Midwest Theory Day

...[I]t is true that computer science in its theoretical formulation is dominated by a spirit of abstraction which defers to no other branch of mathematics in its zealotry. -- Davis and Hersh, "The Mathematical Experience"

Next Theory Day

The 60th MTD will take place in the spring at Indiana University (Bloomington IN) on a date yet to be determined.    

Background

Midwest Theory Day is held twice a year, usually on a Saturday in December and on a Saturday in April or May.  Anyone interested in theoretical computer science is welcome to attend.  There is no registration fee, lunch is provided, and the talks are scheduled so that from many locations in the Midwest it is often possible to come, attend all of the talks, and return home all in a day.  For those wishing to stay into the evening, arrangements for a banquet dinner are made at a local restaurant, each person paying for his or her own meal.  

There are usually six or seven contributed talks and often an invited talk.  There is no program committee and there are no proceedings.  Anyone willing to talk may do so.  The atmosphere is relaxed and informal and so is an excellent forum for graduate students to get experience giving a talk.   

Generally, the December day has been held at a university in Chicago and the spring day somewhere else in the Midwest but this varies depending on who offers to host.  

If you have any questions about the day or this web site or, better yet, if you wish to host the day please send me e-mail.

Previous Theory Days

The 59th MTD was held on Saturday, December 5th, at the DePaul University.  The talk schedule and abstracts are still available.  The 58th was held on Saturday, April 25th, at UW-Milwaukee. The 57th was held on Saturday, December 6th, on Northwestern University's Evanston campus and the 56th was held Saturday, May 10th, 2008, at the University of Michigan.  The photo below was taken at the 55th day, held on Saturday, November 17th, 2007, at the University of Chicago.  Most of the participants appear in this photo taken in Ryerson Hall on the stairway.

 

  The dates and locations of those from the past few years, with links to websites, are listed here.

• Spring, 2009: Saturday, April 25th, 2009, University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee; web site
• Fall, 2008: Saturday, December 6th, 2008, Northwestern University; web site
• Spring, 2008: Saturday, May 10th, University of Michigan; web site
• Fall, 2007: Saturday, November 17th, University of Chicago; web site; group photo
• Spring, 2007: Saturday, April 28th, University of Notre Dame; web site
• Fall, 2006; Saturday, December 2nd, Purdue University; web site
• Spring, 2006; Saturday, May 6th, Indiana University at Bloomington; web site
• Fall, 2005; Saturday, December 10th, University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee; web site
• Spring, 2005; Sunday, May 8th, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; web site
• Fall, 2004; Saturday, December 4th, DePaul University; web site
• Spring, 2004; Saturday, April 24th, University of Iowa; web site
• Fall, 2003; Saturday, December 13th, DePaul University; web site
• Spring, 2003 (canceled); Saturday, April 5th, University of Kentucky.
• Fall, 2002; Saturday, December 7th, DePaul University; website. 
• Spring, 2002; Saturday, May 4th, Illinois Institute of Technology; website.
• Fall, 2001; Saturday, December 1st, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; website.
• Spring, 2001; Saturday, April 21st, University of Wisconsin in Madison; website. 
• Fall, 2000; Saturday, December 2nd, DePaul University in Chicago; schedule and abstracts.
• Spring, 2000; No theory day was held.
• Fall, 1999; Saturday, December 4th, University of Chicago; website.

A table listing the dates and locations of all previous Theory Days is available.  This was copied from the web site created by Shripad Thite, the organizer of the December, 2001, Theory Day, and based on information given by Michael Loui. 

Author: John D. Rogers (jrogers@cs.depaul.edu), CDM, DePaul
Last updated Saturday, December 12th, 2009.