
I suppose His Royal Highness meets a lot of people, so I might not make much of a difference to him. But every so often I think about how when he thinks about his time in Adelaide, there I am, if even for a moment (perhaps made just a little more memorable due to the rarity of meeting people standing in a roomful of coral made of yarn). I am part of the life memory of the Queen's cousin.
Which gets me thinking...
Many of the students who I meet through my work in the MLC, I only meet once. Yet what happens with me will be a part of their memory of their time at university, however small. My short time with them is entangled forever with the events of their lives during their study. Will that moment with me make their memories more or less pleasant? Will it encourage them or discourage them? Will I just confirm their worst fears about themselves, or will it be at all like this student, who one visit to a lab in one class made all the difference?
| From Ashleigh Geiger on Twitter 23 Aug 2020 |
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For me, at school, the focus on memorising rather than understanding is what fostered a fear of maths. Returning to uni later in life and needing to use maths (biochem and genetics) showed me there was nothing wrong with my abilities, just my perception of my abilities. And the way the maths was taught in my degree showed me how powerful and interesting it can be, and helped me learn to enjoy it again. I never ended up visiting the MLC but having your team wander around in prac classes, peer over my shoulder and tell me I’d nailed it did wonders for my confidence! 😊 So whilst I did have experiences early on that made me fear/hate maths, take heart that they can be turned around by positive and empowering experiences with the right teacher. Love your work! |
| https://x.com/ashleigh_bryar/status/1297305993487896577 |
Every one of these students is important to someone, much more than a Royal who lives on the other side of the world is important to me. And I am there in their memory for better or for worse. This inspires me regularly to be the best I can be with each and every one of the students, especially that very first time I meet them.
Because once upon a time, His Royal Highness the Duke of Kent met me.