Author Archives: strathmaths

A song for Pi Day

Posted on March 14, 2014 by strathmaths

If you’re reading this blog then you probably already know that today is Pi Day. In honour of the occasion, here’s a video in which our former student Chris Smith hymns the joys of — with the assistance of his … Continue reading →

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EMS Popular Lecture: Maths and Sport

Posted on March 4, 2014 by strathmaths

This year’s EMS Popular Lecture will take place on Friday 21 March in Edinburgh. Professor John Barrow will talk about “Maths and Sport”: We will reveal some of the many ways in which mathematics helps us understand and improve sporting … Continue reading →

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Maths makes your brain light up… but why?

Posted on February 14, 2014 by strathmaths

By now you may have spotted the news story that the BBC headlined as “Mathematics: Why the brain sees maths as beauty”. As usual with science reporting, the headline doesn’t quite capture what the story’s about. The story’s based on … Continue reading →

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RSS event: statistics and the referendum

Posted on February 7, 2014 by strathmaths

Here at DoF we try to stay away from politics, or at least from the sort of politics that might get us accused of lobbying. However, even we have noticed that a vote is due to take place in September … Continue reading →

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Two forthcoming IMA seminars

Posted on February 6, 2014 by strathmaths

If you’re interested in applications of mathematics, you might want to check out two upcoming IMA seminars, one in Edinburgh and one in Glasgow. On 20 February in Edinburgh, Prof. Murray Campbell will talk on “Applications of Mathematics in understanding … Continue reading →

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Wit and heuristics in crosswords and mathematics

Posted on January 28, 2014 by strathmaths

In a recent post on the SIAM blog, Professor Des Higham discusses cryptic crosswords and the reasons why they appeal to so many mathematicians of his acquaintance. I’m one of those mathematicians, having tried my hand both at solving and … Continue reading →

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Chain reaction forces

Posted on January 15, 2014 by strathmaths

Here’s a weird little phenomenon that should appeal to all of us who think we understand Newtonian mechanics…

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RSS seminar: statistics making an impact

Posted on January 6, 2014 by strathmaths

John Pullinger, the president of the Royal Statistical Society, will be giving a seminar in the Department on Friday 31 January. He has a lengthy career in the civil service as a statistician and currently works at the House of … Continue reading →

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Quotation for the new year

Posted on January 1, 2014 by strathmaths

For anyone who is currently contemplating their January exam revision through bleary eyes and wondering what the point of their maths degree was supposed to be, here’s a possible answer from the lawyer and philosopher Francis Bacon: In the mathematics … Continue reading →

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Links: more on the mathematics of music

Posted on November 28, 2013 by strathmaths

For those of you who read our earlier article on the mathematics behind music and want to know more, here are a couple of links that might well interest you. Amazingly mathematical music is an online article from Washington University … Continue reading →

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