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On Sep. 28, 2009, MathOverflow went online, and has almost ten years of almost constant operation, thanks to StackExchange.

There will be an obligatory post observing the anniversary. The board of MathOverflow LLC might hold a toast (with coffee and tea) in observance as well, and they may yet have bigger plans. Until those plans appear, this post is a staging area for people who want to celebrate the forum away from the forum (as in meeting in some locale). For a timely and well anticipated event, starting plans about now seems good.

How do you want to observe the anniversary? And where, and who do you want to invite?

Edit 2019.08.28:

Good news! StackExchange is willing to help us celebrate next month (only 31 days away)!

I need to know how many people plan to show up at the locations to celebrate, so I need a head count. I also need some to volunteer as host/admins to do/delegate what is needed to get the celebration going in your region. I will provide detail about this on Friday.

Right now Alec Rhea, Thomas Rot, Gerhard Paseman, Zach Teitler and Steven Landsburg are my ideas for host/admins. If they agree, they should find my email on my user page and contact me. Other regions will need host/admins: volunteers should also contact me by email, as well as make a post below.

More information will be included Friday in my answer post below. If you have public comments or questions, please comment on my question or answer posts. Remember, the point is to celebrate a fine example of ten years of community action and have fun doing it. StackExchange thanks us for being such an example, and we can thank others during the celebration.

End Edit 2019.08.28.

Gerhard "Where Are All The Parties?" Paseman, 2019.06.21.

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    $\begingroup$ Here is link to the post made after 5 years: Happy 5th anniversary, MathOverflow! $\endgroup$ Jun 22, 2019 at 4:06
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    $\begingroup$ We can all go out for a drink. Who's got a travel grant large enough to bring everyone together? $\endgroup$
    – Asaf Karagila Mod
    Jun 22, 2019 at 15:44
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    $\begingroup$ @AsafKaragila I dare to claim that there exist people who wouldn't even only need to spend one day of their personal income on this ... . $\endgroup$
    – Stefan Kohl Mod
    Jun 22, 2019 at 19:14
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    $\begingroup$ @Stefan: The Queen of England? $\endgroup$
    – Asaf Karagila Mod
    Jun 22, 2019 at 19:15
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    $\begingroup$ @Asaf: I think you can find plenty of them here ... . $\endgroup$
    – Stefan Kohl Mod
    Jun 22, 2019 at 19:21
  • $\begingroup$ "willing to help us" <-- in what way? I'd be (pleasantly) surprised if they are going to fly people to scheduled meetups. Or should I just wait until Friday's update... $\endgroup$
    – David Roberts Mod
    Aug 29, 2019 at 8:01
  • $\begingroup$ @David, I am still in conversation with them. I could ask about travel advances, but I suspect that would be a bad tactic. Gerhard "Consider Signing Up As Host/Admin" Paseman, 2019.08.29. $\endgroup$ Aug 29, 2019 at 17:37
  • $\begingroup$ One possibility that I will explore: is StackExchange throwing a party that day, and who is invited? Gerhard "That Might Be Considered Helpful" Paseman, 2019.08.29. $\endgroup$ Aug 29, 2019 at 17:44
  • $\begingroup$ @GerhardPaseman well, it's not going to help me. :-) Any contribution from SE would be very nice in any case, for whoever gets to enjoy it. $\endgroup$
    – David Roberts Mod
    Aug 30, 2019 at 2:08
  • $\begingroup$ @GerhardPaseman: Did they say anything about a commemorative mug? Will you be providing additional details regarding this veryissue in your upcoming updates? $\endgroup$
    – Jamai-Con
    Aug 30, 2019 at 3:04
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    $\begingroup$ I do not have firm details now. I am in correspondence to determine those things. I am hoping that if fifty (or more) people show up around the world to celebrate, we will be able to give them a mug or T-shirt at that time to help commemorate. In order for this to happen, I need a show of commitment. When I have firm details, I will share. Gerhard "A Commitment To Celebrate MathOverflow" Paseman, 2019.08.29. $\endgroup$ Aug 30, 2019 at 4:07
  • $\begingroup$ Should we post this on main as well? I think a few people might miss this otherwise! $\endgroup$
    – Thomas Rot
    Sep 18, 2019 at 6:44
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    $\begingroup$ @Thomas, that was why it was tagged as featured. It should appear as part of the community announcements. However, if I think of an appropriate main post, I will include a link to this post. Gerhard "Thank You For The Suggestion" Paseman, 2019.09.18. $\endgroup$ Sep 18, 2019 at 13:55
  • $\begingroup$ I think that it doesn't concern to me, but I am going to add a proposal for the future with your permission in this comment. One thing I miss on these sites is to see or hear people, thus a commemorative video from people of this site (I say simple words from an user member of MathOverflow for many years,or words from a top mathematician) would be fine on certain occasions. I don't know if MathOverflow has an offcial channel in YouTube (or if it is possible/sutaible). I hope that my idea matches in some future situation/scenario. Any case "congratullations to you, and all MO users". $\endgroup$
    – user142929
    Sep 18, 2019 at 20:38
  • $\begingroup$ I am hoping to encourage an online photo collection for those who don't mind having pictures taken (but no public captions). Video submissions may also be accepted. Gerhard "Some Privacy Should Be Kept" Paseman, 2019.09.18. $\endgroup$ Sep 18, 2019 at 21:43

