Midlife Calculus -- poems by Britt Kaufmann

     Today's featured poet, Britt Kaufmann, is not only a writer but also a graphic designer, a playwright, and "a lifelong reader and learner."  And a math tutor!  Out this month (from Press 53) is her mathy collection, Midlife Calculus -- a thoughtful and  fun-to-read collection that links math ideas to a variety of life's experiences.  

     Last February, I was introduced to Kaufmann's work when her book-title-poem, "Midlife Calculus," appeared in Scientific American.  I was delighted to also find her poem,  "Z-score of Zero" here in the April-May edition of MAA Focus and I was drawn to include it in this April, 2024 blog-posting.  Visit and enjoy!

     Midlife Calculus is available here.  And below are a couple of samples:    

A Mathy Celebration of National Poetry Month

     It is a delight to me to see math and science publications including poetry!  Today I am enjoying the work of North Carolina poet Britt Kaufmann -- Kaufmann works as a math tutor -- and her poem "Midnight Calculus" appeared in the February 2024 issue of Scientific American.  The accompanying bio mentioned that Kaufmann took her first calculus course at age 47.

     More recently, under the heading "In Celebration of National Poetry Month," MAA FOCUS, the Newsmagazine of the Mathematical Association of America. another Kaufmann poem appeared, "Z-score of Zero."   (A z-score measures exactly how many standard deviations above or below the mean a particular data-number is.)  Kaufmann gives us a thoughtful poetic reflection of math on life!