LTU professor makes AI, robotics coding education a ‘MathDance’ for UN program

SOUTHFIELD—A Lawrence Technological University professor is turning a United Nations educational initiative in artificial intelligence learning into a dance.

A “MathDance,” to be precise.

C.J. Chung, professor of mathematics and computer science at LTU, invented his MathDance program to translate various mathematical functions into body positions. For instance, the mathematical equation y = 0 is symbolized by a dancer’s arms extended straight to the sides, indicating a zero on the Y axis of an equation.

Chung describes MathDance as a fun way to integrate math, coding, and AI in an interactive way, using the dance motions, Scratch computer programming, and Google’s Teachable Machine, software that teaches a computer to recognize a user’s motions and sounds. He has taught the MathDance curriculum in various Lawrence Tech outreach programs to K-12 students, including the Robofest robotics competition he launched in 1999.

Now, Chung is working with AI for Good, a global United Nations program that has the goal of identifying practical applications of AI to advance the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and scale those solutions for global impact. The goals include zero poverty, zero hunger, universal health, quality education, gender equality, sustainable communities, climate action, peace, justice, and more.

AI for Good is organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a United Nations agency, in partnership with over 40 UN sister agencies and co-convened with Switzerland.

As a part of the AI and Robotics programming stream, Chung is providing two hands-on “MathDance” programs through ITU for teachers, parents, and young people from around the world.

“We believe this unique workshop is an excellent way to introduce AI and robotics coding, contributing to quality education for both youth and educators.” said Guillem Martínez Roura, AI and Robotics Programme Officer at the ITU.

The first workshop will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 18, from 9 to 11 a.m. Eastern time. A second workshop, on Wednesday, Sept. 25 from 9 to 11 a.m. Eastern time, will review the first workshop and advanced skills will be covered to complete a professional version of the MathDance game development.

Detailed program information, including free registration process, can be found on the ITU’s AI for Good website. For the Sept. 18 program, visit https://aiforgood.itu.int/event/mathdance-hands-on-workshop-to-learn-math-coding-and-ai-2.

For the Sept. 25 program, visit: https://aiforgood.itu.int/event/mathdance-hands-on-workshop-to-learn-math-coding-and-ai

For demonstrations of MathDance in action, visit https://www.robofest.net/CSPA/.

For more information about MathDance, contact Chung at cchung@ltu.edu.

Lawrence Technological University is one of only 13 independent, technological, comprehensive doctoral universities in the United States. Located in Southfield, Mich., LTU was founded in 1932 and offers more than 100 programs through its Colleges of Architecture and Design, Arts and Sciences, Business and Information Technology, Engineering, and Health Sciences, as well as Specs@LTU as part of its growing Center for Professional Development. PayScale lists Lawrence Tech among the nation’s top 11 percent of universities for alumni salaries. Forbes and The Wall Street Journal rank LTU among the nation’s top 10 percent. U.S. News and World Report list it in the top tier of the best Midwest colleges. And LTU is included in the Princeton Review’s “The Best 390 Colleges 2025 Edition,” a list of the nation’s top 15 percent of colleges and universities. Students benefit from small class sizes and a real-world, hands-on, “theory and practice” education with an emphasis on leadership. Activities on Lawrence Tech’s 107-acre campus include more than 60 student organizations and NAIA varsity sports.