In Mind Reading with Math we showed how you could use binary to read someone’s mind. For that activity, we used a set of cards representing the first four binary place values: 8, 4, 2, 1. Binary only has two digits: “1” or “0” (which could also be thought of as “yes” or “no”). This …
Piet Mondrian was a Dutch painter who is now considered one of the great artists of the 20th century [1]. Among his other works, some of Mondrian’s art had a unique, geometric style that (no surprise) attracted the eyes and minds of mathematicians. His art looked a little something like this: From the clashing of …
This article was originally published in the Winter/Spring 2016 edition of the MTCircular. Facebook Twitter The Pancake Problem is a sorting problem with connections to computer science and DNA rearrangements, which leads to discussions of algorithms, sequences, and the usefulness of approximations and bounds. Te original problem was frst posed by mathematician Jacob Goodman …
This week’s activity comes from James Tanton of the Global Math Project and G’Day Math. He’s also demonstrated this activity and similar problems for the Math Teachers’ Circle Network. Facebook Twitter how to fold a tie into perfect thirds Imagine you’re packing for a trip, and you’re planning on bringing your favorite tie. It’s too …
This article was originally published in the Winter/Spring 2015 edition of the MTCircular. Facebook Twitter Patterns are one of Math Circles’ great levelers. From recognizing a pattern to generating terms, to abstracting and making inferences, tasks based on patterns embody the “low-threshold, high-ceiling” trait of good problems. Liar’s Bingo is all about patterns, and …
This article was originally published in the Summer/Autumn 2015 edition of the MTCircular. The activity was also facilitated by Chris Bolognese during the Math Teachers’ Circle Network Virtual Workshop in 2020. Facebook Twitter People who wonder about mathematical objects and ideas see math not as the quest for The Answer, but as an opportunity to …
This week’s activity highlights a mathematical game demonstrated by Dr. Holly Krieger from Murray Edwards College, University of Cambridge. You can view her presentation of the game on the Numberphile Youtube channel linked here. We will also be using the Dollar Game applet developed by tech startup Hoodies to help explain the game and possible strategies. …
During February’s Online Math Teacher Circle session, Henri Picciotto presented geometric puzzles that educators and students could attempt virtually using online manipulatives he created. Facebook Twitter https://youtu.be/GD_4LW86OHw Tangrams The session started with an explanation of Tangrams. The Tangram is a set of seven geometric shapes made up of five triangles, a square, and a parallelogram. …
This week, we will be looking at two different two-player games. “Don’t Say 13” was developed at the San Francisco Math Circle, while Nim is an ancient game possibly originating from China. We’ll analyze strategies for both games and talk about how to create new variations on them. Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter …
This week we’re highlighting a few activities previously demonstrated on Math Monday by Puzzle Master and Math Monday founder Scott Kim. You can also view these broadcasts and more on our Math Monday Youtube Playlist. Facebook Twitter Bongard Problems https://youtu.be/w5oprHOE0NU In this session, student learn about Bongard Problems — logic puzzles named for Russian computer scientist …