A Fantastic Day of Mathematics Lectures at Bath Forum for 5th & 6th Form Maths Pupils

On Friday 8^th March, 38 mathematicians from the 5^th Form and 6^th Form travelled up to Bath to listen to a trio of lectures. The nationally acclaimed and inspirational speakers delved into exciting topics that entertained and puzzled in equal measure.

The first talk of the day was from Alex Bellos, a popular puzzle master and author who writes a bi-weekly column for The Guardian. His talk took us through the weird and wonderful world of puzzles, from shapes to memes to a question where there was no possible way to the answer. However, the calibre of the audience confused even him at times - we saw right through many of the misleading challenges, but when it came to calculating the distance around the Earth we were all stumped…

In a riveting second talk by Hugh Hunt, a Cambridge University reader, the maths and physics behind spinning objects were covered in great detail. He talked about some interesting moments in his career, such as his attempt to help Guy Martin to drive along a “Wall of Death” at over 100mph. Highlights included the near-decapitation of our L6^th Form pupil, Alex Baxter, by a rogue boomerang, and an impressive trick involving a spinning top being held horizontally by a piece of string. It was both interesting and educational, and it was enjoyed a great deal.

Ben Sparks, who works at Bath University, was our last speaker of the day. Interestingly, he incorporated maths with music as his inspiration for the talk was Sting's song 'The Shape of My Heart'. He related the lyrics to poker and gambling and the probability involved in them, demonstrating by conducting an audience based experiment and bet. Describing the maths after Sparks had won, it became evident in how his chances were high in this particular bet. The way in which he used maths to apply to gambling was interesting as it revealed the hidden likelihood of winning, and why the House always wins.

A fantastic day was had by all.

Authored by L6^th Form Mathematicians - Amelia, Alex and Gabriel