math
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NFL player publishes math papers in his spare time
If you were an NFL player, what would you do in between games? Live the high life? Spend more time working out? The Baltimore Ravens' John Urschel does something decidedly geekier: co-author math papers. The offensive lineman recently helped publish details of a "cascadic multigrid algorithm for computing the Fiedler vector of graph Laplacians" (no, we don't get it either), which would be impressive for any aspiring mathematician -- let alone one who spends his days crushing rivals on the football field. This isn't his first such paper, but it's notable that he's keeping up his academic pursuits even after graduating from Penn State and joining the big leagues.
TI's super-slim graphing calculator shows that math can be stylish
Who said that graphing calculators were dead in the smartphone era? Certainly not Texas Instruments -- if anything, it's showing that there's still plenty of life left in dedicated math machines. Its new TI-84 Plus CE is 30 percent thinner and 30 percent lighter than the regular Plus, making for a surprisingly sleek-looking way to crunch numbers. It has six times the memory, too, so you can store more color graphs and images (and, let's be honest, a fresh copy of Drugwars for goofing off mid-class). TI hasn't divulged pricing for the Plus CE, although its new design and advanced feature set hint that it'll be relatively costly when it arrives in the spring. Look at it this way, though: you might just be the envy of your fellow students when you take this svelte plotter out of your backpack.
CCP shows historical player age distribution in EVE
"Every EVE player likes math, or at least the potential destruction it unlocks," CCP says in the comments of its latest YouTube vid. The reel is basically one minute and 38 seconds worth of graph porn showing how EVE's players have "matured" over the past 11 years. Or, as another commenter puts it, CCP has basically "stolen our young adult lives." Click past the cut to see the clip.
Answer: Don't Be Stupid game impractically expects just that
Answer: Don't Be Stupid is a game that makes you feel ever so slightly, well, stupid. That's because it's based off of simple math problems most of us learned in the first grade. However, when put in this format, it's not so easy. The objective is to determine if the number on the left is less than, equal to or greater than the sum of the numbers on the right as quickly as possible. If you're not quick enough, you lose. If you're wrong, you lose. Time to recharge that brain with fast-moving numbers. The game is free for iPhone and iPad and requires iOS 7.0 or later. In every round, a blue box holding a random number is steadily in place on the left. A mathematical expression slides in on the right in its own box, creeping closer to the other number. Before the two boxes touch, you must use the three buttons below: the less-than symbol, the equal symbol or the greater-than symbol. Tap these in accordance with the numbers and expressions and how they relate to each other. Don't worry, the expressions don't get too out of hand. For instance, if the number in the blue box is nine and the expression is eight plus one, tap the Equal button. The game is in a constant rapid fire mode, so there's no time to pause and celebrate each time you finish. After the first level, you're on to the next. As Answer progresses, it gets more difficult. The expression on the right starts sliding at a faster pace giving you less time to choose the correct answer. The numbers get more complex, too, growing larger and eventually broadening to include all integers rather than solely natural numbers. This means you might come across some negatives. I have yet to get far enough to see if Answer transitions into harder problems like multiplication or division. There's some subtraction at times, but my suspicion is that it doesn't go beyond that based on the app description stating it's for "practicing addition." Answer has two modes to boot: Normal and Hard. The Hard difficulty seemingly just starts off on a similar intensity to when Normal is about 25 levels in. Math was always a pretty strong subject for me in school, but don't let that fool you. The "Don't Be Stupid" slogan in the title gets somewhat challenging to fulfill. To score well, you have to act quickly, wisely and under pressure. The game integrates with Game Center to store your rankings and unlock badges for each level you pass. You won't find a multiplayer mode, in-app purchases or settings. Down the road, it might be nice to have modes for multiplication, division and other kinds of math so Answer can train your brain to learn more than just addition. Answer is a fun title that simultaneously gets easier and harder the more you play. The levels get more difficult, but it really does train your brain to respond quicker and with the correct answers. "Fun" and "educational" are two concepts that don't always coexist, but Answer: Don't Be Stupid accomplishes just that. Get it in the App Store for free.
Quantum physics theory is easier to understand than you think
Wrapping your head around quantum physics is tricky, no matter how well-educated you are -- if it were easy, there wouldn't be problems making quantum computers. However, researchers at the National University of Singapore believe they've found a way to make things simpler. They've determined that wave-particle duality (where quantum objects behave like waves) is really a manifestation of the uncertainty principle, which limits your ability to know two related properties of a quantum particle. As it turns out, you can rework the math for wave-particle duality to apply to certain uncertainty relations. They're just two sides of the same coin.
