Mel Gibson teaching Euclidean geometry, Meg Ryan and Tim Robbins acting
out Zeno's paradox, Michael Jackson proving in three different ways that
7 x 13 = 28. These are just a few of the intriguing mathematical
snippets that occur in hundreds of movies. Burkard Polster and Marty
Ross pored through the cinematic calculus to create this thorough and
entertaining survey of the quirky, fun, and beautiful mathematics to be
found on the big screen.
Math Goes to the Movies is based on the authors' own collection of
more than 700 mathematical movies and their many years using movie clips
to inject moments of fun into their courses. With more than 200
illustrations, many of them screenshots from the movies themselves, this
book provides an inviting way to explore math, featuring such movies as:
- Good Will Hunting
- A Beautiful Mind
- Stand and Deliver
- Pi
- Die Hard
- The Mirror Has Two Faces
The authors use these iconic movies to introduce and explain important
and famous mathematical ideas: higher dimensions, the golden ratio,
infinity, and much more. Not all math in movies makes sense, however,
and Polster and Ross talk about Hollywood's most absurd blunders and
outrageous mathematical scenes. Interviews with mathematical consultants
to movies round out this engaging journey into the realm of cinematic
mathematics.
This fascinating behind-the-scenes look at movie math shows how fun and
illuminating equations can be.
