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By Matt, on December 20th, 2011
With the holidays in full force, many of you are no doubt spending time in the kitchen; those of you who aren’t are nevertheless reaping the benefits provided by those who are. ‘Tis the season of baked goods, and if you are lucky enough to have a family member who knows how to bake, then for the month of December you will eat like a king.
This dude knows a thing or two about baked goods.
For my money, the best part of the baking process (aside from the delicious final act) is the careful and precise initial measurement of the ingredients. Keeping an accurate account of the relative proportions of each piece of the recipe is a hallmark of baking, and reflects the nature of baking itself: one part art, one part science. Unlike some other culinary arts, the measurements really do matter. Screw up these proportions and those fudgy brownies . . . → Read More: Two Cups of Mathematics
By Matt, on December 8th, 2011
In a recent episode of ABC’s Modern Family, Cameron and Mitchell (the show’s unambiguously gay duo) are with some friends talking about Thanksgiving when Cameron decides to tell a story from his youth which, in his opinion, is quite compelling. Mitchell knows better, but doesn’t have the heart to tell him that this particular story suffers from some basic structural flaws. As Mitchell puts it, the story can be summarized as follows: “Once Cam and his friends tried to slingshot a pumpkin across a football field. Three seconds. That’s all you need to tell that story.” Readers in the U.S. can see the full clip below:
Needless to say, Cameron’s version of the story is much more embellished. In his rendition, their experiment was a success; as he puts it, the pumpkin flew across the field, “goal post to goal post.”
When I first heard him say this, my initial thought . . . → Read More: An Introduction to Pumpkin Chunkin’
By Matt, on November 28th, 2011
As the holiday season begins, I recently felt compelled to read through a gift I received over the holidays last year, a book called The Calculus Diaries. Written by English major Jennifer Oullette, who, by her own admission, had to overcome a not uncommon fear mathematics to write it, the book attempts to do what any reasonable Calculus course ought to do, but in front of a larger audience: convince the reader of the universal applicability and beauty of the subject.
Unlike most Calculus textbooks, however, Oullette’s book has an extra helping of sympathy for its audience. Oullette’s goal is not necessarily to make her readers expert mathematics students; instead, she focuses on unifying seemingly disparate types of problems under the umbrella of Calculus. Included amongst these examples are applications of Calculus to the equations of motion, thermodynamics, surfing, and the spread of disease. The wheel is not being reinvented here . . . → Read More: The Calculus Diaries
By Matt, on November 11th, 2011
To the question making the news circuit today (“Does today’s date have any special significance?”) I believe an article at Scientific American provides the most compelling answer: no. Not only does the article brush aside suggestions that this day might have some deeper meaning, but it also spends some time discussing why such numerological curiosities capture our collective imagination to the extent that they do. If you only read one article about 11/11/11 today (or two, I suppose, since you’re already reading this), let it be that one.
If you are a masochist like me, though, there are plenty of ridiculous articles floating around today to help you get your blood boiling. One of my favorites comes from today‘s Philadelphia Inquirer. It’s full of gems like:
One may be the loneliest number, [La Salle University math teacher Stephen] Andrilli said, but 11 ranks among the most odd – and not just because . . . → Read More: 11/11/11. Great.
By Matt, on November 7th, 2011
A few weeks ago, I was downtown with the missus when we stumbled upon the Bottega Louie Restaurant and Gourmet Market. The window display was enticing, so we went inside and discovered, among other things, a bakery. This one’s focus was the macaron, one of many sweets aiming to topple the cupcake as the trendiest dessert, and so for a town obsessed with the current trends, it is no surprise that Los Angeles is home to several similarly specialized patisseries.
Though smaller than the average cupcake, the macaron is also more labor-intensive, and is therefore frequently on the more expensive end of the confectionery spectrum. The macarons at Bottega Louie, for example, will run you $1.75 each.
One of many delightful flavors
If you need a sweet fix, though, a single macaron may not be enough. Anticipating such a first-world problem, Bottega Louie also offers boxes of macarons for purchase. The boxes come . . . → Read More: Math of Macarons
By Matt, on October 28th, 2011
It’s that time of year again. If you are looking for some math-themed costume ideas, then look no further. Though it gets harder to keep this tradition with each passing year, here are a few ideas is you’re looking to rock that mathematical look at whatever event you are planning to attend during this frightful Halloween season. Ideas from previous years can be found here, here, and here.
Without further ado, let’s begin!
1. Tony Stark
Yes, yes, I know – since Iron Man hit the screens in the summer of 2008, the titular character has become a popular costume idea, joining the ranks of comic book icons like Superman and Spiderman. I’m not talking about dressing up as Iron Man, though. Instead, I am recommending a costume based on the man inside the suit – Tony Stark, playboy billionaire and (more importantly) mathematical wünderkind. All you really need is some delicately coiffed facial . . . → Read More: Math + Halloween, Part 4
By Matt, on October 16th, 2011
Whether knowingly or not, NBC Thursday night comedies have made occasional dalliances with mathematics. For example, you can see here for a mathematical discussion inspired by The Office, and here for one inspired by Parks and Recreation.
Today I would like to add to this esteemed list the show Community, now in its third season on NBC’s Thursday block. As the title indicates, the show centers around a group of friends who are students at the fictional Greendale Community College (how this formula will pan out if the show lasts more than four seasons is uncertain).
In a recent episode (titled Competitive Ecology), the gang divides themselves up into pairs of lab partners for Biology class, but they quickly discover their pairings are less than ideal – especially since, with an odd number in the central crew, one member must pair up with someone who is not in their clique. Their first assignment . . . → Read More: A Mathematics Community
By Matt, on October 5th, 2011
Continuing with last week’s theme, and since we are in the midst of playoffs, I’d like to take a moment now to discuss another link between baseball and mathematics. This link is particularly timely since the scuttlebutt on the internet suggests that next year the playoff rules for baseball will be changed: the number of teams competing for the World Series will increase from 8 to 10, and because of that, another round of playoff games will be introduced.
Currently, the playoffs consist of three rounds. The first round is the Division Series, in which eight teams compete in a best-of-five match-up (equivalently, a first-to-three match-up, i.e. the first team to win three games wins the series). The second and third rounds, better known as the Championship Series and World Series, are composed of four and two teams, respectively, but are both best-of-seven (equivalently, first-to-four). Because of these three rounds of several . . . → Read More: Playoff Probabilities
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