The Art of Mathematics

Oct 23 2024 66 ep. 17 mins 152

The Art of Mathematics Podcast artwork

Conversations, explorations, conjectures solved and unsolved, mathematicians and beautiful mathematics. No math background required.

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What is a Pattern?

Oct 23 2024 12 mins

Math is in a sense the science of patterns. Alon Amit explores the question of what exactly is a pattern. A common example is the decimal digits of pi. The statement that they have no pattern seems to be either obvious or completely untrue. We explore the spectrum of pattern-ness from simple repetition to total randomness and finally answer the question about pi. We also discuss an

What's the Big Deal about Pi?

Sep 25 2024 17 mins

Alon Amit joins us on the antipode of Pi Day to counter the myths and mysteries of this most famous irrational number. There's nothing magical about a non-repeating string of digits. The real and profound mystery is the ubiquity of pi. It shows up in places that have nothing to do with circles, such as the sum of the reciprocals of the squares of the integers and the normal bel

Turning Math-Hating Prisoners into Mathematicians

Aug 28 2024 22 mins

Kate Pearce, a post-doc researcher at UT Austin, talks about her experience teaching math in a women's prison. Her remedial college algebra students came in with negative experience in math, so she devised ways to make the topics new. The elective class called, coincidentally, The Art of Mathematics, explored parallels between math and art, infinity, algorithms, formalism, rand

Stop Overselling Mathematics

Jul 24 2024 17 mins

Alon Amit, prolific Quora math answerer, argues that an honest representation of mathematical ideas is enough to spark interest in math. It's not necessary to exaggerate the role of math; the golden ratio does not drive the stock market, the solution of the Riemann hypothesis will not kill cryptography, and Grothendieck did not advance robotics. History and seeing the thought p

Math for Kids: It's not a Spectator Sport

Jun 26 2024 21 mins

Dave Cole, the author of the Math Kids series of books, talks about introducing kids to math as a fun challenge and puzzle beyond the rote memorization they've come to expect. Kids who like to read are enticed by puzzles and mysteries. Möbius strips, Pascal's triangle, and other concepts that are new to them, make them marvel, "Is this math?" They see patterns an

Egyptian Fractions

May 22 2024 17 mins

Neil Epstein, Associate Professor of Mathematics at George Mason University, introduces us to the fractions used by the ancient Egyptians, well before the Greeks and Romans. The Egyptian fractions all had a unit numerator. They could represent any fraction as a sum of unique unit fractions, a fact that was not proved until centuries later. These sums inspired conjectures, one of wh

Da Vinci's Math Teacher: Merging the Practical and Theoretical

Apr 24 2024 16 mins

Jeanne Lazzarini joins us again to introduce us to the mathematician Luca Pacioli, whose views of numbers and shapes influenced Leonardo da Vinci, leading to a period of art and invention. His book, De Divina Proportione, is the only book ever illustrated by da Vinci. The Renaissance was a period when mathematicians studied art and artists studied mathematics. As da Vinci said, &qu

Alon Amit, sharing the mathematical journey in Quora and Math Circles

Mar 27 2024 20 mins

Alon Amit, probably the most prolific answerer of math questions on Quora, shares his reasons for his deep involvement. He seeks to share the journey, the exploration and stumbles of solving a problem. He's especially drawn to questions that will teach him things, even if he never completes the answer. He also shares his joy of problem solving with kids through Math Circles. On

Too Much Math in the Schools? These Books Counter That Narrow View

Feb 28 2024 20 mins

Lee Kraftchick continues his tour of books about math written for the non-mathematician like himself. We also can't let go of Gödel Escher Bach. Lee cites an opinion piece in the Washington Post, titled, "The Problem with Schools Today is Too Much Math," which gives a very narrow view of what math is. He counters it with a response (see theartofmathematicspodcast.com

Books for the Mathematical Tourist

Jan 24 2024 20 mins

Lee Kraftchick discusses some of his favorite books for non-mathematicians to explore the breadth of mathematics. These books range from very old to current. Some discuss beautiful proofs, whether math is invented or discovered, and how to think. Lee and Carol agree on the number one greatest book for mathematicians and non-mathematicians alike. See the full list at theartofmathema