Campus briefs

NPR's 'Math Guy' to talk about blackjack card counting

Today at 7 p.m., Stanford math professor Keith Devlin will give a general-interest talk and screen a documentary on card counting in blackjack in Daly Science 206.

Devlin, a regular contributor to National Public Radio as the "Math Guy," worked on the one-hour BBC documentary chronicling a team of Massachusetts Institute of Technology science students who took on the Las Vegas casinos and raked in millions of dollars in the mid-1990s.

"Hardworking engineering students during the week, they became high-rolling gamblers by the weekend and proved that, in one game at least, the house doesn't always win," reads the program script on BBC's Web site.

The documentary, released in 2005, has been broadcast in several countries, but not the United States. Devlin will talk about the making of the film and the mathematical issues surrounding the exploits of the students.

"Their audacious winnings marked the climax of an arms race between casino and player that began 40 years earlier with a discovery by MIT math professor Edward Thorp," the script states. "(Thorp) realized that the one feature of blackjack that made it different from other casino games also made it possible to beat."

In addition to teaching math courses, Devlin is the executive director and a senior researcher for the Center for the Study of Language and Information at Stanford University. He also co-founded Stanford's Media X research network.

Currently, Devlin is researching how to communicate mathematics to diverse audiences through different kinds of media.

Alumnus to share his path to entrepreneurial success

Rocky Pimentel, Class of 1977, will come to Santa Clara on Feb. 26 to discuss the core "career stops" on his path to become the executive vice president and chief financial Officer of Glu Mobile, the leading global publisher of mobile games.

Pimentel's resumé boasts a number of successful entrepreneur ventures in technology. Prior to his current position at Glu Mobile, Pimentel held leadership positions at Zone Labs, Redpoint Ventures, WebTV Networks, LSI Logic Corporation and Seagate Technology.

The event constitutes the Winter Quarter Speaker Series for the Center of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Drinks and appetizers will be served during the networking reception that begins at 6:30 p.m., followed by the talk at 7 p.m.

The event is free, but seating is limited. To R.S.V.P., visit the Leavey School of Business Web site at scu.edu/business/cie/vin/events.cfm.

From staff reports. E-mail news@thesantaclara.com.