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I would be interested in acquiring a commemorative mathoverflow mug! If you are planning to get some of them printed, would you be so kind as to keep us informed?

Edit 2019.08.26 GRP

My ping has been answered! Watch this space for more details. (Added 8.28: OK. Now watch the question space and my answer space. GRP.)

End Edit 2019.08.26.

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    $\begingroup$ I will inquire about anniversary bling. If you will also drop an email on this subject to [email protected], that will help. Gerhard "Is An Unofficial MathOverflow Official" Paseman, 2019.06.23. $\endgroup$ Jun 24, 2019 at 1:49
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    $\begingroup$ I have an MO mug. It is big and I use it all the time, and it it worth having one. $\endgroup$
    – David Roberts Mod
    Jun 25, 2019 at 1:23
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    $\begingroup$ @DavidRoberts: People are so jealous of my mug! $\endgroup$
    – Thomas Rot
    Jun 25, 2019 at 19:24
  • $\begingroup$ Someone in my department has stolen my MO mug, or perhaps it's just in someone's office... :-) $\endgroup$ Jul 4, 2019 at 17:15
  • $\begingroup$ Mugs are looking possible. I am hoping for something commemorative, but have not locked that detail in. Gerhard "At Time Of This Posting" Paseman, 2019.08.31. $\endgroup$ Sep 1, 2019 at 5:46
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    $\begingroup$ might be a bit late, but if you sold t shirts community wide, even to those not attending, you might pay for the meeting. $\endgroup$
    – roy smith
    Sep 6, 2019 at 1:33
  • $\begingroup$ Selling is an interesting idea, but would have to be done independently from this effort. Gerhard "Not Ready For The Paperwork" Paseman, 2019.09.08. $\endgroup$ Sep 8, 2019 at 17:03
  • $\begingroup$ Jamai-Con, please send me an email. As it was your suggestion, I would like to include you in my next email about swag. Gerhard "The World Is Not Ready..." Paseman, 2019.09.15. $\endgroup$ Sep 16, 2019 at 2:50
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I am game if anyone is up for a celebratory meet-up in the Netherlands.

EDIT:

We will meet up in Utrecht. I asked around and people were more interested in a regular meetup. No seminar unfortunately. I will reserve a table at Beers and Barrels in Utrecht (Oudegracht 125) at Friday 227 september 17:15. I hope to see you there! Please send me an email (t.o.rot famous symbol vu.nl) or comment here when you are joining, but if you don't you are still welcome.

