Monthly Archives: November 2011

The private life of numbers (2): from figurate to happy numbers

Posted on November 29, 2011 by strathmaths

This is Part 2 of a set of three posts adapted from Mateja Prešern’s talk at The Burn in November 2011. In Part 1 we looked at the set of “lucky” numbers. Of course, there are many other sets of … Continue reading →

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Quotation for the week: Sylvester

Posted on November 28, 2011 by strathmaths

No, not the cartoon cat. James Joseph Sylvester was one of the great and eccentric figures of nineteenth-century mathematics. Here he is explaining — in the course of a public speech — why mathematicians are generally so bad at public … Continue reading →

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Bohr’s barometer

Posted on November 25, 2011 by strathmaths

One of our Y4 Maths and Physics students, Ben Snow, has pointed me towards the story of a cocky student, a physics exam and a barometer. It’s probably safe to say that the story is apocryphal — or in other … Continue reading →

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Multidisciplinarity: road to ruin? A debate

Posted on November 24, 2011 by strathmaths

Introduction: Much of the research that is being funded nowadays is multidisciplinary.  It is sometimes called interdisciplinary, but that is a misnomer.  A multidisciplinary project is one that needs at least two different types of expertise, but it usually falls … Continue reading →

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The private life of numbers (1): are numbers just numbers?

Posted on November 22, 2011 by strathmaths

This is Part 1 of a set of three posts adapted from Mateja Prešern’s talk at The Burn in November 2011. Do you have a lucky number? Or a favourite number? Surprisingly many of us do, whether we’re mathematicians or … Continue reading →

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Lecture: wind power or hot air?

Posted on November 21, 2011 by strathmaths

The Faculty of Engineering is hosting a lecture this Wednesday (23 November) by Prof. David Mackay. The title is “2050 Pathways: Energy Arithmetic for the UK and for the World”, and it’s the inaugural James Blyth* Lecture. Further details and … Continue reading →

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Sail of the century

Posted on November 21, 2011 by strathmaths

For those of you with an interest in mechanics, there’s a fascinating project currently going on in Walvis Bay, Namibia, where the Vestas Sailrocket team from England are trying to break the world speed record for a sailing boat — … Continue reading →

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Quotation for the week: Nightingale

Posted on November 21, 2011 by strathmaths

A slight cheat, since this is a quotation about Florence Nightingale rather than by her. It’s worth including, though. Like her contemporary Mary Seacole, Nightingale was a complex and sometimes controversial character; what is less well known is that she … Continue reading →

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Four fun fallacies

Posted on November 18, 2011 by strathmaths

I came across the following while browsing a collection of maths “jokes”. I’m not sure how they got into the list, but they’re an excellent way to test how well you can spot the holes in an apparently plausible mathematical … Continue reading →

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SIAM Student Seminars

Posted on November 17, 2011 by strathmaths

Some abstracts are now available for the talks in the forthcoming SIAM Student Chapter meeting on Monday 28 November. The meeting will be held from 1500 in LT908 and includes refreshments. All postgraduates and senior undergraduates (3rd, 4th and 5th years) are … Continue reading →

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