The Mathematicians Podcast

• Episode 32 - Hero of Alexandria - A Hero to us all

  This week, Benjamin Cornish invites you to step into the steam-powered sandals of Hero of Alexandria—the ancient world’s most enthusiastic gadgeteer. Was he a mathematician? An engineer? A magician in a toga? Yes. Yes. And absolutely yes. From vending machines that accepted drachmas to the first recorded steam engine (that did absolutely nothing useful), Hero turned math into motion and geometry into gears. Join us as we unpack Hero’s life in the shadow of Archimedes, his flair for theatrical automation, and his deeply satisfying triangle-area formula that has saved generations of students from drawing impossible altitudes. Along the way, we reflect on mirrors, vending machines, and whether Hero secretly invented the Rube Goldberg machine 1,900 years before Goldberg was born.   Keywords: Hero of Alexandria, ancient mathematics, triangle area formula, aeolipile, Greek engineering, historical inventions, automata, classical geometry, ancient optics, early machines, Metrica, Heron’s formula, steam engine history Hashtags: #MathsPodcast #HistoryOfMaths #HeroOfAlexandria #AncientInventions #SteamPowerBeforeItWasCool #MathematicalHistory #EngineeringOrigins #HeronsFormula #Pneumatics #AlexandriaEra 

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• Episode 31 - Hipparchus - Going Supernova

  In this episode of The Mathematicians Podcast, Benjamin Cornish dives into the life and legacy of Hipparchus, the Greek thinker who gave us trigonometry, mapped the stars, and even invented tools to measure the heavens.  From creating the first star catalog and predicting eclipses to introducing spherical projections and the chord table, Hipparchus wasn’t just stargazing, he was shaping the future of science. We’ll explore his inventions, his obsession with accuracy, and why Greenland is not as big as your world map told you.  Perfect for maths enthusiasts, history lovers, and anyone curious about the origins of the tools we still use today. Keywords: Hipparchus, trigonometry, spherical projection, history of maths, Greek astronomy, star catalog, precession of the equinoxes, ancient inventions, mathematics podcast, navigation, geography, astrolabe, astronomy history. Hashtags: #MathematiciansPodcast #Hipparchus #HistoryOfMaths #Trigonometry #AncientAstronomy #MathsPodcast #AstronomyLovers #STEMHistory

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• Episode 30 - Dionysodorus of Amisus & Hypsicles of Alexandria

  This week on The Mathematicians Podcast, Benjamin Cornish presents a double bill of underappreciated thinkers from the back shelves of Greek geometry: Dionysodorus of Amisus and Hypsicles of Alexandria in an episode that's part mathematical history, part cubic conundrum, part "wait, he also did astronomy?" We begin with Dionysodorus, who solved the doubling of the cube problem the way most of us try to solve awkward social encounters: by introducing a few curves. Using a hyperbola and a parabola, he cracked a cubic equation long before Cardano showed up with his pen and existential dread. Along the way, we explore his contributions to sphere-cutting, tomb-building, and possibly very literal underground thinking. Then it's on to Hypsicles, the man who gave us Book XIV of Euclid’s Elements, redefined the zodiacal calendar, and possibly invented the idea of π/6 symmetry just to impress his astrologer friends. We look at what he added to geometry, why ancient timekeeping is a cosmic mess, and how his legacy has been hiding in plain sight; like a leap day with good PR. Come for the cubes. Stay for the calendar. And don’t forget to intersect your conics responsibly.   #TheMathematiciansPodcast #GreekMathematics #HistoryOfMaths #Dionysodorus #Hypsicles #DoublingTheCube #CubicEquation #AncientGeometry #ConicSections #EuclidsElements #MathsPodcast #MathematicalHistory #AstronomicalMaths #ZodiacMath #GeometricConstruction #AlgebraBeforeAlgebra #ClassicMathematicians #MathsEducation #CurvedThinking

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• Episode 29 - Perseus - In High Spirics

  This week on The Mathematicians Podcast, Benjamin Cornish reflects on a tragic bagel incident, files an HR complaint, and somehow ends up discussing the mathematics of toroidal cross-sections. Join us as we explore the life and work of Perseus the quietly brilliant 2nd-century BCE mathematician who gave us spiric sections. We slice through geometry, history, and a bit too much cream cheese, uncovering how one man's fascination with intersecting bagels helped shape the maths behind modern physics, computer graphics, and breakfast regret.   #SpiricSections #MathsHistory #Torus #AncientMath #MathsPodcast #PerseusTheMathematician #TorusTalk #BagelMaths  #MathsIsEverywhere #HistoryOfMaths #NonConicCurves #MathsWithFlair #HellenisticGeometry #MathsPuns

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• Episode 28 - Apollonius of Perga - What Goes around comes around

  In this episode of The Mathematicians Podcast, Benjamin Cornish turns his attention to Apollonius of Perga—the ancient Greek mathematician whose work on conic sections shaped the way we understand curves, orbits, and even space travel. We explore Apollonius' life, his lesser-known contributions beyond geometry, and the deep mathematical ideas that earned him the nickname "The Great Geometer." From the invention of the terms ellipse, parabola, and hyperbola, to the legendary Apollonius Problem—a deceptively simple tangency puzzle with lasting implications—we trace his influence through history and into the modern age. Perfect for students, teachers, and lovers of mathematical storytelling, this episode offers technical depth, historical intrigue, and a few terrible puns on the side. Keywords: Apollonius of Perga, conic sections, ancient Greek mathematics, ellipse, parabola, hyperbola, Apollonius problem, tangency geometry, history of mathematics, mathematical storytelling Hashtags: #ApolloniusOfPerga #ConicSections #HistoryOfMathematics #GreekMathematics #Ellipse #Parabola #Hyperbola #GeometryPodcast #MathematicsEducation #AncientMathematics #TheMathematiciansPodcast #MathematicalStorytelling

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