Outstanding grad combines love of math, physics

Growing up in Chandler, Arizona, Joshua Grumski-Flores was lucky to have many opportunities to strive ahead throughout his childhood. 

He was in a gifted program in elementary school. In junior high he began studying ninth grade algebra and 10th grade geometry as a seventh grader. He was then part of a class who would learn 11th grade algebra II from a high school teacher who would drive to their junior high to teach them.

In high school, these advantages kept snowballing. Hamilton High School offered classes in Calculus III, Differential Equations and Linear Algebra — courses usually taught to college undergraduates. Later he had a semester of learning various teaching techniques in mathematics and the students took turns teaching each other different topics. 

He taught his class about Fourier analysis, variational calculus and Lagrangian mechanics, as well as the general structure of backpropagation in AI neural networks — all while still in high school. This early preparation put him on extremely solid ground heading into college.

He knew he wanted to do something related to physics and loved mathematics but was debating about pursuing aerospace engineering because he thought it would likely provide a lucrative career. As he was stressing about where he was going in life, he had a conversation with his mother.

“She pointed out that I knew already that I really, really love math and physics. It was at this point I think I realized that she was right: math and physics was actually what I wanted to do. Ever since then, I have tried to become the most math-y math major I could be and the most physics-y physics major I could be,” Grumski-Flores said.

He chose to attend ASU because he knew big universities offer many opportunities for strong research, and he quickly took advantage. As a first-year student, he joined a research lab and used his required Barrett, The Honors College credits to do honors contracts with courses he genuinely wanted to learn more about.

This month he is graduating with concurrent degrees in mathematics and physics. He was selected as this year’s recipient of the Charles Wexler Mathematics Prize, presented in recognition of outstanding achievements in mathematics throughout his undergraduate career and the highest honor an undergraduate in the School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences can receive.

The Charles Wexler Mathematics Prize was established in 1977, in memory of Charles Wexler, with a gift from his wife, Helen, to honor his accomplishments in the field of mathematics and his contributions to the School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences. 

Wexler was the founding chairman of the Department of Mathematics at Arizona State University. At the time of his retirement, he had accumulated 47 years of service, the longest period of faculty service in the university’s history. In 1977, the A-wing of the Physical Sciences Center was named after Wexler in appreciation of his outstanding service to the university from 1930 until 1977.

Associate Professor Jack Spielberg’s first experience with Grumski-Flores was an honors contract in elementary linear algebra.

“I asked him (and another student) to learn and present a big chunk of advanced — i.e. theoretical — linear algebra, with proofs. Josh nailed it the way a mathematician ought. I did not learn that he studied physics too until he was in my yearlong graduate course in complex analysis. ... Josh was great in that class, but I mainly remember that every day when I walked in, he was regaling the others with the physics related to what we were working on,” Spielberg said.

Grumski-Flores said Associate Professor Julien Paupert also mentored and guided him through the topology and algebra curriculum.

“I had the pleasure of having Josh as a student in three of my classes ... He was an outstanding student in all of these, and always eager to help the class move forward and his fellow students get the most out of it," Paupert said. 

“The school and the people here at ASU supported me rather well, and I would recommend the degree program to others," Grumski-Flores said. "In fact, I have often advised physics majors to try to at least take a math minor, if not a math major, on top of their degree. Overall, I like just how helpful the faculty has been to me, and I love the passion that these faculty members have for their teaching."

After graduation, Grumski-Flores plans to return to ASU to pursue a PhD in physics. 

Question: What’s something you learned while at ASU — in the classroom or otherwise — that surprised you, that changed your perspective?

Answer: I feel like I can’t really “rank” the things I learned in many of my classes. There are just too many topics I find fascinating: my favorite classes include the graduate complex analysis sequence, the homology course I took, quantum III, quantum field theory, etc. All of these have contributed to my overall view of physics and mathematics.

Q:  Which professor taught you the most important lesson while at ASU?

A: I think Dr. Tuna Yildirim has taught me the most important lesson I learned at ASU. He helped teach me that sometimes, it’s more important to work with someone because of their personality. He helped teach me about a number of stories of his previous advisors and his friends’ previous advisors and pointed out that sometimes, even the most brilliant people aren’t the best advisors, and other times, sometimes someone who works really well with one person just doesn’t work well with another person. I have since taken that lesson to heart, and as I move on to graduate school and beyond, sometimes the human part of research is an incredibly important part to pay attention to.

Q: What’s the best piece of advice you’d give to those still in school?

A: Your professors should be your friends. They seem daunting at first, but genuinely getting to know your professors, asking questions, going to office hours and doing research does absolute numbers for you! Becoming a “known figure” in the Wexler halls can be a very valuable thing, and just getting to know your professors will continue to help you as you are bombarded with more and more questions as you go through your degree.

Q: If working, where do you work and what kind of work do you do?

A: I work at a karate school on the weekend, although I treat this job as more a hobby more than work itself. However, in addition to working as a karate instructor, I have been a Learning Assistant for the physics department for the past three years, where I have helped teach a large variety of classes, including Physics I, II, III; Mathematical Methods in Physics I and II; and Quantum Mechanics II. I love watching these students’ faces go “aha!” as something finally clicks; it’s always so satisfying.

I also have worked as a facilitator for the Sundial Early Start program for the Physics Department and the School for Earth and Space Exploration. For this project, I helped design curriculum for incoming first-year students from a variety of backgrounds with the goal of helping prepare them for their undergraduate degree.

Finally, I am a tutor. I have tutored students in a wide range of topics, from high school Algebra 2 and Introductory Physics 1 to senior-level algebra and quantum mechanics. I love to teach — I view being an educator as an almost mandatory role for anyone in academia. 

Q: What is most misunderstood about mathematics by the general public?

A: I think this is a rather classic answer, so not to be cliché, but I don’t think the public realizes how much like a puzzle math can really be. To many people, math is just “tedious.” I don’t think they realize that math often feels a bit more like “playing games” and slowly getting to a solution. I feel like if more people were to see this side of math, more people would be able to see that math is a really enjoyable field with a ton of beauty to uncover.

Q: What are your favorite memories of your time in the School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences?

A: I have so many great memories! I had a ton of fun working on homework assignments with my friends and groupmates, going through the various puzzles that were assigned to us and coming up with solutions together. I loved the courses I took ... (they) provided me with so many tools, which continue to fascinate me and for which makes me just want to learn more.