Latest news from Plus magazine! - http://plus.maths.org

In this newsletter:

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

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Latest news from Plus

And the Oscar goes to... - Mathematics takes out a technology Oscar.
http://plus.maths.org/latestnews/jan-apr05/oscars/index.html

Plus... more news from the world of maths
 - Physical fiction of fictional physics
http://plus.maths.org/latestnews/jan-apr05/plusmore34/index.html#fiction

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Browse with Plus

Road sign math - If you have ever been bored on a long car trip this
site is for you.  There is not only glory at stake for submitting a new
winning road sign, you will also earn a Road Sign Math T-shirt or bumper
sticker, and new signs have been discovered every week since the site
launched last month.  Plus will be keeping our eyes peeled, and hope that
a lucky Plus reader will find the next winning sign.  And remember, in the
words of the game's inventor: "driving + math = fun"!

http://www.roadsidemath.com/

More mathematical games from Plus:
http://plus.maths.org/issue27/features/dartnell/
http://plus.maths.org/issue20/features/conway/
http://plus.maths.org/issue15/features/doubling/
http://plus.maths.org/issue4/puzzle/doors.html


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Mathematical moments

Howard Aiken - Born 9 Mar 1900, died 14 Mar 1973, USA
Howard Aiken was responsible for some of the very first computers,
developing the Harvard Mark series first with IBM and then at Harvard.
It was in the Harvard Mark II that fellow mathematician Grace Hopper
found the first "computer bug" - actually a moth stuck in one of the
relays.  Aiken started this work as a way to handle the prohibitive
amount of numerical calculations necessary to solve a set of
differential equations that arose in his research, and he was very
influenced by Babbage's work on the analytical engine in the 19th
century.  He is a pivotal figure in the history of computer science,
even if he didn't realise the implications of the subject: "Only six
electronic digital computers would be required to satisfy the
computing needs of the entire United States." - Howard Aiken, 1947.

Read more about Howard Aiken...

from the Mactutor History of Mathematics site:
http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Aiken.html

from the Harvard University Gazette:
http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/1998/04.09/HowardAikenMaki.html

and about the history of computers on Plus:
http://plus.maths.org/indices/topic_urls.html#COMPUTER%20SCIENCE


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Live maths

Exploring Universes - Cosmologists talk about many possible models of
the universe. Where do they come from?  John Barrow looks at some of
the possible universes that Einstein's theory of gravitation
permits. Some expand, some rotate, some are smooth and some are lumpy,
some go on forever while others come to a dramatic end; some even
allow time travel. We will also see what type of universe best
describes the one that we live in today.

When: Tuesday 15th March 2005, 6.00 - 7.00 pm
Where: Pippard Lecture Theatre, Cavendish Laboratory, Madingley Road,
Cambridge
This lecture is free, and there is no need to ring up about the
lecture, just come along!


Open Day at the CMS - As part of the Cambridge Science Festival (see
http://www.cambridgescience.org/events/) the Department of Applied
Mathematics and Theoretical Physics will be holding a public open day
on Sat 19th March from 10am to 4pm at the Centre for Mathematical
Sciences, Clarkson Road, Cambridge. The day is aimed at children from
8+, families and members of the general public, and will include
hands-on experiments, demonstrations and displays on some of the areas
mathematicians in Cambridge study, including fluid dynamics, quantum
computation, particle physics, cosmology, the sun, the history of
mathematics and quantum computation.

There will also be a Hands-On Maths Fair from 10am-4pm for ages 5+,
and talks on 'Mathematics Past, Present and Beyond' (11am), 'Cracking
Enigma' (12 noon) and 'How to Hunt a Submarine' (2.30).

For more details see http://www.mmp.maths.org/events/setweek.html


Happy reading from the Plus team!

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