First-Year Seminar: The Mathematics of Voting.

Catalog description

What properties should a fair election have and are these properties achievable in theory and in practice? How can mathematics and statistics be used to expose election fraud and gerrymandering? Students will address these questions as they compare different election systems, evaluate their strengths, weaknesses, and abuses, and design improvements to current structures. Topics will include gerrymandering, ranked voting, approval voting, and Arrow's Impossibility Theorem.