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    $\begingroup$ Excellent! I don't think I will be in or near Europe in September. I will make a post for an S.F. East Bay version. Feel free to use it as a template. Gerhard "Will Look Up Staggered Toasts" Paseman, 2019.06.25. $\endgroup$ Jun 25, 2019 at 21:07
  • $\begingroup$ @GerhardPaseman I went ahead and made one for Berkeley/the Bay below :). $\endgroup$
    – Alec Rhea
    Jun 26, 2019 at 23:14
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    $\begingroup$ @Thomas Rot if there is a meet-up in the Netherlands I'll come running $\endgroup$ Jul 4, 2019 at 8:27
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    $\begingroup$ @PietroMajer: Good, let me talk to some people! $\endgroup$
    – Thomas Rot
    Jul 4, 2019 at 8:58
  • $\begingroup$ I like the QA style idea for a seminar. I posted two questions in a comment to Zach Teitler's post which may fit in to your celebration. I will see what else I can provide. Gerhard "Is Thinking About Party Favors" Paseman, 2019.09.02. $\endgroup$ Sep 2, 2019 at 21:16
  • $\begingroup$ I've requested swag on your behalf. If you email me with a shipping address, I will see if we can get your seminar something on the day. Gerhard "Talk First, Then Give Toast" Paseman, 2019.09.08. $\endgroup$ Sep 8, 2019 at 17:07
  • $\begingroup$ @GerhardPaseman: That is amazing. My professional address can be found here: few.vu.nl/~trt800 . I'll bring it to the event! $\endgroup$
    – Thomas Rot
    Sep 8, 2019 at 17:26
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Edit 2019.09.27:

The celebrations are about to start! I invite any celebrant to email me with info about how they celebrated MathOverflow turning ten. I will collect them, edit and assemble them into a follow up post. Pictures and new open problems are encouraged.

I've decided to visit Alec at his venue. Before then (from about 11 a.m. on Saturday for a few hours) I will be at the Castro Village Starbucks lifting a cup to the forum. (Hopefully swag will have arrived then for me to hand out.) It is near the intersection of Wilbeam and Castro Valley Blvd, about a half mile north (and a nudge west) from the CV BART station.

End Edit 2019.09.27.

Edit 2019.08.31:

Based on conversations with StackExchange, I expect to help people who celebrate get swag. What kind of swag and how much depends on you. Here is how I see it, assuming swag means mugs, shirts, stickers, and that we get our act together soon enough (Sept. 6, maybe?) to use it. (I'm also assuming StackExchange has negligible shipping costs; this may be a bad assumption):

If you are (or are going to be) a host/admin, you should get in touch with me this week. I need a head count from each of you for how many guests you plan to give swag to. I also need information from you by email, primarily a shipping address.

If you are guest looking for a party (and swag), sign up for one of the existing parties and contact that host/admin. If those are too far away, offer to be a host/admin for a region.

If you want to celebrate with swag outside of a regional party (one is no longer the loneliest number), get in touch with me this coming week. I will need a head count (or I will put you down as 1) and a shipping address.

I hope to update later with details of what swag is available. Sending an early request with swag type now does not hurt. (Sending a late request also doesn't hurt, but it might not be filled.)

If you offer to be a host/admin, mail me with a projected head count. I will get in touch with the host/admins with further detail.

Oh, and I am thinking of Bronco Billy's in Hayward.

End Edit 2019.08.31.

Now that Alec Rhea has posted an invitation for that part of the Bay Area near Berkeley, I will help with the overflow by posting one for further south, in or near Hayward.

I am planning for ten to twenty people. Right now I am listing example locations; as the date nears and more people join in, a final one or two locations will be chosen with mapping coordinates and directions. If you are in the area and have recommendations, put them and some info in the comments below.

Olive Garden near Southland Mall. Family style Italian.

Round Table Pizza, off of Foothill

Ranch Steakhouse, off of Mission and Foothill

Vals Cafe, best burgers on the planet, near Kelly and Center

Starbucks off of Lewelling.

Gerhard "Should We Do Username Placecards?" Paseman, 2019.06.28.

