Do you enjoy craft? Then you probably enjoy mathematics too – you just may not know it yet. Don’t miss out on Maths Craft Festival 2017 being held this coming Saturday and Sunday, September 9-10, at the Auckland Museum.
Discover the maths behind craft and the craft behind maths. Find out how to tie a mathematical knot, crochet a Möbius strip, fold an origami octahedron, draw an impossible triangle, or colour a Latin square.
Ten craft creation stations will be set up in the museum’s event centre, a fully glazed circular room on top of the museum roof. Featuring incredible views of the city and harbour, it also has plenty of natural light – perfect for crafting. And there will be lots of space and seating, so you can stay and craft all day!
Sharing the beauty of maths
Dr Jeanette McLeod and Dr Phil Wilson, senior lecturers at the University of Canterbury’s School of Mathematics and Statistics, will lead a team of volunteers and host the two-day festival, part of a nationwide tour to raise interest in maths among New Zealanders.
“By using craft as a medium… we aim to introduce adults and children alike to a new and fun way of engaging with mathematics,” says Dr McLeod.
“Through these events, we’re keen to show people how maths underpins almost every aspect of today’s society. Whether it’s used in crafts, technology, business, science, social science or education, maths is vital,” she says.
Learn how to make an origami icosahedron (pictured) and many other wonderful creations at this weekend’s Maths Craft Festival.
Dr McLeod has crocheted and knitted a variety of mathematical objects – from Möbius strips to intricate coral-like hyperbolic planes – and is passionate about sharing maths as the language of science. Her specialisation is combinatronics, with a particular focus on asymptotic enumeration, graph colouring, random graphs, and Latin squares. She is also an accomplished crafter and crocheter.
Dr Wilson, who usually works in the field of theoretical fluid dynamics and mathematical modelling in biology and industry, says Maths Craft Festival offers something for everyone.
“A lot of our speakers are really good at finding mathematics in ordinary everyday things –from how you tie your shoe laces, tie knots or even how to set a wobbly table straight,” says Dr Wilson. “Maths Craft is really for all ages and all backgrounds.”
Public talks promise to fascinate
The two-day festival will also include five public talks over the course of the weekend:
- Associate Professor Clemency Montelle, University of Canterbury – The (a)symmetry of a sari (September 9, 2.30pm)
- Ms Elizabeth Chesney, University of Canterbury – Knuts about knitting knots (September 9, 3.45pm)
- Associate Professor Burkard Polster, Monash University – What is the best way to lace your shoes? (September 9, 5.15pm)
- Dr Michael Assis, University of Melbourne – The beauty of origami / The beauty of mathematics – connecting folds (September 10, 2.30pm)
- Professor Bernd Krauskopf and Professor Hinke Osinga, University of Auckland – Chaos in Crochet and Steel (September 10, 3.45pm)
Where and when?
Maths Craft Festival is being held at the Auckland War Memorial Museum Events Centre on Saturday 9 September and Sunday 10 September. All are welcome and entry is free with a museum ticket. Maths Craft is running a free bus service from South Auckland to the Museum on Sunday 10th September (see www.mathscraftnz.org/events/maths-craft-festival#bus-service for details of how to book your free seat).
Visit the Maths Craft website for more information about upcoming events in Dunedin: www.mathscraftnz.org. Also on Facebook, Ravelry, and Twitter #mathscraftnz