Pamela Pierce publishes The Hamster Diaries, a light-hearted look at teaching during a pandemic

Pamela Pierce, Professor of Mathematics at The College of Wooster, welcomed not just one, but two housemates when the start of the COVID pandemic forced her college senior daughter back home to finish the 2020 spring semester.

The family also welcomed in Ruth Bader Hamsberg, Pierce’s daughter’s pet hamster, which became the subject of a humorous piece written by Pierce called “The Hamster Diaries” which was published in the Journal of Human Mathematics.

The piece is a collection of diary entries from the start of the pandemic in March 2020 through commencement in May 2021. The entries detail the stressors brought on by the pandemic through the lens of the new pet in the Pierce household.

One such entry dated June 10, 2022, reads: “OK, I was totally inspired by my hamster today. I woke up rather early, and Ruthie was energetically running around her cage as if she had a purpose. She would go to the wheel and run a bit, and then she would scamper up to the penthouse, quickly climb down, and run around the cage. It was so entertaining! Then, all of a sudden, Ruthie did this amazing move! I don’t know if it was accidental or if this was what she had been building up to all morning. She ran towards her little house, leapt onto the structure, and then did a back flip off of the house! This was all in one motion, kind of like she was a ‘parkour hamster.’ I really wish that I had caught this on my camera, because it would be going viral right now. she was so graceful! As I ate my breakfast, I kept thinking about Ruth’s amazing move, and I was inspired. If Ruthie could manage this flip, then I could certainly flip my classroom, right? How hard could it be?

Pierce wraps up the piece by writing, “Honestly, this pandemic has put a lot of things into perspective. If my research paper takes a few more months, that is ok. If my house is a mess, that’s ok too. Ruth is running on her wheel now. We will keep going, hoping for better times ahead. Go Ruthie, go!”

Posted in News on March 10, 2022.