Back to the future. There's no maths in it. We just wanted to watch a good film. I suppose we should talk about it too. In today's programme: we travel through time at a rate of 1 second/second. is Harry Potter better than Back to the Future? how do the laws of physics change when we're moving? all our knowledge is guided by the wonderful Naomi Wray . Further reading: book your tickets to the Back to the Future The Musical ; is time travel complicated? Take a look at this infographic and learn a...
Jun 01, 2023
When is Easter? I literally have no clue. Today's Maths at: justifies this ignorance! In today's programme: we fail to do basic arithmetic; should you use Salad Cream at Easter? Thomas loses his mind. Further reading: So... when is Easter? Check your ethical compass . Subscribe via iTunes . Follow us on twitter @PodcastMathsAt , as well as @ThomasEWoolley and @benmparker . Hannah has one of those new-fangled instagram s ....
Apr 09, 2023
It's like the last day of school, because we are playing games! Wordle , Guess who , Hangman . Never has maths been so much fun. Further reading: Guess who fanfic What is the best Guess Who strategy? Three blue One Brown’s strategy for Wordle. Can you solve the longest word ladder? Subscribe via iTunes . Follow us on twitter @PodcastMathsAt , as well as @ThomasEWoolley and @benmparker . Hannah has one of those new-fangled instagram s ....
May 04, 2022
Did you know that: the Earth tilts at 23 degrees on its axis? (Well it's actually closer to 23.5 and degrees are an arbitrary unit of measurement); 2 divided by 3 is 0.666 recurring? (Although if you round it properly it would be 0.667, which is the Devil's next door neighbour); if you rearrange the letters in "The Number Twenty Three" you get "This is all Hogwash"? Isn't numerology incredible? This week we watched Joel Schumacher's 23rd film: " The Number 23 ", starring Jim Carrey. And we ask, ...
May 23, 2021
It is with a heavy heart that we have to inform all of our viewers and listeners that The Wonderful Liz, otherwise known as Lydia Menzies passed away in late 2020. Lydia, by her own choice, wanted to be enigmatic. So although you gained glimpses into her past career as a school teacher you rarely got insight into the funny, passionate and ebullient life that she lived. Which is a great shame, because her impact on the lives around her was tremendous. So much so that she even received tributes in...
Apr 09, 2021
TITS! Tits. TiTs... TIIIIIIITS, (tits) t...i...t...s Yup, we we've found our level. This week we're joined by the wonderful (soon to be doctor) Natasha Ellison (good luck, Natasha!), from the Unviersity of Sheffield and she takes us on a whirlwind tour of her thesis results of where you should look for tits in a forest and how the mathematics stems from understanding wolf pack dynamics. Alongside our ecological leanings we also discuss Augusta Ada King, or Ada Lovelace to her friends. Tuesday 13...
Oct 13, 2020
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that noone likes tidying up. So, if you want a reason to not bother then give us a listen. Once again your regulars, Ben, Liz and Thomas, seek answers to such questions as: Why are people in London Freezing? Do butterflies fart? How many toilets do you need to make everyone happy? All questions and no answers in today's Maths at: Further reading: House always messy? Just blame it on the second law of thermodynamics No more queuing at the ladies' room Do bu...
Sep 15, 2020
The first episode got us all up to speed as to what on earth Fantasy Football was all about. The Maths at: team is now ready to plunder the depths of Josh's strategies and Thomas has been editing in haste. We can 100% guarantee that if you follow the strategy as specifed by Josh you will be in with a chance of winning and that's no Bull. Once again your regulars, Ben and Thomas, are joined by the knowledgable Hannah Veale and the intriguing Josh Bull. Gather round as they seek answers to such qu...
Aug 14, 2020
WELCOME TO A NEW DIMENSION OF MATHS AT: We recorded our first ever video, so that we may delight your eyes, as well as your ear canals. However, for those of you still living in the 20th century we've stripped the video off. Of course, you'll miss the visual tom foolery, but we're sure that your imagination can fill in the blanks. Fantasy football is the name of the game today and your regulars Ben and Thomas are joined by the knowledgable Hannah Veale and the intriguing Josh Bull. Josh recently...
Aug 13, 2020
WE'RE BACK FOR A ONE OFF SPECIAL! What could be special enough to bring us back? Well nothing more than a bloomin' election! That's right we're going to look at how maths infuses even our democratic duties. Today's discussion points: How are Thomas and Liz now that they're parents? How do we deal with having no perfect voting systems? Rude diagrams and asymptotes. All this and more in this week's Maths at. In you're interested in more political theory then the UK will be going to the polls on No...
