A student asked me recently what it means when we multiply a negative by a negative. Specifically, she was asking: “Why is a negative times a negative a positive?” Negatives are strange, sometimes counterintuitive. If all you remember about negative numbers is a disconnected set of rules, those rules may have ended up in a bit of a knot. Students … Continue reading Negative Numbers
I have been working with some middle and high school students this fall. It has only been a few short years since they were learning the basics. They retain some of those basics as disembodied rules, rules with no meaning or purpose. The situation seems to hinder them from experiencing the beauty and wonder that is high … Continue reading Repeated Operations
We staid till, it being darkish, we saw the fire as only one entire arch of fire from this to the other side the bridge, and in a bow up the hill for an arch of above a mile long: it made me weep to see it. The churches, houses, and all on fire and … Continue reading Cycloid
Lorenzo Mascheroni was born in 1750 outside of Bergamo in what is now northern Italy. This was before Napoléon Bonaparte was born, much less taking over the world, and Lombardy was under Austrian control. Young Lorenzo grew up in a wealthy, landowning family. Math folk like to think big, really big, infinitely big. Mascheroni was not … Continue reading Mascheroni Construction
Just south of Mueller in Austin is the J.J. Seabrook Greenbelt. It is hugged by Pershing Drive and will soon have a trail connected to the trail at Mueller. The creek bed has been re-engineered and, just a few days ago, a bridge arrived ready to span the creek. It was a sight to see the bridge … Continue reading Pershing Pedestrian Bridge
Dallas TX I grew up in the 1980s. Yes, yes. Duran Duran, leg warmers, MTV, Miami Vice, etc. (It was a special time.) Ronald Reagan was the U.S. President. We slowly but surely peeled our frosty selves out of the Cold War. Wealth was a central theme. Even as a youngster, I watched with interest as … Continue reading Compound Interest
New Orleans LA In graduate school, I spent a fair amount of time getting familiar[z] with the Riemann zeta function. Courses in complex analysis and special functions along with reading a couple of pop math books[e] increased my familiarity with zeta as well as the Riemann hypothesis. In answer to the gentleman’s question in New Orleans, “It … Continue reading Riemann Zeta Function
Austin TX I was thinking about prime numbers this past summer. In Prime Parking, I mentioned the prime number theorem. It deserves a little more than the brief nod I gave it. Many great mathematicians worked on creating and proving a conjecture about how many primes can be found smaller than any given number. For … Continue reading Prime Number Theorem
Southeast Regional Library Gilbert AZ The primes have gotten some good press this year. In January, a mathematician found a prime number with over 17 million digits.[2] He was participating in GIMPS, the Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search. Sort of like SETI, but these folks unleash the power of their personal computer on a search … Continue reading Prime Parking
Barton Springs PoolAustin TX2013/06/02 There are so many books, articles, websites, poems and cartoons about π; I considered not chalking it. I have been working on an upcoming post on Taylor series, but π just keeps saying, “Hey, after all I have done for you, will you please just spend some time with me?” So, here … Continue reading π
Footpath Math: Chalk it up to a math geek 