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    $\begingroup$ @Asaf, although I intended answer posts to be from people willing to host, you can place a wanted request as a response. If it is filled, you might then delete the response if possible. Gerhard "Answers Can Mean Many Things" Paseman, 2019.06.28. $\endgroup$ Jun 28, 2019 at 19:22
  • $\begingroup$ May I have your email address? may you send me a message to my yahoo email "alitghv"? Thank you! $\endgroup$ Jun 29, 2019 at 12:11
  • $\begingroup$ You can determine my email from my user profile. If you send me email, please have MathOverflow party as part of the subject. Gerhard "Is Training His Own Filter" Paseman, 2019.06.29. $\endgroup$ Jun 29, 2019 at 14:35
  • $\begingroup$ It seems that you want to distribute mugs and other stuff - and you'll need responses from interested users soon. Many MO users visit meta only occasionally, which means they might not notice that this question has been bumped. Have you considered asking the moderators whether they would be willing adding the (featured) tag to the question? The question would then be displayed in the community bulletin, so it would be more likely to get noticed by the users visiting the main site. $\endgroup$ Sep 1, 2019 at 6:13
  • $\begingroup$ Who reads the community bulletin? Gerhard "And Where Is It Found?" Paseman, 2019.08.31. $\endgroup$ Sep 1, 2019 at 6:23
  • $\begingroup$ Thanks for organizing Gerhard! I'd like to attend some event in the Bay Area. How do I determine if I'm part of the overflow? $\endgroup$ Sep 8, 2019 at 15:12
  • $\begingroup$ That will depend on how many declare themselves. Right now, it looks like Alec will have the main event in Castro Valley. I am organizing with him. If we exceed his capacity, I will branch off into something in nearby Hayward. We will post details and logistics this coming week. As poster of question number 1, you will be welcome at either locale (and at both)! Gerhard "Maybe Get Tumbler And Mug?" Paseman, 2019.09.08. $\endgroup$ Sep 8, 2019 at 16:13
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I will be surprised if there's much demand for a get-together in Rochester NY, but if so I'll be glad to host it at my home, which is well set up for large (and small) gatherings.

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  • $\begingroup$ If the upvoters are indicating interest (as opposed to just approval), I'll be glad to hear from them. $\endgroup$ Jul 21, 2019 at 18:42
  • $\begingroup$ If getting to Steve's house that Saturday is an issue for some locals, I have ideas for remote partying that might help. If you think you might attend either in person or remotely, help Steve and me out: leave a comment now, and we will arrange details later. Gerhard "There Will Be Swag Involved" Paseman, 2019.09.02. $\endgroup$ Sep 2, 2019 at 21:13
  • $\begingroup$ @GerhardPaseman : I appreciate this, but as far as I'm aware I've got no takers. they'd still be welcome though. $\endgroup$ Sep 3, 2019 at 0:33
  • $\begingroup$ I've requested some swag on your behalf. If you email me with a shipping address, I can get it to you, hopefully by celebration time. Gerhard "Here's To Math For Two!" Paseman, 2019.09.08. $\endgroup$ Sep 8, 2019 at 17:05
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If anyone else is in the Berkeley/SF bay area, I'd be game to meet up for beers at any of our wonderful local establishments and celebrate MO.

Update, September 1st

I am in the process of finalizing plans for a celebration at 6496 Crow Canyon Rd, Castro Valley, CA. My family has a horse ranch with plenty of space for congregation and commemoration, we're just finalizing details with the trainers on site to ensure all goes smoothly.

More details will follow in the coming days; any MO users in the vicinity of the above celebrations are encouraged to plan on joining us!

Update, September 3rd

We're good to go on the 28th! Traffic is heavy during peak hours even on a saturday, so I suggest we meet later in the evening around 6-6:30pm to commence celebrations -- if anyone attending has special time constraints please comment and let me know, we'll adjust accordingly. Looking forward to celebrating with you!