Calvertr: A unique calculator and conversion app
Calvertr (US$2.99) is a clever evolution of the standard calculator and conversions app. As a calculator it is pretty basic, but where it really shines is in its conversion abilities. As a currency converter, for example, it supports 157 different monetary systems around the world. Categories or types are searchable, conversion data can be shared with friends, and the app lets you share a note along with results. There are literally conversions for almost anything: astronomical, calendar days between dates, radioactivity, ROI, fuel consumption, and the list goes on and on from the mundane (like calculating tips at restaurants) to the more arcane like viscosity and torque conversions. The app supports AirDrop sharing and printing if you are so equipped. Calvertr also supports the new iOS 8 Notifications Center widgets, which lets you select your most-used functions and have them available instantly in Notifications Center. The look and feel of the app is attractive, with screens that are easy to read and understand. When you first launch the app there are help screens to get you started. To go back to any previous page, just flick the screen to the right. After seeing so many calculator apps and conversion apps, it's nice to see some fresh thinking. I'd like the calculator to take on more functions, though. It seems out of balance with the terrific conversions side of the app. I found one rather interesting bug: in calculating days between any two dates i could not get any date other than today on both ends of the calculation -- that will clearly need to be fixed, and soon. The app is worth the money, and the widget support is a welcome feature. Calvertr requires iOS 7 or greater. It's a universal app and it is optimized for the iPhone 5 and 6 series of iPhones.
PhotoMath uses your phone's camera to solve equations
Need a little help getting through your next big math exam? MicroBlink has an app that could help you study more effectively -- perhaps too effectively. Its newly unveiled PhotoMath for iOS and Windows Phone (Android is due in early 2015) uses your smartphone's camera to scan math equations and not only solve them, but show the steps involved. Officially, it's meant to save you time flipping through a textbook to check answers when you're doing homework or cramming for a test. However, there's a concern that this could trivialize learning -- just because it shows you how to solve a problem doesn't mean that the knowledge will actually sink in. And if teachers don't confiscate smartphones at the door, unscrupulous students could cheat when no one is looking. The chances of that happening aren't very high at this stage, but apps like this suggest that schools might have to be vigilant in the future.
Mathematician tries to predict the next two 'Game of Thrones' books
Tired of waiting for George R. R. Martin to finish the next book in the Song of Ice and Fire series? So is the University of Canterbury's Richard Vale: he's created a statistical model based on the series' previous tomes to predict what might be in the next book. Don't worry though, it's mostly spoiler free. Vale's analysis of Game of Thrones doesn't account for plot or foreshadowing -- it's strictly a numbers game.
Xprize's next big challenge: software that lets kids teach themselves
The Xprize organization has inspired people to take on some pretty lofty goals, ranging from sequencing genomes to literal moonshots. Today, though, it's focusing on a very practical objective: improving education for hundreds of millions of kids. Its new Global Learning Xprize will offer a total of $15 million to teams that build open source, easily scaled software that lets young ones in developing countries teach themselves math, reading and writing. Anyone hoping to join in will have 18 months to craft their tools, which will be tested in at least 100 villages. The top five entrants will get $1 million each, while the winning entry will get a hefty $10 million. It may not be the flashiest competition, but it could go a long, long way toward tackling the chronic shortages of schools and teachers that ultimately hurt kids' futures. [Image credit: Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images]
The Daily Grind: What real-world lessons have you learned from MMOs?
Back in January, a Lifehacker op-ed chronicled six things the writer had learned from playing World of Warcraft -- useful, real-world things, not just how to spec out a frost Mage. For example, he learned that things you like can feel like a grind, and he learned how to quit something wonderful with grace. I've learned even more practical things than that from my years in MMOs. I've learned leadership skills, honed math and spreadsheet skills, and worked on mastering the art of patience -- OK, so I'm still working on that one. I've also watched ESL guildies perfect their language and writing skills and seen still others parlay this hobby of ours into careers in gaming and coding and journalism. What about you? What real-world lessons or skills have you learned thanks to MMOs? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Numerical for iOS rethinks the calculator
The Apple calculator in iOS and OS X have remained pretty much unchanged since both were released. They work fine, but the Numerical calculator for iOS (free for a limited time) takes cues from the iOS 7 design language and adds some features that are terrific, but might take some getting used to. The app bills itself as a "Calculator without Equal' and that is literally true -- there is no equals button. You enter your numbers, like 2+2 and 4 appears. As you work, Numerical creates a history of your calculations, and there is an undo key that lets you delete your last entries. Many actions are done using swipes, which work for undo, redo and saving an answer. The app also supports the clipboard. If you do something wrong like divide a number by zero, the app gives you a plain English answer as to what is wrong. That's most welcome. The app isn't perfect -- there is no percentages button or localized decimals, but both are about to be added. It's not a specialized scientific calculator with dedicated function keys, which Apple's iOS version turns into in landscape mode. The Numerical calculator sounds can be turned off or on, and it only works in portrait orientation. Numerical is getting good reviews from users, and it really is some fresh thinking for people who use calculators frequently. The app requires iOS 7, and it's optimized for the iPhone 5. When it's not free, it's US$2.99, so if you are interested make a quick trip to the App Store today.
