ESP Biography



SOPHIA SMITH, MIT first-year studying mathematics




Major: 18

College/Employer: MIT

Year of Graduation: 2029

Picture of Sophia Smith

Brief Biographical Sketch:

I'm from Washington, DC. I really like math!



Past Classes

  (Clicking a class title will bring you to the course's section of the corresponding course catalog)

M16444: Bridge Crossing 101: An Intro to Graph Theory in HSSP Spring 2026 (Feb. 28, 2026)
Have you ever wondered whether it’s possible to cross every bridge in a city exactly once? Or how many colors you really need to color a map? In this class, we’ll explore graph theory, the mathematics of connections. Starting from simple drawings of dots and lines, we’ll build up to powerful ideas like Eulerian circuits, planar graphs, and graph coloring. Along the way, you’ll discover some surprising results: why there are only five Platonic solids, how to tell when you can connect points without crossing lines, and what it means for a graph to live on a donut. The class will be hands on and very visual, with plenty of puzzles, experiments, and examples you can play with. By the end, you’ll be able to model real-world situations using graphs, reason carefully about structure, and see everyday problems in a completely new way. No advanced math background required! Just curiosity and a willingness to think creatively.