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  • $\begingroup$ I would love to join the celebrating $\endgroup$ Sep 1, 2019 at 19:24
  • $\begingroup$ @GjergjiZaimi I'm in the process of finalizing plans for a celebration on my families ranch in Castro Valley, I'll update this post with details sometime early this week. We'd love to have you! $\endgroup$
    – Alec Rhea
    Sep 2, 2019 at 5:36
  • $\begingroup$ Interesting. I was deciding on a location less than ten miles away from there. I will adjust my plans accordingly. Gerhard "Looking Forward To The Updates" Paseman, 2019.09.01. $\endgroup$ Sep 2, 2019 at 5:58
  • $\begingroup$ @GerhardPaseman Serindipitous indeed! I'll try to have everything finalized and post relevant updates by tomorrow evening. $\endgroup$
    – Alec Rhea
    Sep 2, 2019 at 6:22
  • $\begingroup$ Thanks for organizing Alec! Should people do anything special to let you know they're coming? $\endgroup$ Sep 8, 2019 at 15:07
  • $\begingroup$ Yes! In general (not just for SF Bay Area), they are planning to attend, they should either post here, or email me or one of the hosts. If they emailed earlier, I could have put them in the head count for swag. Fortunately, I asked for a few extra just for them. Gerhard "Helps To Think A Head" Paseman, 2019.09.08. $\endgroup$ Sep 8, 2019 at 17:01
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It would be fun to have the Firday 9/27/19 seminar meeting on the topic of MathOverflow in some way. As the organizer of Boise State University's Friday math seminar, I might ask my colleagues to pick some favorite things on MO, and give 5-10 minute mini-presentations, to fill up an hour that way. Also we might share some of the tweetable math, math jokes, math videos, etc. Any other suggestions?

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    $\begingroup$ Part of my agenda is to poll the community on various issues to give feedback to the MathOverflow board. (Various similar attempts over the years have met with much much less than resounding success.) For this occasion, I have two brief questions: What would you like to give to the community and forum, and what do you hope for in return from the community and forum. I suggest a few minutes discussion on these questions or something related. Gerhard "Email Me For Swag Planning" Paseman, 2019.09.02. $\endgroup$ Sep 2, 2019 at 21:09
  • $\begingroup$ In addition to our Friday seminar, I am also co-organizing a Math Teachers' Circle, which will have a meeting on that Saturday, 28 September. I won't ask a bunch of high school and middle school teachers to dive into MO, but I might pull up some of the things like math games for kids, results of searching for "high school", etc. $\endgroup$ Sep 5, 2019 at 4:49
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    $\begingroup$ Make sure they (Teachers in the Teachers circle, at least) see MESE and meta.mathoverflow. If they are unsure about using MathOverflow as a resource, asking on meta should clear things up. If you prepare by doing a few searches on meta, you can show them helpful examples of questions and responses. If I get numbers from you, I might order swag to get them to sign up to MathOverflow. Gerhard "Is Not Above Using Marketing" Paseman, 2019.00.04. $\endgroup$ Sep 5, 2019 at 4:57
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No swag please, that is tasteless. Meetups are fine but don't need an anniversary: if people want them, why not just have them whenever?

For the anniversary my first idea was something like a collaboratively written joint paper in the DHJ Polymath style, surveying the site's history and mathematically important discussions it has had. It is too late by now to finish it by the anniversary, but maybe there could be an "official" launch on the anniversary, with the idea of submitting something around the 11th anniversary. The launch would mean opening a MO or meta thread or wiki soliciting contributions. The end result could be sent to an open access math-history journal or just posted on ArXiv.

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  • $\begingroup$ Interesting idea. Perhaps you can get it done that soon. People don't have to celebrate on the 28th, but it holds some sentiment for me. Gerhard "Will Stick With These Plans" Paseman, 2019.09.14. $\endgroup$ Sep 15, 2019 at 6:25
  • $\begingroup$ I think the paper would be a good idea. It would be a nice follow-up to Anton's summer 2010 article about MO in the Notices of the AMS. $\endgroup$
    – David Roberts Mod
    Sep 16, 2019 at 2:10

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