Story of Math

I fell in love with this BBC series while studying for a series of math exams. Marcus Du Sautoy is the real deal -- an accomplished mathematician with a knack for storytelling. And the story of maths is indeed a good story! Du Sautoy presents the history of mathematics in a lively and accessibly way, focusing on historical characters and places as well as why a given discovery was or is important. I've watched some of the episodes more than once -- that's how engaging they are. He doesn't skip over the petty squabbles over credit or the cultural context, and that's a big part of what makes the series fun. Even the non-math people I've shared this series with have enjoyed it. Highly recommended for non-mathematical and mathematical audiences alike.

I know many of you will read the title of this review and think "well that really sounds hard to believe," or write off my enthusiasm as being a mere post-movie dazzlement effect. Really though, when you think about it, it isn't that hard to believe, is it? How many good Math documentaries are there?

Finding good science documentaries is pretty easy. They're on pretty much any cable channel (or PBS) that features these kinds of programs (NOVA, Scientific American, or other similar programs on channels like the Science Channel, the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, etc). But Math documentaries? Those are hard to come by.

This is part of why this documentary is such a gem. Most Math DVDs out there are, in contrast with programs like NOVA that make science interesting, just people explaining formulas in front of a markerboard for an hour. This is not to say there's anything wrong with that, but only to say that there aren't that many production-quality documentaries about Math out there with the goal of entertaining a mass audience while teaching them some interesting facts and priming their interest on the subject.

Since this DVD accomplishes all of that and then some, all with an interesting historical narrative in the background, I can wholeheartedly award it 5 stars. While it isn't hugely more interesting or well-done than a comparable science episode about physics or something on NOVA, it is nonetheless almost the best in its class (Math documentaries) because so few of these types of movies exist in the first place.

Being the first of its kind that I've come across be so successful in this way, I'm happy to give it 5 stars and a recommendation for those who are interested in learning more about Math (and being assisted by beautiful computer-generated imagery) to help accomplish it in an enjoyable and fascinating manner.

No doubt the math masters of the world will award (Prime Number) 5 stars. The mathematics is there as well as very interesting fact and stories of where some of the great numbers thoughts generated from in history. The camera takes you on a Grande Tour of places of the world, beginning with Egypt and the pyramids, in explaining the Pythagorean theorem beginnings, Golden Ratio instances from ancient times, topology, axioms, postulates, and ...

Well, my own educational masters' degree failed to keep up with all of the terminology, and theory, causing me to award only 4 stars. It is my own mathematical ignorance that causes me to fully enjoy this educational DVD set, where others will, and have, called it dazzling. Even at moments when my depth of numbers faltered, bits of facts and stories of historical importance, surfaced to make it a learning experience. Excellent footage, and a well informed mathematical professor/host leads those most interested in math through it's roots as well as it's yet to be explored regions of thought, shape, relationships, time, and count.

Using computer images, today's math in visual form, the patterns and social relationships are investigated, questioned, and philosophized over. It's not for your average viewer, not exactly entertainment; it's a documentary engaging the mind toward the relevance of numbers.

Set includes "The Music of the Primes" (78 min documentary) in the bonus stuff. A completely different DVD with 3 Episodes:
1-- with a 2000-yr tradition
2-- of the 20th century attempts
3-- tech advancements
all leaving the Riemann's hypothesis unproven.

Bonus also includes SDH SUBTITLES, Viewer's guide with episode highlights, questions, and math bibliography and glossary. The glossary includes "chaos theory" which I first thought reflected on my own insight into the discussion of "irrational numbers."

Concluding:
My hypothesis is: there is an "imaginary number" of viewers, perhaps a "prime number", that will indeed find the statement "'THE STORY OF MATH' is WONDERFUL" to be a theorem, proven true by personal experience.

If you think Pythagorean Theorem is a dinosaur, then you probably are not a good fit for "THE STORY OF MATH" DVD. :) :-} ;~) Are infinite smiley-faces probable?