Category: Mathematics

• Centuries Ahead in Maths

  8–12 minutes

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  26th Apr 2025

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  History, Mathematics, Science and Technology

  Ancient China was a major mathematical innovator, developing sophisticated methods often centuries before the West. Driven by practical needs, they used counting rods with a decimal place-value system and negative numbers, understood Pythagoras’ theorem, calculated pi accurately, and created algorithms for solving complex equations and systems.

  

• is the number 37 really everywhere?

  6–9 minutes

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  11th Sep 2024

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  Mathematics, Religion and Beliefs

  The idea that the number 37 (or any other number) is “everywhere” is often linked to cognitive biases, particularly the phenomenon of confirmation bias. Once you start noticing a number, like 37, you may begin to see it more frequently because your brain is subconsciously looking for it. This can give the impression that the number…