I Just Love Math And Most People

I Didn't Think That College Math Was For Me. I Didn't Think I'd Be Able To Hack It. And That Perception Of Math Not Being For Girls, Not Being For Girls Who See Themselves As Socially Well Adjusted Has Got To Change.

I Took A Break From Acting For Four Years To Get A Degree In Mathematics At Ucla, And During That Time I Had The Rare Opportunity To Actually Do Research As An Undergraduate. And Myself And Two Other People Co-authored A New Theorem: Percolation And Gibbs States Multiplicity For Ferromagnetic Ashkin-teller Models On Two Dimensions, Or Z2.

What I Got Which Was Unusual, Especially As A Child Actress, Was Parents Who Believed That Hollywood Was Not That Important. They Told Us Education, Family, Health, All Come First And They Meant It.

If I'm Teaching Girls That Do Love To Make Cookies And Do Love Fashion - That They Can Use Math As A Part Of That - You Think That's Me Saying, Come On Girls You Belong In The Kitchen, You Belong Shopping? Or, Do You Think It's Me Showing Them How Math Is Part Of All Their Life, Even The Part They Thought It Had Nothing To Do With?

I Recognize That I Have A Unique Position To Be A Role Model To Young Girls Because I Am Doing Something That They Consider Glamorous, Which Is Acting, And Yet I Took A Time To Really Get My Education And Study Mathematics, And I Think Math Is The Cat's Meow.