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Poplular Maths Articles

Emmy had a theorem (mathematical nursery rhyme #2)

In the spirit of previous work in abstract algebra, I have, erm, adapted another nursery rhyme. To the tune of “Mary had a little lamb”, a discussion of Noether’s theorem.

dan 2019-01-272020-06-17 Poplular Maths Articles No Comments Read more

Golay Golay Golay (Top of the autocorrelation world)

In 1949, Marcel Golay was thinking about spectrometry. Here’s what happened next…

dan 2019-01-222020-06-17 Poplular Maths Articles No Comments Read more

Topological entropy: information in the limit of perfect eyesight

Entropy means many different things in different contexts, but there is a wonderful notion of entropy which is purely topological. It only requires a space, and a map on it. It is independent of geometry, or any other arbitrary features — it is a purely intrinsic concept. This notion is known as topological entropy.

dan 2019-01-162020-06-17 Poplular Maths Articles No Comments Read more

Abstract algebra nursery rhyme

In the spirit of hilariously advanced baby books like Chris Ferrie’s Quantum Physics for Babies, I have taken to incorporating absurdly sophisticated concepts into nursery rhymes.

dan 2019-01-142020-06-17 Etc., Poplular Maths Articles No Comments Read more

Limitless as that space too narrow for its inspirations

In which I recall, via neurologist Oliver Sacks, some musings of Sylvester from 1877 on the limitlessness of mathematics.

dan 2019-01-032020-06-17 Etc., Poplular Maths Articles No Comments Read more

The Brain makes Contact with Contact Geometry

It’s always nice, intellectually, when two apparently unrelated areas collide. I had an experience of this sort recently with an area of mathematics — one very familiar to me — and an ostensibly completely distinct area of science.

dan 2018-06-082020-06-17 Poplular Maths Articles No Comments Read more

“The beauty of mathematics shows itself to patient followers” — The work of Maryam Mirzakhani

The recent passing of Maryam Mirzakhani came as a shock to many of us in the world of mathematics. Together with Norman Do, we attempt to share something about Mirzakhani’s work.

dan 2018-05-212020-06-17 Poplular Maths Articles No Comments Read more

Tutte meets Homfly

I’ll tell you about some extremely clever methods to tell graphs and knots apart, involving polynomials: the Tutte and HOMFLY polynomials. And they’re closely related.

dan 2017-09-082020-06-22 Poplular Maths Articles No Comments Read more

Holy h-principle, Batman!

In which I attempt to explain some of the ideas behind the h-principle.

dan 2017-06-122020-06-22 Poplular Maths Articles 1 Comment Read more

Every world in a grain of sand: John Nash’s astonishing geometry

After the recent tragic death of John Forbes Nash Jr, many tributes have been paid to this great mathematician, who was made famous by the movie “A Beautiful Mind”, and much has been said about his work on game theory. But less has been said about Nash’s other mathematical achievements.

dan 2015-05-272020-06-22 Poplular Maths Articles No Comments Read more
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