Harel Barzilai

Department of Mathematics
Cornell University
Ithaca NY 14853
Fax: 607-255-7149
 
 Home Phone:
Department:
Email:
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Citizenship:
 607-257-7057
607-255-4013
harelb@math.cornell.edu
http://math.cornell.edu/~harelb
U.S. (In U.S. since age 6)

Education
Ph.D. in Mathematics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY (1997, expected).
M.S. in Mathematics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL (1989).
B.A. in Mathematics, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH (1988).    -- summa cum laude

Doctoral Thesis
Title: Finiteness Properties for Handlebody Mapping Class Groups.
Advisor: Allen Hatcher.

Research Interests
Low Dimensional Topology; Geometric Group Theory; DNA Computing; Applied Topology.

Teaching Experience
Recitation Section Leader, Math 191 (First Semester Engineering Calculus).
Course Instructor, Math 111 (First Semester Calculus) and Math 112 (Second Semester Calculus).
Teaching Assistant, Math 454 (A discussion/writing/discovery-based Differential Geometry course).
Grader, Math 561 (Graduate level Topics in Topology).
Instructor, projects-based Math 112 (Second Semester Calculus).

Curricular Development, Mathematics Education, and Mentoring Experience
Led a successful calculus reform initiative for the Department's Math 112 and Math 111.
Developed syllabus, new course materials; coordinated, consulted with faculty and instructors.

Took minicourse, Mathematics for Secondary Teaching with Avery Solomon (Spring 1997).

Awarded grant-based special TA for curricular development for Math 111 (Fall 1996).

Took minicourse, College Teaching -- A Seminar led by Tom Rishel (Fall 1996).
Took Educational Issues in Undergraduate Mathematics with David Henderson (Spring 1996).
Audited Math Ed. Seminar led by David Henderson (Math) and Jere Confrey (Education) (Spring 1994).
Attended day-long Graduate Teaching Development Workshops at Cornell (1992-1996).
Attended Seminar on Undergraduate Teaching led by Tom Rishel at Cornell (1991-1996).

Regularly participated in the Math Table dinners designed to encourage and support prospective undergraduate math majors, especially women and other underrepresented groups (1996- ).

Publications

  • Graduate Student Initiated Calculus Reform, submitted.
  • The Trouble with Stereotypes about TAs,letter to appear in U Magazine (Circulation: 1.5 million).
  • New Web site: Cornell Calculus Reform Pages, in MER Forum eNews, November 1996.
  • Several articles in Math Department's Undergraduate News including Special Projects-Oriented Sections of Math 112: the Saga Continues (November 1995) and Math 112 Continues the Tradition (March 1996).

    Talks Given

  • DNA: The Next Generation Computer? for Graduate Olivetti Club, Cornell (March 1995).



  •   Under Pew Foundation's Preparing Future Faculty program (includes speaking honorarium):

  • Using DNA as a Computer for Ithaca College Pi Mu Epsilon Math Honor Society (March 1996).
  • Using DNA as a Computer for Wells College Science Colloquium (December 1995).

  •  At Seminar on Undergraduate Teaching, Cornell:

  • Beyond Research and Teaching: Graduate Student Involvement in Curricular Reform (a job-market asset)(Spring 1997).
  • Coordinating Calculus Reform within the Department and Nationally: The Internet Resource Library (Fall 1996).
  • Cornell's Graduate Teaching Development Workshops (Spring 1996).
  • Math 112 The Other Way, with Professor David Henderson (Fall 1995).
  • Calculus Reform Comes to Cornell, with Lisa Orlandi (Spring 1995).
  • Calculus Reform at Cornell: Why Reform? (Fall 1994).

  •  Research:

  • Finiteness Properties for Handlebody Mapping Class Groups, at Cornell Topology Seminar (November 1996).
  • Contractible Disc Complexes for Handlebody Mapping Class Groups, at Cornell Topology Seminar (February, 1997)

  •  One to two week long expository presentations at Berstein Seminar in Topology, Cornell:

  • Homological Stability for Automorphism Groups of Free Groups (Fall 1994).
  • Two-Dimensional Submanifolds of Four-Dimensional Manifolds: Rokhlin's Construction (Fall 1993).
  • Torsion in the Mapping Class Group and its Cohomology (Fall 1992).

    Conferences Attended
    MAA Seaway Section meeting at Geneseo, NY (November 1996).
    MAA Seaway Section meeting at Elmira, NY (April 1996).
    MAA Seaway Section meeting at Geneva, NY (April 1995).
    MAA Seaway Section meeting at Rochester, NY (November 1994).
    Albany Group Theory Conference (The Rensselaerville Institute, NY, Fall 1992).
    Topology Festival, Cornell University (Annually, 1992-1996).

    Conference Presentations
    Calculus Reform at Cornell: A Cooperative and Projects-based Approach, co-presenter with Lisa Orlandi at national MER Workshop, Statler Hotel, Cornell University, November 16-19, 1995.

    Honors
    McCormick Fellow, University of Chicago (1988-91).  
    Graduated Summa Cum Laude from Dartmouth College (1988) .
    Received a total of nine Academic Citations during my ten quarters enrolled (September 1985 - March 1988).
    Tutoring Excellence Award, from Reading and Study Skills Center, Dartmouth College (1987).
    Rufus Choate Scholar, Dartmouth College (1986-88).
    Lemuel G. Hodgkins 1900 Memorial Scholarship, Dartmouth College (1986-87).

    References
    Research: Professors Allen Hatcher (hatcher@math.cornell.edu), Marshall Cohen (marshall@math.cornell.edu).
    Teaching: Professors Tom Rishel (rishel@math.cornell.edu), David Henderson (dwh@math.cornell.edu).

    Computer Skills and Experience
    Experienced in HTML; Web design; unix; Emacs; Adobe Illustrator/Photoshop.
    Used Analyzer* in Calculus Class (Spring 1996); used Graphing Calculators (Spring 1997).

    For additional information, see my Web page at: http://math.cornell.edu/~harelb