The Infinite Monkey Cage

How to think like a mathematician


Listen Later

Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined by comedian Jo Brand, mathematicians Prof Hannah Fry and Dr Eugenia Cheng, and xkcd webcomic creator Randall Munroe to discover how thinking like a mathematician could solve some tricky everyday conundrums. From the optimal strategy to finding your true love, to how to fix a wonky table in the pub, thinking like a mathematician can help you in some very unlikely situations. They discover how mathematical thinking can help answer some truly out of this world questions as well: how much soup would it take to fill the solar system? What would happen if you shrank Jupiter to the size of a house? Not problems we'd encounter in everyday life maybe, but all questions sent to Randall Munroe for his "What If?" series of books. At first glance the questions may seem impossible, but, as it turns out, maths and physics can provide an answer to these headscratchers, as the panel discover.

Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

The Infinite Monkey CageBy BBC Radio 4

  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7

4.7

1,846 ratings


More shows like The Infinite Monkey Cage

View all
Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,913 Listeners

Business Daily by BBC World Service

Business Daily

523 Listeners

More or Less by BBC Radio 4

More or Less

863 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,067 Listeners

World Business Report by BBC World Service

World Business Report

296 Listeners

In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,576 Listeners

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4 by BBC Radio 4

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4

2,113 Listeners

No Such Thing As A Fish by No Such Thing As A Fish

No Such Thing As A Fish

4,873 Listeners

Comedy of the Week by BBC Radio 4

Comedy of the Week

480 Listeners

Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast by Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast

Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast

428 Listeners

BBC Inside Science by BBC Radio 4

BBC Inside Science

410 Listeners

Curious Cases by BBC Radio 4

Curious Cases

756 Listeners

The Life Scientific by BBC Radio 4

The Life Scientific

227 Listeners

CrowdScience by BBC World Service

CrowdScience

471 Listeners

Evil Genius with Russell Kane by BBC Sounds

Evil Genius with Russell Kane

346 Listeners

Have You Heard George's Podcast? by BBC Sounds

Have You Heard George's Podcast?

235 Listeners

Elis James and John Robins by Significant Productions

Elis James and John Robins

326 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,245 Listeners

The World, the Universe and Us by New Scientist

The World, the Universe and Us

116 Listeners

Sport's Strangest Crimes by BBC Radio 5 Live

Sport's Strangest Crimes

73 Listeners

What The F*** Is Going On? with Mark Steel by WTF Productions

What The F*** Is Going On? with Mark Steel

95 Listeners

Uncanny by BBC Radio 4

Uncanny

689 Listeners

Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley by BBC Radio 4

Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley

528 Listeners

Believe in Magic by BBC Studios

Believe in Magic

630 Listeners

We Can Be Weirdos by Global

We Can Be Weirdos

191 Listeners

The Global Story by BBC World Service

The Global Story

394 Listeners

Miss Me? by BBC Sounds

Miss Me?

239 Listeners

The History Podcast by BBC Radio 4

The History Podcast

54 Listeners

Rory Stewart: The Long History of... by BBC Radio 4

Rory Stewart: The Long History of...

80 Listeners

The Rest Is Science by Goalhanger

The Rest Is Science

413 Listeners

The History Bureau by BBC

The History Bureau

96 Listeners