PBS Infinite Series
Season 2017
Mathematician Tai-Danae Bradley and physicist Gabe Perez-Giz offer ambitious content for viewers that are eager to attain a greater understanding of the world around them. Math is pervasive - a robust yet precise language - and with each episode you'll begin to see the math that underpins everything in this puzzling, yet fascinating, universe. Previous host Kelsey Houston-Edwards is currently working on her Ph.D. in mathematics at Cornell University.
Where to Watch Season 2017
43 Episodes
- Kill the Mathematical HydraE4
Kill the Mathematical HydraMathematician Kelsey Houston-Edwards explains how to defeat a seemingly undefeatable monster using a rather unexpected mathematical proof. In this episode you’ll see mathematician vs monster, thought vs ferocity, cardinal vs ordinal. You won’t want to miss it. - The Honeycombs of 4-Dimensional Bees ft. Joe HansonE26
The Honeycombs of 4-Dimensional Bees ft. Joe HansonWhy is there a hexagonal structure in honeycombs? Why not squares? Or asymmetrical blobby shapes? In 36 B.C., the Roman scholar Marcus Terentius Varro wrote about two of the leading theories of the day. First: bees have six legs, so they must obviously prefer six-sided shapes. But that charming piece of numerology did not fool the geometers of day. They provided a second theory: Hexagons are the most efficient shape. Bees use wax to build the honeycombs -- and producing that wax expends bee energy. The ideal honeycomb structure is one that minimizes the amount of wax needed, while maximizing storage -- and the hexagonal structure does this best. - Stochastic SupertasksE27
Stochastic SupertasksWhat happens when you try to empty an urn full of infinite balls? It turns out that whether the vase is empty or full at the end of an infinite amount of time depends on what order you try to empty it in. Check out what happens when randomness and the Ross-Littlewood Paradox collide. - This Video was Not Encrypted with RSAE42
This Video was Not Encrypted with RSALast time, we discussed symmetric encryption protocols, which rely on a user-supplied number called "the key" to drive an algorithm that scrambles messages. Since anything encrypted with a given key can only be decrypted with the same key, Alice and Bob can exchange secure messages once they agree on a key. But what if Alice and Bob are strangers who can only communicate over a channel monitored by eavesdroppers like Eve? How do they agree on a secret key in the first place?