Welcome to Musings on Math!

July 2, 2012 Leave a comment

“A mathematician is a device which turns coffee into theorems.”

– Alfréd Rényi

Hello.  Welcome to musingsonmath.com!  My goal when creating this website was to give my high school and college math students a place to go to learn more about the information I presented in class – ideas that we didn’t have time for during the confines of our class time (not necessarily the technical aspects of the class, textbooks do an O.K. job of that).  Rather, what I wanted was a place to go where the more human side of the subject could be explored: the people and events that shaped the thinking and understanding of the mathematicians who discovered (or created) the beautiful world of mathematics.   That doesn’t mean that I don’t ever delve into the mathematics.  I do, from time to time, offer up some more technical posts as well as some more interesting problems to solve.  However, I want this site to show that mathematics is not some technical, dry and emotionally void subject that is written in a complicated and cold language.  Instead, it is a subject that is a lively and colorful, full of interesting characters and fascinating stories that make mathematics into a living, breathing subject to be enjoyed by all.  So, whatever your reason for visiting this site, I hope you enjoy it and learn from it.

Before I leave you to your explorations, just a few last points …

The Navigation Bars:

  • The top menu bar contains my website pages.  On these pages, you can find all sorts of mathematical links, articles, problems, books, gift ideas, etc.
  • The bottom menu bar contains the categories of my posts.

My Top 5 most visited pages and posts:

One last item … new posts can always be found below this Welcome post and to the right listed under “Recent Posts.”

Please feel free to contact me with your suggestions, additions or advice by leaving a comment or sending me an email at musingsonmath@gmail.com.

You can also read some new posts on Twitter:  @musingsonmath

Or you can also follow the site on Twitter:

 

Enjoy the site!

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The Month in Math: December

December 1, 2019 Leave a comment

Interested in the highlights from the historical world of mathematics for the month of December?  How about the answers to these questions?

  • In 1742, Euler presents the first concise statement of what famous theorem?
  • In 1908, Scientific American offers $500 to anyone who can come up with “a simple explanation” of what famous idea?

Click here to find the answers to these questions and more:  December

Looking for a different month?  Click here for all 12 months.

Filed under Math and Education, Math and History Tagged with ,

The Month in Math: November

November 1, 2019 Leave a comment

Interested in the highlights from the historical world of mathematics for the month of November?  How about the answers to these questions?

  • Which mathematician’s burial was described as follows – “He was buried more like a robber than what he really was, the ornament of his century.”
  • Which mathematician described his discovery of non-Euclidean geometry as “From nothing I have created another entirely new world.”?

Click here to find the answers to these questions and more:  November

Looking for a different month?  Click here for all 12 months.

Filed under Math and Education, Math and History Tagged with ,

The Month in Math: October

October 1, 2019 Leave a comment

Interested in the highlights from the historical world of mathematics for the month of October?  How about the answers to these questions?

  • In 1843, what does Sir William Hamilton invent during a walk along the Royal Canal in Dublin?
  • In 1903, Frank Cole gives his famous silent presentation about what unsolved math problem?

Click here to find the answers to these questions and more:  October

Looking for a different month?  Click here for all 12 months.

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The Month in Math: September

September 1, 2019 Leave a comment

Interested in the highlights from the historical world of mathematics for the month of September?  How about the answers to these questions?

  • What famous theorem does Kurt Godel present on Sept. 7, 1930?
  • Two of the most prolific mathematicians died during the month of September.  Can you name both of them?

Click here to find the answers to these questions and more:  September

Looking for a different month?  Click here for all 12 months.

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The Month in Math: August

August 1, 2019 Leave a comment

Interested in the highlights from the historical world of mathematics for the month of August?  How about the answers to these questions?

  • What famous scientist wrote to President Roosevelt on August 2, 1939?
  • What was the subject of the great debate between Tartaglia and Ferrari during this month in 1548?

Click here to find the answers to these questions and more:  August

Looking for a different month?  Click here for all 12 months.

Filed under Math and Education, Math and History Tagged with ,

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