Bing search gets a scientific calculator almost two years after Google
If Bitcoin currency conversion is too trivial a use for you, loyal Bing user, perhaps the addition of a calculator will help solve the equation of your unhappiness. Simply type a math problem into Microsoft's search engine and, as Windows Phone Central has noticed, an interactive scientific calculator will pop up with the answer. From there you can do as much math within a browser tab as your non-Googling heart desires. WPC also notes that while the calculator interface won't be making its way to Windows Phone, entering a math problem into the mobile flavor of Bing will still return the answer to your query. It's no graphing calculator, to be sure, but Mountain View wasn't built in a day, either.
Daily App: Slice Fractions helps your child visualize fractions in a puzzling way
Slice Fractions is a new learning game from Ululab that was designed in collaboration with a team of learning experts from the University of Quebec in Montreal. As its name implies, the app focuses on fractions and presents the math concept in a series of slicing puzzles that are part Cut the Rope, part Fruit Ninja. The goal of Slice Fractions is to break up chunks of ice and lava as you clear a path for a wooly mammoth that is walking in the forest. Slicing up the chunks is not as easy as it first appears. You must use hanging blocks that are suspended on ropes to blow up the ice and lava on the ground. The challenge is to figure out which ropes you need to cut in order to get the blocks to fall so they demolish the obstacles in your mammoth's path. The puzzles start off easy and gradually increase in difficulty. As the mammoth meanders in the forest, he encounters new creatures and collects wild-looking hats that he wears on his walk. The animation is top-notch -- each character is incredibly adorable and the background music is delightfully catchy. Even as an adult, I found the game to be endearing and enjoyed playing myself. Slice Fractions is a great puzzler, but you may be wondering how the concept of fractions fits into the game. For better or worse, the teaching of fractions within the app is subtle. There are no lessons on fractions or any concrete explanation on how fractions fit into the breaking up of ice and lava. In fact, most of the early stages of the game are meant to introduce your child to solving the puzzles. It's only in the middle to latter stages that you see any mention of fractions, and even then it's up to the child to figure out (or the parent to point out) how the chunks on the ground represent a small part of a whole. For example, the game may show four blocks of lava on the ground that are contained in a box with six parts, as shown above. Your child would have to notice that the blocks represent four out of six or 4/6. In my experience, my children focused on the puzzle part and completely missed the learning part, even when the fractions were written on the blocks. Slice Fractions would work well if you had a parent or teacher who used the app as part of a formal lesson on fractions. The instructor could point out the math concepts to the child as he or she progressed through the game. The app is suitable for guided instruction, but it is not an independent learning app that you hand to your children with the expectation they will become a fraction whiz by the time they are done with all the levels. Slice Fractions is an enjoyable game that challenges your child to solve complex puzzles, while teaching fractions on the side. It's a universal app that'll work on the iPad and iPhone and is available for US$2.99 from the iOS App Store. There are no ads and no in-app purchases.
Kentucky law could let kids swap foreign language classes for coding lessons
Concerned that not enough is being done to help kids with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) subjects? Kentucky's Senate has just passed a bill that would count computer-programming classes as foreign language credits. That way, if students wanted to learn to code in favor of, say, French or Spanish, they'd be able to count that study toward their high school graduation. Senate Bill 16 will now pass to the Kentucky State House, but it seems like the sort of sensible policy that we'd expect from the home of Bourbon.
Raspberry Pi becomes a math teacher through new Wolfram bundle
Raspberry Pi computers have already proven to be valuable educational tools, but they're largely blank slates until teachers (and curious owners) find the right software. As of today, that software search just got a lot easier. The company has reached a deal to bundle Wolfram Research's Mathematica app and its companion Wolfram Language with each copy of Raspbian Linux; every Raspberry Pi owner now has free tools for everything from learning math to sophisticated programming. The deal also brings a Remote Development Kit that lets tinkerers connect the Raspberry Pi to Mathematica on a regular PC. While the updated Raspbian download isn't yet ready, all existing users can run a command to install Wolfram's suite. Only some owners will need the bundle, but it could go a long way toward promoting math to a younger generation.
D-Wave's quantum computer overcomes key math challenge, doesn't silence skeptics
D-Wave has long wanted to show that its quantum computing technology is the real deal, and it may have just come closer to proving its case. The company now says that its computer has calculated Ramsey numbers, or solutions to optimization-based math problems that are sometimes difficult to find using traditional systems. The computation represented one of the biggest-ever implementations of an algorithm, according to researchers. However, the feat isn't necessarily proof of quantum computing at work. As Wired explains, we've seen all of these numbers in previous experiments; the challenge wasn't difficult enough to require the involvement of a quantum computer. However, D-Wave may have better evidence in the future. Its third-generation system, due in 2015, should have enough power to find Ramsay numbers that are theoretically impossible to calculate today.
