Author: loganj

Is it possible to construct a perfect NCAA bracket? Jeff Bergen, mathematics professor at DePaul University, says, “It would be more likely for the next 16 World Series to be won by the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox than it would be to pick a perfect bracket by guessing.” Basketball knowledge increases the odds, but the odds of picking a perfect bracket would be approximately one in 128 billion. Nevertheless, March Madness is fun and you can still win your office pool even without a perfect bracket! For more of Professor Bergen’s commentary, click here.

Have you ever wondered how patterns arise in the wrinkles of raisins or fingerprints? A team of MIT mathematicians and engineers has developed a mathematical theory that predicts how wrinkles on curved surfaces take their shape. Click here to learn more!

BYU mathematicians recently calculated the best local pizza “Pi” in Provo and Orem, Utah. Five undergraduate students with background in math, computer coding, and statistics combined their skills to come up with an equation to discover the best pizza joint. Click here to read more!

Kirk Goldsberry, an avid basketball fan and geographer, has developed a system that maps every shot an NBA player takes. Goldsberry tracks how frequently each player shoots from each spot as well as the success of each shot. Click here to check out how this data is calculated and used.

The PhotoMath App could revolutionize math for students struggling with the subject. Here’s how it works: open the app, take a picture of the math problem, and let the app work its magic. The app shows a step-by-step problem solving approach. Click here to check out the video and read more about MicroBLINK, PhotoMath’s parent company.

Image credit: http://www.techspot.com/news/58524-photomath-uses-smartphone-camera-solve-math-problems.html