The fascination of Maths thread

[BrilloPad]

I have now reached the end of SG's book - "Understanding Probability: Chance Rules in Everyday Life " by Henk Tijms. Fascinating read.

[threaded]

I was watching a motorcyclist pulling a wheelie from the traffic lights, in the direction of the hospital, and pondered that it's a near certain probability he'll get there, one way or the other.

[BrilloPad]

What is green and commutes?

An abelian grape!

[NotAllThere]

If it uses a bike, it'd be a cyclic group.

[Advocate]

Here you go....

http://xkcd.org/435/

[Badger]

Just found this thread and spent the last hour reading it all (well I skipped over Denny's posts )

I only did O level Maths before doing business & finance degree, but am finding myself more and more fascinated by the subject, only yesterday reading about the golden ratio.

Anyone recommend a book that isn't full of formulae so that I can understand numbers better from a mathematical perspective?

Just made myself a Mobius strip

[NickFitz]

Just made myself a Mobius strip

Quite a few years ago I was in the pub, drinking with some Fine Art students from the local poly. I told them that I could show them a one-sided piece of paper, and of course one of them insisted it wasn't possible, betting a pint against me.

So I proceeded to make a Mobius strip and, to his credit, he paid up.

But I think he learned that he should never again argue with a geek claiming to be able to do the impossible in a smoke-filled pub... at least, not on a student grant

[SupremeSpod]

Quite a few years ago I was in the pub, drinking with some Fine Art students from the local poly. I told them that I could show them a one-sided piece of paper, and of course one of them insisted it wasn't possible, betting a pint against me.

So I proceeded to make a Mobius strip and, to his credit, he paid up.

But I think he learned that he should never again argue with a geek claiming to be able to do the impossible in a smoke-filled pub... at least, not on a student grant

So you conned him then.

Nice.

[NotAllThere]

Just found this thread and spent the last hour reading it all (well I skipped over Denny's posts )

I only did O level Maths before doing business & finance degree, but am finding myself more and more fascinated by the subject, only yesterday reading about the golden ratio.

Anyone recommend a book that isn't full of formulae so that I can understand numbers better from a mathematical perspective?

Just made myself a Mobius strip

Now cut it in half down the middle.

[NotAllThere]

Here you go....

http://xkcd.org/435/

That's better than www.nearingzero.net