With news that a recent proof of the Boolean Pythagorean Triples Theorem is the ‘largest proof ever’, we collect and run-down some of the biggest, baddest, proofiest chunks of monster maths.
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Not mentioned on The Aperiodical this month, May 2016
Here are a few of the stories that we didn’t get round to covering in depth this month.
Turing’s Sunflowers Project – results
Manchester Science Festival’s mass-participation maths/gardening project, Turing’s Sunflowers, ran in 2012 and invited members of the public to grow their own sunflowers, and then photograph or bring in the seed heads so a group of mathematicians could study them. The aim was to determine whether Fibonacci numbers occur in the seed spirals – this has previously been observed, but no large-scale study like this has ever been undertaken. This carries on the work Alan Turing did before he died.
The results of the research are now published – a paper has been published in the Royal Society’s Open Science journal, and the findings indicate that while Fibonacci numbers do often occur, other types of numbers also crop up, including Lucas numbers and other similarly defined number sequences.
Carnival of Mathematics 134
The next issue of the Carnival of Mathematics, rounding up blog posts from the month of April, and compiled by Kartik, is now online at Comfortably Numbered.
The Carnival rounds up maths blog posts from all over the internet, including some from our own Aperiodical. See our Carnival of Mathematics page for more information.
The new Eurovision scoring system: the maths
It’s Eurovision time again! A chance for everyone to enjoy musical performances that are either good or so bad they’re good, ridiculous staging, and hilarious costumes, all sprinkled with a gently sarcastic Irish voiceover (if you’re lucky enough to be watching in the UK).
BUT WHAT’S THIS? They’ve changed the voting system? Don’t worry – some mathematicians are here to straighten it out for you.
Katie’s Binary Nails Tutorial – and a puzzle
I’ve just posted my latest YouTube video, in which I explain how to use binary numbers to jazz up your nail varnish:
Alongside this video, I also have an associated puzzle for you to think about.
Puzzlebomb – May 2016
Puzzlebomb is a monthly puzzle compendium. Issue 53 of Puzzlebomb, for May 2016, can be found here:
Puzzlebomb – Issue 53 – May 2016
The solutions to Issue 53 can be found here:
Puzzlebomb – Issue 53 – Solutions – May 2016
Previous issues of Puzzlebomb, and their solutions, can be found at Puzzlebomb.co.uk.
Carnival of Mathematics 133
The next issue of the Carnival of Mathematics, rounding up blog posts from the month of March, and compiled by Matthew, is now online at Chalkdust Magazine.
The Carnival rounds up maths blog posts from all over the internet, including some from our own Aperiodical. See our Carnival of Mathematics page for more information.