Course: An Introduction to Recreational Math: Fun, Games, and Puzzles

Here is another well-known, medieval problem, also known as the ‘water pouring puzzle’. You have an 8 litre jug full of water and two smaller jugs, one that contains 5 …

Puzzles go back centuries. One of the most well-known puzzles is the ‘wolf, the goat and the cabbage’ puzzle that dates back to at least the 9th century. Known also …

This week we’ll take a deeper look at some of the topics in recreational math. As you already know, recreational math is a vast field. We can’t possible cover all …

Now for a surprise! At the end of each week I’m going to perform a magic trick that is based on math. It’s your job to try and find out …

It is safe to say that no other person has influenced recreational math in the twentieth century more than Martin Gardner. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1914, he taught himself …

Martin Gardner’s work influenced so many people, that any attempt to introduce recreational mathematicians that are alive today would do injustice to many others. However, there is a place and …

The next recreational mathematicians we are going to meet are: Henry Ernst Dudeney and Sam Loyd. Dudeney was the better mathematician while Loyd is considered a better puzzlist. The reason …

Recreational math has been around ever since math has, and it is usually beneficial, when learning a new subject, to give some historical background which is what we’ll do in …

Hello! I’m Dr Yossi Elran and this course is all about recreational math. Each week will have a theme, and we’ll learn about it through videos, articles and discussion. There …

So! We have reached the end of the course. I would like encourage you to join one of the many groups around the world that are active in recreational math …

Can you uncover the secret behind Yossi’s Mobius magic trick? Post your ideas below!

One of John Conway’s famous quotations is “I Hate Life!”. In the following series of interviews with Numberphile’s Brady Haran, Conway explains why – and how he invented the game. …

This video explains all the rules needed to explain the Game of Life. Once you’ve watched the video you can play life on one of the online Life simulators. It …

John Conway is a world-renown mathematician, who was born in Liverpool, England in 1937. He particularly enjoyed inventing all kinds of fun math games; one of the most famous of …