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| Mary Lib (left) and McKenna (right) |
This morning was filled with some super cool graph theory lessons courtesy of Dr. Harris. Some of the topics covered included networks models, chromatic numbers, domination numbers, and digraphs. We were able to tie these concepts back to what we learned from Drs. Bouzarth and Hutson about linear and integer programming, as graph theory has applications in areas such as scheduling and resource placement. As a company seeking to make a profit, Disney is concerned with these types of issues. They would like to schedule Disney employees in the most efficient way possible so as not to waste time or money.
We also had some time before lunch to work with our groups
on the project that Molly and Alyssa mentioned yesterday. Each group has a
similar problem, but with different objectives. My group (Mary Lib) is working
a workforce-scheduling problem in which we want to minimize the number of time
periods that are over-scheduled at Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Café. My group
(McKenna) has the same workforce-scheduling problem, but instead, we are trying
to reduce the number of employees needed to cover the workload across all
shifts.
The Amazing Race
After a break for lunch, we reconvened and the professors
told us about a new challenge! This challenge is similar to the Hollywood Studios Integer
Knapsack problem on Thursday, but this time we are attempting to solve a
problem similar in style to the “Traveling Salesman Problem,” a famous math
problem in which the salesman must find the shortest route between several points. Tomorrow we’re headed to Magic Kingdom for
what we’ll call “The Amazing Race – Magic Kingdom edition.” Groups are to design
and implement a strategy that will lead us through a total of 17 attractions across
all lands of Magic Kingdom. So be sure to stay tuned for tomorrow’s blog to see how it all
went down.
Next stop on the fun train: Magic Kingdom for the afternoon! We had some free time, so we broke into smaller groups to hit our favorite
rides.
McKenna's group
My group immediately went straight for Space
Mountain. It broke down right before we had the chance to ride it the other day
so it was at the top of our list today. I had never ridden it before, and I
absolutely loved it. Up next was another personal favorite: the Mad Tea Party,
more commonly recognized as the teacups ride. It was just as fun as I had
remembered, except the teacups seemed much smaller than I was remembering! As
we were leaving the teacups, I spotted Tigger and Pooh leaving the autograph
area. I (with my bum ankle) hobbled off after them as quickly as I could. You see, when
I was a toddler, I decided that I would just skip the entire line of people
waiting to see Tigger. I attached myself to him, and no one could get me to let
go. I’m sure that I am in the photo albums of families across the world because
of that little stunt. Since then, it has become a tradition that every time I
go to Disney, I have to get a picture with Tigger. I didn’t catch Tigger
tonight despite several attempts, but don’t worry, I’ll get my picture with him
(after waiting in line, of course)!
Mary Lib's group
Lines were surprisingly short this afternoon, so my group was able to hit several high-quality rides (not to say that all
Disney rides are not high-quality) in a short amount of time. We too headed to Space Mountain first, along with McKenna’s group, but we weren’t the only ones with that bright
idea. Clearly, Space Mountain is a favorite of the professors as well, as seen
below.
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| Drs. Hutson, Harris, and Bouzarth on Space Mountain! |
Next up, we crossed over into Frontierland, where we rode
Splash Mountain and the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
We met back up as a whole at Jungle Cruise, where we are
pretty sure a record was set for the number of puns a Disney cast member could
throw into a 10-minute ride – shout out to Skipper Whitney for those zingers. Before dinner, we
hit some more great attractions like Mickey’s Philharmagic, the Mad Tea
Party, and the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train!
And of course, no day at Magic Kingdom would be complete
without seeing a few familiar faces, particularly princesses. I (Mary Lib) met
Ariel, my personal favorite, while I (McKenna) met Rapunzel and Cinderella. Time is really flying by if you ask us, so be sure to keep checking the blog so you can stay updated with all things mathemagical!
P.S. Happy birthday to McKenna's mom, Terri! Hope your day was magical!
Written by: Mary Lib Saine and McKenna Luzynski
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