University of Warsaw Wall of Science

About Jacek


Jacek Ossowski is a Quantitative Research Analyst at QS Investors, a global multi-asset management firm located in New York. He is a mathematician by education (PhD from New York University) and an author of two popular science-themed books. Prior to his work on multi-asset allocation projects at QSI, Jacek worked for more than a decade at prominent Wall Street institutions like Goldman Sachs, Credit-Suisse Securities, and Royal Bank of Canada. The main focus of his work there were the mathematical and software aspects of statistical arbitrage, program trading and securities lending. He also worked at the New York Stock Exchange at their offices in Paris and New York while consulting for OneMarketData, a leading provider of high-frequency data management tools. In between those endeavors Jacek taught mathematics, computer science, and quantitative finance at Northeastern University in Boston, Fordham University in New York, and Framingham State University in Framingham, MA.

The Blind Bidder's Eye Cover

The Blind Bidder's Eye , Jacek's second book written under the pseudonym Oscar Seurat, appeared in August 2015.  It is a  magical realism thriller involving a father and his teenage son, in which the pair’s lives spiral into chaos when the boy stumbles across a curious item belonging to an 18th century genius. The novel sends the reader on an exciting, bumpy path through the son’s humorous tribulations at his Manhattan high school, a singular Wall Street business of blind bidding, and the mind of Leonhard Euler (1707-1783), a mathematician historically known to have lost an eye due to mental exertion. Click on the image for a preview.

Sudoku Stories Pocket Edition

In December of 2013, Jacek published a recreational mathematics book, Sudoku Stories: History, Art and Science in 101 Designer Puzzles. The novelty of the book, written under the pseudonym Oscar Seurat with a co-author Olivier Nicolas, rests upon the contained puzzles' pictorially representing objects rather than being just tables of randomly placed numbers. The 101 designs are accompanied by articles on the related and timely topics. The book comes in two formats: an 8.5'' x 11'' album, and a "pocket" volume 5'' x 8'' in size.  Click on the image for a high quality preview.


ACHIEVEMENTS:

Mathematics:
   While studying with Fred Galvin (Erdős No. 1), I managed to resolve a problem he communicated to me in connection with certain combinatorial games. This work resulted in two papers we wrote separately:
     Ossowski, Jacek (1993): "On A Problem of F. Galvin", Congressus Numerantium 96, 65-74
     Galvin, Fred (1997): "On  a Theorem of J. Ossowski",  Journal of Combinatorial Theory, Series A 78, 151-153
     The theorem is presented on page 31 as Theorem 2.11 in the following book:
     Jukna, Stasys, Extremal Combinatorics With Applications In Computer Science, Second Edition, Texts in
     Theoretical Computer Science.
An EATCS Series
, Springer-Verlag 2011
   Donald Knuth acknowledges (at the bottom of the page) my proof of a theorem anticipated by Joel Spencer (Erdős No. 1) in 1987:
     Donald Knuth, "Two way rounding", SIAM Journal on Discrete Mathematics, Vol.8, No.2, pp 281-290, May 1995
Other:
   Private Pilot license for single engine aircraft obtained at Teterboro, NJ.
   Completed the Los Angeles Marathon with a time below 4 hours.
   High jumper in college years, cleared 206cm (6 ft & 9.1in)
   A few years ago Jacek Ossowski developed a weakness for the beautiful art of piano. You can listen to the results of his quixotic struggles with the instrument here and here.

Puzzle Book

Sudoku Stories' Picture Banner
101 Magical Picture Puzzles and Stories

Rather than being just a table of randomly placed numbers, each puzzle in this book depicts an animal, a symbol or an object. A captivating article on the object brings it to life and gives the puzzle its own special personality. The puzzles are arranged into 14 topical chapters which start with puzzles on "Animals", "Countries" and "Environment" and end with those on "Money", "Space" and "Warfare".

Presenting the reader with a comfortable view of both the puzzle and the accompanying article, the book's album version offers a unique solving experience and makes for a memorable gift. While contemplating his or her next number choice, the reader can enjoy an essay without the distraction of having to turn the page.

The pocket edition, on the other hand, combines the same content with the convenience of a small book which can be read and solved on a train, a bus, or a bench in a park. A selection of the book's puzzles can be played free online on SudokuStories.com. In addition to the below previews, a subtly humorous introduction to this concept can be seen in the following youtube video.

Pocket Edition Sudoku Stories Cover Album Edition
Size:  5'' x 8'' Size: 8.5'' x 11''
Cover: Full Color Cover: Full Color
Interior: B&W Interior:  Full Color
Publisher:  Quadrature         Books Publisher:  Quadrature         Books
ISBN-13: 978-0991323524 ISBN-13: 978-0991323517
ISBN-10: 0991323521 ISBN-10: 0991323513
LOOK INSIDE! LOOK INSIDE!
Where to Buy Where to Buy
@ Amazon.com
B&W:
@ Amazon.com
@Barnes&Noble
Full Color:
Currently Unavailable

Euler Thriller

"'The Blind Bidder's Eye' is a captivating and thought-provoking thriller filled with risks and possibilities. It is an adventure worth diving into."
Pacific Book Reviews

"An inventive puzzle of a novel by a writer of singular vision."
Kirkus Reviews
The Blind Bidder's Eye
In this magical realism thriller involving a father and his teenage son, the couple's lives spiral into chaos when the boy stumbles across a curious item belonging to an 18th century genius, Leonhard Euler. Unexpectedly, the resulting flashes of brilliance experienced by the boy bring few benefits in school and lead instead to a series of mishaps including a disaster at his father's investment firm.

In spite of the misfortunes, the son's flares of ingenuity make the father - a Wall Street executive and a man impressed only by the strength of one’s mind - change his perception of the boy as a weakling and set the two's troubled relationship on a healing course. This change may be coming too late, however; the boy is missing and quite possibly in harm's way ...

 The novel sends the reader on an exciting, bumpy path through the son's humorous tribulations at his Manhattan high school, a singular Wall Street business of blind bidding,  and the mind of Leonhard Euler (1707-1783), a mathematician historically known to have lost an eye due to mental exertion. Click on the image for a preview.

Torus Board Games

orus Boards is a collection of games based on flat depictions of a torus with shiftable multi-colored bands on its surface. The bands are assumed to move in three directions: along the smaller radius, the larger radius, and spirally at an angle of 45 degrees to either of the radii. On the square these motions correspond to three shifts which wrap around the columns, rows, and diagonals. After the square (or torus) has been scrambled, your task is to bring it back to its original state by any combination of the three shifts.
Click on the square to play now! Download: Desktop (free)Android (free)

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