A research monograph written by Mihai Caragiu, Ph.D., professor of mathematics and chair of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Ohio Northern University, was recently released.

“Sequential Experiment with Primes” (Springer Nature, 2017) is designed for fellow educators and advanced mathematics students.

Fittingly, it reflects Caragiu’s work with ONU students.

“It is an extension of my research done at ONU that also involved our undergraduates,” he explained.

According to material from Amazon, “With a specific focus on the mathematical life in small undergraduate colleges, this book presents a variety of elementary number theory insights involving sequences largely built from prime numbers and contingent number-theoretic functions. … This book is perfect for the pure-mathematics-minded educator in a small undergraduate college as well as graduate students and advanced undergraduate students looking for a significant high-impact learning experience in mathematics.”

Assisting with the project were ONU students Lisa Scheckelhoff, Greg Back, Lauren Sutherland and Ashley Risch as well as mathematics faculty member Jaki Chowdhury, Ph.D.

The four students have since moved on to successful careers with potential for further achievements. Scheckelhoff (with degrees in pharmacy, applied mathematics and biology) is currently a pharmacist. Back (with degrees in computer engineering and mathematics) is now a cybersecurity engineer at MITRE Corporation and is pursuing his master’s degree in computer science. Sutherland (with degrees in electrical engineering and applied mathematics) is project engineer at RoviSys. Risch (with a mathematics degree) is a mathematics teacher at Conneaut High School.

“In a sense, the diversity of their careers echoes a saying of the legendary mathematician Georg Cantor: ‘The essence of mathematics is freedom.’ We might say that the pure mathematical experience of the students involved in the study of such an exotic area as ‘greatest prime factor sequences’ provided them additional strength to be bold, think independently and cherish the sense of freedom of choosing their own path in life,” Caragiu said.