Taking Maths Further Podcast: Recent Episodes
Peter Rowlett and Katie Steckles
Talking to people who use maths in their work. Aiming to encourage further uptake of maths at A-level and beyond. Hosted by Peter Rowlett and Katie Steckles.
This week the topic was calculus and differentiation. We talked to Florencia Tettamanti, who’s a mathematician working on fluid dynamics. We talked about how Flo uses calculus to study the motion of fluids like air and water, and what it’s like to be a research mathematician. Interesting...
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This week the topic was mechanics and friction. We interviewed Dan Hett, who works for CBBC writing computer games for their website. We talked about his work and how he uses a lot of mathematics in modelling how characters move, and making sure that’s done in a realistic way. Interesting...
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This week the topic was Fourier analysis. We interviewed Heather Williams, who’s a medical physicist and works with Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanners, as well as other medical scanning devices. We talked about her work and how maths is important in converting data from the scanner into...
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This week the topic was mathematical modelling and linear programming. We interviewed Rick Crawford from AMEC, who’s a mathematician studying decommissioning of nuclear reactors, and using mathematical models to determine whether it’s safe to continue using a particular reactor given that it may...
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This week the topic was statistical distributions and actuarial science. We interviewed Richard Harland, who works in risk management for an insurance firm. We talked to him about his work as an actuary, and how he uses statistical distributions like the normal distribution to predict the...
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This week the topic was mathematics and money, and how maths is used in finance. We interviewed Sarah O’Rourke, who’s an accountant working on the problem of moving cash around to where it’s needed in cash machines. We discussed the ways she uses mathematical modelling to predict where demand for...
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This week the topic was maths and art. We interviewed Edmund Harris, who spoke about his work using different media to engage people with mathematics, including his work creating art with a mathematical basis. We discussed his work with tilings and how he uses maths in his work. Interesting...
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This week the topic was vectors and matrices. We interviewed Dave Langers, who studies the human brain, and how it processes hearing signals. We talked about how Dave uses matrices and vectors to store information from brain scans, which allow him to manipulate the information more easily....
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This week the topic was data analysis. We interviewed Judith Elgie from INRIX about her work as a data analyst, and how she uses computers to analyse and predict the movement of vehicles on the roads, to generate information about where traffic jams are and which roads are clear. Interesting...
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This week the topic was boolean algebra. We interviewed Robie Basak, who's a computer programmer at Canonical, about his work on the Ubuntu operating system, and how he and his colleagues use mathematics and mathematical thinking in order to write computer software. Interesting links:Canonical...
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This week the topic was types of numbers and infinity. We interviewed Dorothy Ker, who’s a musician and composer. We talked about the way Dorothy uses maths to inspire her creativity, as well as the types of maths that composers and musicians use. Interesting links:"A gentle infinity" - One of...
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This week the topic was coordinate geometry and structural engineering. We interviewed John Read, who’s a structural engineer, about his work and how he uses mathematics to design structures and buildings. Interesting links:What do structural engineers do?, at the Institute of Structural...
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This week the topic was the most efficient way to pack shapes in 2D and 3D space. We interviewed Jacek Wychowaniec, who’s a scientist studying applications of materials science to biology. We talked about how he uses many different types of maths in his work, and how he’s been developing...
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This week the topic was trigonometry. We interviewed Stephanie Yardley, who’s a solar physicist. We talked about the research Stephanie does into activity on the surface of the sun, and how she uses trigonometry to analyse data from satellites and telescopes. Interesting links:Space weather...
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This week the topic was exponential growth, and pension investments. We interviewed Simon Perera from Lane, Clark & Peacock about his work as an actuary, what an actuary is and how it involves predicting the growth of investments. Interesting links:Actuarial science on WikipediaExponential...
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This week the topic was standard deviation. We interviewed Clara Nellist, who's a researcher at CERN Geneva, Switzerland. We talked to Clara about her work in the Large Hadron Collider and how she uses standard deviation as a measure of how reliable the results are. Interesting links:Large Hadron...
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This week the topic was quadratic equations and their applications. We interviewed Colin Wright, who works on radar systems for coordinating and tracking ships and boats. Interesting links:Quadratic equations in the real worldMarine Radar on WikipediaHow to use the quadratic formula Path of...
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In this episode, we talk about cellular automata - including the Game of Life - and graph theory, and interviewed Jonathan Crofts from Nottingham Trent University about his research on complex networks in neuroscience. Find out more about the Biomathematics & Bioinformatics Research Group at...
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In this episode we interviewed Alison Atkin from the University of Sheffield about her work as an archaeology PhD student, and how she uses statistical sampling to gather data about victims of the plague. Some interesting links:Alison's BlogAlison’s research page and PhD abstractThe Black Death...
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This week the topic was Bayesian statistics. We interviewed Emma Rixon from Nottingham Trent University about her work as a crime scene investigator and how forensic science uses Bayesian probabilities. Bayesian probability:Introduction to Bayesian Statistics, by computer scientist Kevin...
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