The Maths Factor |
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| Episode No. | Description | Timing |
| 1. | Shapes and Tessellations | What is a tessellation? These are patterns that are made by putting certain shapes together. They have to be arranged in a certain way to make a perfect tessellation. We will explore these breathtaking arrangements and how these come handy in our day to day life. We will also look into the works of M. C. Escher and Roger Penrose, who have used tessellation techniques widely. We are going explore the bewildering beauty of these patterns and the astonishing art works that are spread around the world. |
| 2. | Network Theory | This episode is all about networks. We’ll see how networks permeate our life today – for example the brain is a network of neurons; organisations are people networks; the global economy is a network of national economies, the food webs, ecosystems, and the Internet can all be represented as networks. Through our explorations of this fascinating discipline we’ll learn how to colour maps, make travel plans, and understand how we are all connected. |
| 3. | Probability | What is probability? Here is a clue. What is the common factor in weather forecast, sports, auto insurance rates, lotteries and casinos? Probability! We will travel through time and discover the many ways in which probability has dominated our lives and how it still does! We will also meet some mathematicians that made a mark in the development of this very complex theory! We will attend game shows, play street cricket and attend birthday parties to see how probability surrounds us. |
| 4. | Fibonacci and his Magical Sequence | In this episode we will see how magical mathematics can be. We will travel back in time and meet the famous mathematician- Fibonacci and see how his magical sequence is mirrored in nature, in art, in the human body as well as architecture. We will conduct experiments and see for ourselves how this sequence is embedded within nature. We will also visit the city of Chandigarh, where we will explore the works of the famous Swiss-French architect and painter Le Corbusier who deeply believed in the Golden Ratio. |
| 5. | The Calculus Enigma | This episode explores the ever so scary concept within mathematics- Calculus! But don’t worry we will explain and demystify it by showing how it connects to running races, roundworms and even murder mysteries. We’ll journey through Europe and India and meet mathematicians who made path breaking discoveries within the wide concept that Calculus is. Our aim to show how calculus surrounds our day to day life, without us even realizing it. |
| 6. | Play up! Play up! Play the Game | What is Game Theory? This is basically the mathematics of decision-making and is used extensively in economics. We are also going to explore some of the classical problems within this arena, such as how married couples, or bickering neighbours and even warring countries use mathematics in their decision making. Game theory plays a crucial role in our lives and provides startling insights into all endeavors in which humans cooperate or compete. It covers areas varying from biology and politics, to agriculture and economics. |
| 7. | Number Sense | Numbers and numerals form the basis of the giant subject matter that Mathematics is! Anywhere in the world – China, Arabia, Africa, Venezuela – languages, font, metaphors change – but the number systems are truly universal. In this episode we will become world travelers to see how numbers have evolved in different civilizations. We’ll also see how both animals and babies can understand numbers intuitively by reconstructing experiments. |
| 8. | IN SEARCH OF X- The Magic of Algebra | This episode is all about the magic of algebra. And this is no textbook journey, Algebra and its development has more than its fair share of drama. We will tell you stories of a King who lost all his wealth because he did not understand the concept of Algebra. We will pick up real life problems, travel through Arabia, India and Greece solving poetic riddles and inheritance problems to bring this subject alive. |
| 9. | Topology | Topology is the study of unusual shapes. This mystifying concept has left many confounded. We are going see a host of magical shapes like the Mobius strip and hexaflexegons in this episode! We will also see how such shapes form beautiful art that has been embedded in various cultures across the globe. We will meet up with potters, ironsmiths, paper folders and knot tiers as we journey through the maze of Topology. |
| 10. | Infinity | This episode is all about infinity – the exploration of something without an end. It’s an idea that has caused curiosity and consternation, marking the meeting point of maths, philosophy and religion. Our journey takes you through India, Greece and into the fascinating Hilbert’s Hotel! We will meet up Pythagoras and take a sneak peek into the mystic lives of Jaina Monks as we try to understand and explain the complexities of this concept. |
| 11. | The Shape of things- Geometry | Geometry is all about the shapes that surround us and the bewildering manner in which maths explores it. In this episode we will travel back in time to explore the world of classical geometry. We will meet up young mathematicians as they try their hands at understanding some of the famous geometric concepts. We will journey through time and space and try to understand Pythagoras’s famous theorem, the mathematics of Indian altars, Euclids axioms, building Platonic solids and measuring the earth. |
| 12. | The Prime Advantage | Primes are called the building blocks of Maths. The way they help everyone the title certainly stands true! We’re going to explore cicadas, codes, conundrums, cryptography and conjectures in our excursion through this magical subject. We’ll see how to locate prime numbers, fun patterns in primes and some uses – which vary from chapter numbers to insect mating patterns! Who could have thought that just a number that is difficult to factor could fuel so much of our lives. |
| 13. | Maths and Biology | Maths and Biology- two subjects when brought together have given the world some of the most miraculous findings! On this episode we explore this curious connection as we will wander through tiger terrain and observe the mathematics behind the patterns on their coats, we will climb evolutionary trees to see how closely one specie is connected to the other. We will also travel to the 19th century and track the cholera outbreaks. |