Dec 10, 2019
We can't be perfect all the time. From everyone at maths at have a good year and we hope to be back at some point in the future.
May 22, 2019
WE DID IT! Another series done! Marriages, prenancies, black holes, none of these stopped us getting the best quality maths film chat from our mouths to your ears. The question is: after all that will there be a third series? Today's discussion points: Are opinion polls pointless? Which way does the inequality point? What instrument can you play? All this and more in this weeks Maths at. In you're interested in watching Travelling Salesman you don't need to buy it off Amazon, you can just watch ...
May 21, 2019
The government didn't want you to hear this podcast. They tried to pay us off! Just remember as you listen to it: we are not responsible for any repercussions if you decide to watch Travelling Salesman. Today's discussion points: How many tickets do you have to buy to win the lottery? Squashed research! How many actors can you have playing the same character? All this and more in this weeks Maths at In you're interested in watching Travelling Salesman you don't need to buy it off Amazon, you can...
May 06, 2019
Maths at... proudly* sponsored by Prof. Elizabeth Baldwin ! *we have no idea of how proud she is. Care to sponsor an episode? It'll cost you 77p! Sorry about the quality of Thomas' microphone, he had trouble recording. Won't happen again (until the next). This week we watched Contact and are joined, once again, by Dr William Taylor His enthusiasm is so infectious! So whilst he tried to educate us, we try to divert his attention with such discussion points as: Spice girls! A very strong start? We...
Apr 23, 2019
Another sexy, sexy episode this week as we are joined by the NAKED MATHEMATICIAN Dr Thomas Crawford Get ready to feel dull by comparison! Today's discussion points include: Everyone's links to Countdown; Thomas tells us about the Greeks; Can you tell the difference between Jeff Daniels and Jeff Bridges? So put your feet up, get comfortable and get naked, as we talk about this week's movie The Martian . If you're into watching The Martian , you can follow the link below. Further reading links: Th...
Apr 09, 2019
Well, this was a pain in the backside to edit. The film is so tawdry and dull that we kept getting lost on tangents. Fear not though faithful listener, Thomas has edited the two hours of guff down to a single hour of solid... bronze. Today's discussion points include: How should you flip a mattress? Does the culture you grow up in influence how you learn maths? BUMFIT! From our mouths to your ears, enjoy! If you want to watch x+y , you can follow the link below. Further reading links: As per usu...
Mar 18, 2019
This week is a little different, and I've got to say perhaps one of the most interesting episodes we've ever done! We are joined by the multi-talented Dr Lyle Skains who uses her research knowledge of evolutionary biology and digital literature to show us how to really write a good movie! Highlights this week are: Liz geeking out with Lyle, will they go on holiday together? Ben misunderstanding publishing, will he ever get his cheese and wine? Thomas reliving his childhood years, when did he sto...
Mar 05, 2019
Welcome to the strangely erotic episode of Maths at, where we watch the tense, psychological thriller, Fermat's Room (or La Habitación de Fermat, for you Spanish speakers) and we ask the real questions of... WHAT HAPPENED ON THE BOAT? As per usual, the time line is all wonky. This episode does follow on from A Beautiful Mind , but was recorded a long time after, so although we talk about our lives having changed dramatically, it's only bee two weeks for you and you already know what's happened i...
Feb 19, 2019
Last week we did A Beautiful Mind and now Good Will Hunting . We are really hitting all the well-known maths films at the moment aren't we? More importantly joining us this week we have the wonderful Dr James Grime Philanthropist, playboy, billionaire... he is none of this things, but he may have identified the real Will Hunting! This week we touch on such subjects as: Is University a scam? Good Will Hunting needs a prequel! Will James and Liz ever write a paper about the maths of Dirty Dancing?...
Feb 05, 2019
Ok, so the "Maths at" timeline is a mess. The Christmas episode was recorded in November. The Christmas episode reveals secrets from later on in the series. We tried to hide these secrets in the Mean Girls episode, which was recorded around seventh, but released first. When we I say that we've had a complaint about Liz's language it from the pi day episode, not the Mean Girls episode. Is that all clear? And this is all because the recording quality of this episode is a little dodgy! Sorry about ...
