Olson, Steve

The eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980 sent shockwaves across North America as volcanic ash rained down on eleven U.S. States and four Canadian provinces, claiming the lives of fifty-seven people. Weaves science and history with personal narrative, revealing what happened to those who lived and died that day.

Follows the six members of the 2001 Mathematical Olympiad team, and portrays them as something other than the stereotypical math student, with many varying interests, and discusses reasons for the lack of girls and the high percentage of Asian students in mathematics.