MoMath adds up the fun at Madison Square Park event
The National Museum of Mathematics hosted a fulfilled afternoon adjacent to Madison Square Park while their location
remains closed due to COVID-19 restrictions.
BY DEAN MOSES
North America’s only math museum
took their numbers to the street on
May 16 at Madison Square Park.
The National Museum of Mathematics
remains one of the few museums that are
still closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Associate Director Timothy
Nissen of the National Museum of Mathematics,
this is due to the fact that 90%
of the exhibits are physically interactive—
NYS guidelines previously restricted use
of hands-on exhibits—and with the fear
of the deadly virus clinging to surfaces the
doors to the East 26th Street location has
been shuttered.
With young New Yorkers unable to visit
their exhibition, the Math Museum decided
to bring the exhibit to them, and out in
the open.
With the number of COVID-19 cases
PHOTOS BY DEAN MOSES
Staff members of the National Museum of Mathematics showcased fun games
using geometric shapes and numbers.
hitting new lows seemingly every day, the
countdown to brighter days has begun with
outdoor math.
Thanks to the Big Apple’s Open Streets
program — which Mayor Bill de Blasio
recently made a permanent fi xture — the
National Museum of Mathematics set up a
free outdoor calculus event on May 16 for
families to enjoy.
Various geometry games lay spread out,
stretching down East 26th Street beside
Madison Square Park, with children racing
over mats depicting numbers, shapes, and
mazes.
Dylan, a two-year-old numerical enthusiast,
became the fi rst person to give the
museum’s longest exhibit a test drive.
“We found out about this on amNewYork’s
things to do. Stuff that is outside really
helps because we have a two-year-old who
is not vaccinated yet, so it is really nice.
He is learning to count but he is already a
big fan of numbers,” said Marc Franzblau,
Dylan’s father.
In addition to the ground exhibits, displays
included television screens presenting
kaleidoscopic imagery and a gigantic
Connect 4. Staff from the museum were
on hand to play and teach young people regarding
the fun side of math. These adults
joined in the amusement by participating in
the activities alongside the children.
Associate Director Nissen was overjoyed
to watch life fl utter around the museum
again for the fi rst time in well over a year.
“We are outdoors, the weather is nice—
we are starting up again,” Nissen said, adding,
“It is really nice to see this. We have
had kids crying to stay at our museum.”
The beaming sun made the event appealing
to those who were just passing by. With
the street blocked off from traffi c, children
of all ages were afforded the ability to jog
around the area without parents fearing for
their safety. Longtime fans of the National
Museum of Mathematics also made sure
to attend.
“My daughter loved the Math Museum
since she went on a fi eld trip here with her
school and it has been closed for a while so
when I saw they were having this, I knew I
had to check it out,” Carlie Sigel said.
The Museum is set to reopen this summer
and tickets go on sale starting June 1
(earlier for members) at visit.momath.org.
A massive Connect 4 was also at hand for those savvy enough to play this
classic game.
4 May 20, 2021 Schneps Media
/visit.momath.org