Jan 22, 2019
Mean girls ... Mean girls? MEAN GIRLS! There is no font, size or punctuation mark that does full justice to Thomas' anger. This week, for some inexplicable reason, we watched the movie: Mean Girls . Join us as: Liz tries to convince Thomas that "Do you even go here?" is a funny line; Thomas' blood pressure shoots through the roof; Ben compares Mean Girls to the New Testament. and Liz compares it to a clockwork orange. If you're interested in watching Mean Girls then please get help. Go and watch...
Jan 08, 2019
Nadolig Llawen to all our Listeners We hope Sion Corn has visited you on this fine festive day. For indeed we are BACK! And this episode went a bit Welsh! Much to Ben's chagrin. In this episode we find out: the female version of phallic; what eggnog actually is; how NORAD tracks santa; and how following stars probably won't lead you to the next messiah. To ensure at least some expertise on the panel we are joined by the wonderful physicist, astronmer and raconteur: Dr William Taylor Further read...
Dec 25, 2018
Happy pi day everyone. We figure that pi day is the like Hallowe'en for mathematicians. It's a day they get to cut loose and throw away their inhibitions. As such Lorraine's intro pertaining to strong language is particularly pertinent for today's podcast. It starts out quite coarse. So sit back, grab a slice of your favourite pie and enjoy as Ben sings you the song of his people. Further reading links: Why not listen to our review of the film pi ; The best web address known to man ; The song fr...
Mar 14, 2018
Although we've finished our first series, we couldn't miss St Valentine's day. What could be more romantic than scientifically analysing love and romance using mathematics? Amongst other things we discuss: Why should you dump the first 37% of your partners? How many snogs away from Prince Charles are you? Are you a validator or an avoider? Join your hosts as they show you their romantic side and be surprised that any of them actually have partners! Further reading links: Ben's bunkum length of l...
Feb 14, 2018
This week we watch Interstellar . We are very excited to be joined by the expertise of Cat Harris Whereas Thomas and Ben are just about good enough understand their own mathematical fields Cat has a wide range of disciplines under her belt spanning both physics and movie effects. We couldn't ask for a better guest! If you're interested in watching Interstellar you can follow the Amazon below. Further reading links: The hour long Interstellar documentary; The Interstellar book; All you could ever...
Jan 30, 2018
This week we discuss we discuss The Oxford Murders : Thomas laughs at the word bra; Liz wants a prime number named after her; Ben just wants his coffee bringing to him; And we all think about mathematically defining pasta shapes. Yup, it's a case of a bad movie, with very little to talk about. At least it made for a fun recording! If you're interested in watch The Oxford Murders , then you're weird, but you can buy the DVD from Amazon below. Further reading links: Self descriptive numbers Online...
Jan 19, 2018
This week we take a walk in the lower dimensions as we talk about Flatland: The Movie . How much is your life worth? Could 2D animals exist? Did George Orwell rip this story off by adding a third dimension? All of these questions and more are interrupted in our Flatland: The Movie podcast. Join us in our search for the third dimension and beyond! If you're interested in watching Flatland: The Movie you can follow the Amazon link below. Further reading links: galleries of beautiful fractal images...
Jan 05, 2018
It's the most wonderful time... of the year. Merry Christmas and happy holidays to all of our listeners. Join us as we discuss (amongst other things): our favourite Christmas films (not really mathematical); the differences between a mathematicians office Christmas party and an actual Christmas party (slightly mathematical); the number of presents your true is giving and how many legs they'll have (quite mathematical). So fill your boots with Turkey and in your after dinner stupor enjoy our CHRI...
Dec 25, 2017
During Maths at the Movies: The Imitation Game Ben introduced the following puzzle: I have two children. One of them is a boy. What is the probability that both children are boys? Although counter-intuitive, it can be shown that the solution is 1/3 . He also posed a similar, but different question: I have two children. One of them is a boy who was born on a Tuesday. What is the probability that both children are boys? Although very similar, the answer turns out to be 13/27, which is quite differ...
Dec 15, 2017
In this (Hallowe'en themed?) episode we watch the movie Moneyball . The story of a young mathematician, played by Jonah Hill, struggling to be heard amongst the angry men that make up baseball. And I think Brad Pitt was in there somewhere as well. Can Jonah produce a winning team by redefining how statistics are used? Why does Thomas keep saying the phrase "dick swinging"? Where did Ben get a hold of those baseball sounds? All of these questions and more are not answered in our Moneyball podcast...
Dec 01, 2017
