Category Archives: mathematics and …

how our discipline relates to other things

Tessellating in the rain

Posted on 13/06/2011 by

On the left, the Giant’s Causeway in Ireland: a periodic tessellation of the plane by hexagons (with some imperfections), made of basalt. On the right, the Mathematics building at Queen Mary, University of London: a non-periodic Penrose tiling, made of … Continue reading →

Posted in mathematics and ... | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Poetry and science

Posted on 08/06/2011 by

In The Age of Wonder, subtitled “How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science”, Richard Holmes quotes John Bonnycastle, from the preface of the 1811 edition of his book Introduction to Astronomy in Letters to his Pupil, … Continue reading →

Posted in mathematics and ... | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Bob Dylan is 70

Posted on 24/05/2011 by

Happy birthday, Bob! I mention this here not just because I like his work, but because he is an artist who is not scared of mathematics. He described Robbie Robertson as “the only mathematical guitar genius I’ve ever run into … Continue reading →

Posted in mathematics and ... | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Fear of mathematics

Posted on 13/04/2011 by

I am a great admirer of Ben Goldacre. An advocate of evidence-based medicine, he is the person behind Bad Science, the Guardian column, website, and book; he is the scourge of dodgy nutritionists, alternative therapists who cherry-pick trials to bolster … Continue reading →

Posted in mathematics and ... | Tagged , | 6 Comments

After the Gold Rush

Posted on 28/03/2011 by

Although string theorists and fans of J. W. Dunne may disagree, most people are convinced that we live in a universe which has three dimensions of space and one of time. In the early days of topology, one of the … Continue reading →

Posted in exposition, mathematics and ... | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Ambiguity, 2

Posted on 21/03/2011 by

JoAnne Growney has recently referred again to our small disagreement about the role of ambiguity in mathematics and in poetry. The fact is that I really agree with her, but it is very hard to make a good argument for … Continue reading →

Posted in mathematics and ... | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Farewell to astronomy?

Posted on 10/03/2011 by

Whoever then has the effrontery to study physics while neglecting mathematics, should know from the start that he will never make his entry through the portals of wisdom. Thomas Bradwardine I have been in my present institution for almost 25 … Continue reading →

Posted in mathematics and ..., maybe politics | Tagged , | 2 Comments

How to have impact

Posted on 08/12/2010 by

In the bizarrely-named “research excellence framework” bearing down on UK academics, some proportion of the credit will be given for the impact of the research. “Impact” is narrowly defined as economic and social impact; your department must have commercialised your … Continue reading →

Posted in mathematics and ..., maybe politics | 2 Comments

LMS website, 2

Posted on 23/11/2010 by

I have just removed the link to the blog A new website for the LMS. The beta-test version of the website is now available on the developer’s site, and there is really no need for my link any more. But … Continue reading →

Posted in mathematics and ..., the Web | Leave a comment

Eliot’s yew

Posted on 17/09/2010 by

London is a walkable city. From time to time I have meetings at the London Mathematical Society’s headquarters, De Morgan House in Russell Square, Bloomsbury. I can walk there from my office in an hour and a few minutes. An … Continue reading →

Posted in doing mathematics, geography, mathematics and ... | 13 Comments