Mobylize

Imagine Mathematics: $100K Challenge Finalist

When Seth Piezas joined Pixar Animation Studios as a technical director, the first thing he realized about the job was how much math it involved. The only problem: He hadn't taken a math course since high school. Piezas had to scramble back in time and search his brain for dusty concepts like trigonometry and calculus.

"It's amazing how much math it takes to render films like Toy Story or Monsters Inc.," says Piezas. That's when it hit him. If he'd had a tool in high school that drew a direct connection between math, animation and filmmaking, he would have been far more engaged in class.

"Math would have been less abstract and much more fun," he says. "I would have had a far better understanding of mathematical concepts."

That's the inspiration behind Imagine Mathematics, a tablet-based application that illuminates math disciplines like algebra, trigonometry and calculus by taking students behind the scenes and showing them how these disciplines are used in the creation of animated movies from studios like Disney and Pixar.

"If you could see through the images, what you would see is math in its purest form," says Piezas, who currently runs an interactive agency called Colabi. "From the geometric equations that govern a simple shape to the trigonometry that shades millions of triangles together to make a scene, some of our most beloved and celebrated collective digital experiences are illusions generated by math."

With the Imagine Mathematics app, students can move through a 3D environment and see the concepts and algorithms used in the creation of animated images. They can also change the images by playing with the algorithms. For instance, they can rotate an object by making a few minor tweaks to the appropriate equation. The idea is to give students a sandbox to gain meaningful insight by visualizing abstract mathematic concepts.

"I want students to see the practical applications of math and the cool things they can create," said Piezas. "The tablet computer really is an amazing platform for the classroom. I just wish I had something like it when I was a kid."

After years working on films and TV shows, Piezas is thrilled to focus his efforts on building an app for education. At this point in his career, education is something he feels extremely passionate about. He is married to a teacher and has gained a better appreciation for the enormous amount of energy teachers devote to their students.

"When I think of getting recognized by Marvell, I would like to acknowledge all of the teachers who poured their energy into me and enabled me to walk this path," he says. "My hope is that Imagine Mathematics ends up making their jobs a little easier and a little more fun."