A virtual economist's defense of the subscription model
ZeniMax Online and Bethesda's decision to release The Elder Scrolls Online as a subscription-based game unleashed a fresh wave of debate on the future of MMO payment models and the unique advantages and drawbacks offered by each. Virtual economist Isaac Knowles is the latest expert to offer his opinion on the announcement, posted in the form of a meaty defense of the subscription model in general. Knowles (who works under game economist Edward Castronova) posits that there are three primary criticisms with the sub model: it incentivizes players to rush through content, it requires the steady release of expensive content, and it prevents companies from price discriminating (charging players for how much those players value the game rather than a flat rate). He then works to dismantle each criticism, using math as his primary weapon. If you're into detailed looks at payment models, the full blog is worth a read. Hit the jump for a quick summary of Knowles' main points.
Daily iPad App: Numerosity challenges children to learn their math facts
Math drills for elementary school children can be dry and boring, but they are a necessary part of learning math. One way to liven up this repetitive process is through Numerosity: Play with Addition!, a math facts app from ThoughtBox that recently landed in the iOS App Store. Numerosity starts off with basic addition like 4 + 5 and gradually gets more difficult with each level that is successfully completed. There are 20 levels that'll challenge most K-2 children. The app's main screen is a whiteboard-like slate that has math facts in the center and a cute character, Skruff The Streetwise Dog, on the side. Skruff cheers when your child answers a math problem correctly. When your child is not doing so well, Skruff's demeanor becomes sad. Skruff will even lay down when your child is taking too long to answer. Skruff is cute enough that he will entertain your child, but he is not the focal point of the app. Math is at the heart of Numerosity and each level presents your child with an addition problem in the middle of the screen. It also places several possible answers in a row at the bottom of the screen. Your child then taps on the correct answer to select it and drags it on top of the equation to answer the math statement. Each correct answer earns your child points. One thing you will notice right away is the timer at the top of the screen. To make Numerosity even more challenging, your child has a set amount of time to answer all the questions in a level. They must answer each question without too much delay or risk failing the level. They can pause, but the length of the pause is also limited by a timer. Each time you pause, that amount of time you are allowed gets a little shorter. It's a clever way to really challenge your children to memorize their math facts and not just count on their fingers. One aspect of Numerosity I really appreciated is that it mixes up the equations and doesn't always present your child with 10 + 2. Sometimes your child is given one addend and the answer, such as 10 + X = 15. Your child then has to select the addend that'll solve the problem correctly. This breaks up the monotony of addition and forces your child to think a bit more about the math problem in front of them. Another useful feature is the ability to setup four profiles, so you can easily use the app with multiple children. You also have the ability to print up a certificate showing that your child completed the game and mastered their math facts. Numerosity is mostly child-friendly -- there are no ads and no in-app purchases, but there is an option to send an email to the developer. Numerosity: Play with Addition! is available for US$1.99 from the iOS App Store. It's compatible with any iPad running iOS 5.1 or later.
Captain's Log: A Star Trek Online player uses math
On the heels of last week's revelation that Star Trek Online will be releasing its first ever expansion, Legacy of Romulus, many people were apparently waiting for the proverbial shoe to drop so they could rage when their expectations weren't met. That happened within seconds after the release of a special Ask Cryptic blog written by Executive Producer Daniel Stahl last Friday. Massively received a tip or two informing us that there was a Thread of Rage on the Star Trek Online forums, one that arose after the Ask Cryptic revealed that characters in the upcoming Romulan faction will be forced to choose to ally with either the Federation or the Klingon Defense Force and share in their fleet capabilities instead of developing fleets of their own. With the help of my accountant husband, I took on the challenge of dissecting this alleged Thread of Rage to determine how many people really did express feelings of rage, anger, or even disappointment with the news. You might be interested in the results of our analysis. If you are, take the jump!
It's March 14th: we're gonna make you a pi with a heart in the middle
Ladies and gentlemen (and nerds), today is Pi Day. You know what that means: tons of math and pie/pi puns flooding your newly spartan News Feed. Not too mention, a few more creative celebrations of the date that so closely mirrors the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. Lets not kid ourselves though, after several years of internet-fueled and fruit-filled fun Pi Day is starting to lose its luster. So, the question is, are you doing your best to restore the original meaning of the holiday and take it back from those who have turned it into a crass meme-athon? Oh, and don't worry if you forgot to send us a card, you can always make up for it on June 28th.
