In this newsletter:

- Latest news
- Browse with Plus
- Mathematical moments
- Live maths


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Latest news from Plus 

Game theory wins Nobel prize - two game theorists share the prize for their 
contribution to the understanding of conflict and cooperation 
http://www.plus.maths.org/latestnews/sep-dec05/Nobel/index.html

Just a second - a brief history of time keeping
http://www.plus.maths.org/latestnews/sep-dec05/calendar/index.html


Plus... more news from the world of maths

The 2005 Nobel prize in physics
http://www.plus.maths.org/latestnews/jan-apr05/plusmore35/index.html#Nobel


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Browse with Plus

Space now

Space now is the news and information service of the National Space Centre. 
Built on advice and contributions by top scientists, it's a great place to 
go for UK space news. You can even ask question of experts from the 
National Space Centre and the University of Leicester.

http://www.spacenow.org.uk/ 


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Mathematical moments

Edwin Abbott Abbott - Born 20 December 1838 in Marylebone, England
                                    Died 12 October 1926 in London, England


The reason why Edwin Abbott Abott's middle name is the same as his surname 
is that his father and mother were first cousins who both had the same 
surname. Abbott, who was educated at the City of London School and 
Cambridge University, was a great educator and acclaimed scholar. After 
leaving Cambridge University, he spent most of his working life as 
headmaster of the school he went to himself, but retired at 50 to devote 
himself to writing. He produced books on a wide range of subjects, 
including language, grammar, philosophy and religion, but his most 
interesting work, from a mathematical viewpoint at least, is "Flatland: a 
romance of many dimensions", which was published in 1884. As the name 
suggests, Flatland is a flat, 2-dimensional world populated by lines and 
polygons. The Flatland inhabitants are ranked by the number of their sides: 
triangles belong to the working class, squares to the middle class, with 
the highest class - the priests - being embodied by circles. One day, a 
square meets a 3-dimensional sphere (which of course it can't perceive as 
such) who tells it about the world it lives in. The square is amazed, but 
its suggestion that the sphere itself may live in four dimensions, of which 
it can see only see three, meets with ridicule. The square's fellow 
Flatlanders are equally hostile to the idea of an extra dimension and put 
it in jail.

Abbot's work is not only interesting because it came quite some time before 
Einstein established his 4-dimensional world, but also because it 
intelligently satirises the moral values of its time.

Since the copyright of Flatlands has expired, there are many free versions 
available on the web. There also is a 2002 edition of Flatland which is 
annotated by Ian Stewart. You can read more bout Abbott on 
http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Abbott.html


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Live maths

Visions of Science

This travelling exhibition presents some of this year's entries to the 
Visions of Science photo competition, which is sponsored by Novartis and 
the Daily Telegraph. The overall winning entry is a a close up of a 
peppercorn and a grain of salt, but you'll find anything from prosthetic 
arms to shrimp, cancer cells and paper clips. There are two sets of the 
exhibition touring the UK simultaneously, they currently are in London and 
Glasgow. Those of you who can't get there can see some of the entries at 
http://www.visions-of-science.co.uk/f-2005winners.htm.

London: Sepember 29 - November 14
             The Science Museum
             Exhibition Road
             South Kensington
             London SW7 2DD
             Tel: 0870 870 4771
             http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/

Glasgow: October 1 - January 13
               Glasgow Science Centre
               50 Pacific Quay
               Glasgow G51 1EA
               Tel: 0141 420 5000 
               http://www.glasgowsciencecentre.org/


For a full time table of the exhibition visit
http://www.visions-of-science.co.uk/exhibit.htm


The life of Galileo

The Birmingham Rep Theatre will stage David Edgar's adaptation of Bertolt 
Brecht's play "The life of Galileo", directed by Jonathan Church. The play 
explores the battle between religion and science, and between the 
individual and the state, embodied by Galileo's struggle with the 
Inquisition in Renaissance Italy. Galileo is played by acclaimed actor 
Timothy West.

When: Fri 28 Oct 2005 - Sat 12 Nov 2005
Where: Birmingham Rep Theatre
           Centenary Square
           Birmingham

For more information call 0121 236 4455 or visit 
http://www.birmingham-rep.co.uk/core_asp/showpage.asp?theid=214


Happy reading from the Plus team!

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