Julián Elorza presents his book Matemática Básica

The date 23 October 2019 will be marked as the day on which Julián Elorza’s 20-year work became a reality.  The retired professor of Mondragon Unibertsitatea has continued to visit the classrooms every day to work on his life’s work. The final result, the book entitled Matemática Básica (Basic Mathematics) was presented in room 7006 of the Iturripe Campus before over 50 people. The book, which consists of roughly 1,500 pages, is divided into three volumes: Arithmetic, Geometry, and Calculus. Each of them presents mathematical problems classified by difficulty levels, from 1 to 4, inviting the reader to solve them in order of difficulty.

Basic Mathematics has been a success, surpassing even the best forecasts, since Mondragon Unibertsitatea published a first edition of 50 numbers that sold out instantly. The second edition is currently on sale through the online platform of the Elkar publishing house or write an email to info@mondragon.edu

Review of a trajectory linked to numbers

Xabier Arrasate, coordinator of the area of Mechanics and Industrial Production, acted as Master of Ceremonies, directing the presentation of Julián Elorza, who began his presentation detailing the origin of his love for mathematics, when he was only 13 years old.  Later, Elorza went on to tell a number of anecdotes regarding his performance in mathematical learning, which really delighted the attendants. Among them, his foray into foreign languages, such as German or Russian, which he decided to study, was especially successful given that, at that time, mathematics in Spanish was not sufficiently developed.

After an intense review of his professional life, Elorza stated that he began to write his work when he retired, as a way of being linked to the world he was passionate about. Nevertheless, two decades later, with the work published, the protagonist laughingly admitted that “if I knew that it would take me so long, I would have thought twice before starting.” 
To finish his presentation, Julián Elorza vindicated the importance for mathematics, even today, to develop its own teaching methodology. According to our professor, mathematical teaching cannot be equated with any other academic subject, let alone with theoretical ones, as a maths teacher must face the particularities of each student.

An event with a remarkable cast

Carlos García, Director-General of the Higher Polytechnic School, was responsible for kicking off the event, presenting the protagonists of the afternoon.  After a brief introduction in which he presented the details of the event, Carlos García gave the floor to Luis Vega, director of the Basque Centre of Applied Mathematics (BCAM) and a PhD in mathematics from the University of the Basque Country. Vega, who acted as a luxury opening act to prepare the atmosphere for Elorza’s presentation, presented his paper entitled “Mathematics in the digital age”. During it, he presented to the audience the importance that mathematics continues to have in the era of mobile applications and artificial intelligence. In addition, he presented the work conducted by BCAM in favour of mathematics, its areas of action, and the projects they carry out. As it is a centre specialising in the different modes of application of mathematics, an in the words of Vega, the BCAM must be alert to the new currents that develop in society, in order to be able to generate vocational mathematicians among the new generations.

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