Peter Behr

Biography

Consider that pursuing math approaches statistical inevitability when raised in a family where the father and both his siblings were math professors. (Their Erdős numbers, for the curious, are respectively 4, 4, and 3.) Accordingly, after a tangential dip into physics at the University of Chicago, I returned to ancestral tradition and finished my own math degree. The rigorous curriculum had as its foundation a newly offered honors calculus course, viewed through the lens of point-set topology, and taught in the Moore Method, where students teach one another rigorous proofs under the guidance of instructors.

This uncommon approach, along with working as a teaching assistant, gave me an indelible appreciation of how math education can use diverse approaches while staying focused on fundamental logical skills. Adding to my already great fortune, my professors were the duo of the calmly brilliant lecturer Diane Herrmann alongside the energetically interrogative “Math Pirate” Paul Sally, and thus from the very start I was constantly shown how fun and rewarding math can be both as a learner and teacher.

After college, I took an eclectic path sometimes farther from and sometimes closer to mathematics, working in fine art, music composition, software engineering, design & illustration, apparel product design, and translation. Originally from Illinois, I’ve lived in the Bay Area since 2016, after a four-year period working in Beijing, where I attained fluency in Mandarin. In 2021, I had my first experience tutoring as a volunteer, and later made pedagogy my profession by joining AJ Tutoring in 2023. It’s a rare privilege to continue honing my craft and philosophy with AJ Tutoring’s energetic and curiosity-driven students, surrounded by a diverse and industrious team.

When away from the office, I especially enjoy reading abstract algebra, and tinkering with data visualization and software UI projects. My favorite geometric object is Costa’s minimal surface, and I’ll eagerly expound on why we should celebrate Tau Day (June 18th) instead of the currently popular Pi Day (March 14th). To keep my Chinese skills sharp I attempt to memorize 相声 skits, and take great comfort in 钢笔楷书 practice. Staying nimble in French is also always on the docket, and I love ranging between classic literature like Verne, contemporary writing like Queneau, media like “Lupin”, and musical artists like Stromae. Of course, one can never have enough hobbies, and so here and there you’ll find me struggling with new clarinet & saxophone repertoire, fiddling with DIY carpentry, avidly playing pinball or disc golf, and hoping against hope that the A’s will someday return to Oakland.