This week we explore the brilliant, and tragically short, life of Hypatia of Alexandria. Born around 370 CE, she was a pioneering female mathematician and philosopher who led the last great school of mathematics in the ancient world.

Hypatia’s story is also a dramatic tale of political and religious upheaval. A respected pagan intellectual with influence in Alexandria's civic life, she found herself caught in the violent conflicts of the early Christian church. Join us as we examine the forces that shaped her world and led to her untimely end, reflecting on the fragile legacy of knowledge and the powerful impact of teachers, both ancient and modern.

Keywords:

Hypatia, Alexandria, history of mathematics, female mathematicians, ancient philosophy, Neoplatonism, Theon of Alexandria, early Christianity, Roman Empire, ancient history, mathematics, philosophy, women in STEM, The Mathematicians Podcast.

Hashtags:

#Hypatia #HistoryOfMaths #WomenInMaths #AncientAlexandria #Philosophy #Neoplatonism #TheMathematiciansPodcast #HistoryPodcast #WomenInSTEM #AncientHistory

This week, Pappus of Alexandria, a pivotal figure in 4th-century mathematics. Often considered one of the last great Greco-Roman geometers, Pappus compiled the monumental Synagogue, a comprehensive collection that sought to revive classical Greek geometry.

In this episode: A candid look at Pappus's personality and his notorious public critique of the female mathematician Pandrosion and her student. Pappus’s distinction between "plane," "solid," and the more expansive "linear" problems. Concepts like the Pappus Chain (or Steiner Chain) and his non-Euclidean approach to classic problems like doubling the cube.

Join us as we explore Pappus's legacy, his undeniable impact on the history of mathematics, and Benjamin’s honest (and sometimes scathing!) personal opinions on this complex figure. Plus, a crucial discussion about the often-overlooked women in mathematics and a personal announcement about the future of the podcast!

Keywords: Pappus, Alexandria, Greek Geometry, Synagogue, History of Mathematics, Pandrosion, Female Mathematicians, Euclidean Geometry, Analytic Geometry, Steiner Chain, Pappus Chain, Doubling the Cube, Menaechmus, Archimedes, Apollonius, Ptolemy, Theon of Alexandria, Diophantus, Descartes, Fermat, Newton, Euler, Ancient Greece, Roman Empire, Mathematics Podcast, Geometry, Algebra, History of Science, Mathematical Concepts, Platonic Solids.

Hashtags: #Pappus #MathematicsHistory #GrecoRomanGeometry #AncientMaths #Podcast #TheMathematiciansPodcast #GeometryProblems #AnalyticGeometry #WomenInSTEM #MathsEducation #HistoryOfScience #Alexandria #STEM #ClassicalMathematics

This week, we're taking another trip to ancient Alexandria to meet Diophantus, often hailed as the "Father of Algebra."

Join us as we untangle the fuzzy biography of a mathematician whose life story is a riddle, and whose monumental work, the Arithmetica, started us working towards systematic equation-solving. From the proto-symbols of syncopated algebra to the birth of Diophantine equations (where only whole numbers dare to tread!), we explore how this ancient Greek genius sought to generalize mathematical problems, shifting math from "apples" to "variables."

Keywords: Diophantus, Algebra, Arithmetica, Diophantine Equations, Ancient Greece, Alexandria, History of Mathematics, Number Theory, Equation Solving, Rational Numbers, Integers, Fermat's Last Theorem, Hilbert's 10th Problem, Undecidability, Al-Khwarizmi, Brahmagupta, Cryptography, Computer Science, Podcast.

Hashtags: #MathematiciansPodcast #Diophantus #AlgebraHistory #AncientMaths #NumberTheory #DiophantineEquations #MathsPodcast #STEM #HistoryOfScience #Fermat #HilbertProblems #ProblemSolving #MathsFacts #Alexandria #EquationSolver #MathematicalJourney #ListenAndLearn

The music was- "Danse Macabre - Finale" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/