A Problem Squared
Matt Parker and Bec Hill present: A Problem Squared. A podcast dedicated to solving problems of all kinds, such as, "What should I listen to right now?". A Podcast Squared. First one's free. You're welcome.
Episodes
š How far away from the Sun do we have to travel before we can look at it without damaging our eyes?
š Is there an off by one error with anniversaries?
š And AOB has been slow cooked and packed up in tupperware for safe storage
The starting point for Mattās theory:
Astroid Mattparker:Ā
š¶ Why are songs easier to remember than sentences?
āļø Can we come up with new names (that meet strict criteria) for leader/follower motors?
š And itās a glitzy, toothy, clackety AOB
Ā
As discussed in the intro, hereās how to get involved with Mattās Moon Pi Kickstarter:
And here's the link:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/standupmaths/moon-pi-were-going-to-calculate-on-the-moon
And head to our s...
š²Whatās the best design for non-traditional dice?
š What should you call paperwork that doesnāt involve paper?
šAnd itās more a comment than a question in AOB
Head to our socials to see Mattās excellent Angry Man In Local Newspaper photos.
If youād like to peruse and purchase more dice variations, head here:
https://mathsgear.co.uk/collections/diceĀ
If you have any paperlesspaperwork suggestions, join in her...
4ļøā£ What would it look like to be trapped in a 4D world?
š„° What is the meaning of marriage?
āØIzzy Wizzy Letās Get AOBusy
Head to our socials to see some fantastic representations of 2D meets 3D meets 4D in fiction, some magical magic, and an alphabetically perfect travel route (for 40 days in 1990).
If youāre heading to the Edinburgh Fringe, you can get tickets to see Matt here:
š»Whatās the best way to politely tell a friend that theyāve had too much to drink?
šļø Is there a way to prove that something existed before a certain date?
āAnd AOB brings us some friendly correctionsā¦
A useful menu of alcoholic choicesā¦
https://www.drinkaware.co.uk/Ā
A hash of a DING!
1f2b352be3c09872b3e38083ec6f0d2b22615a99c5a446a03abf24430187c484
If youāre heading to the Edinburgh Fringe, you can see...
š§±How many megabytes are actually in a gigabyte?
šThere have been some Moon Developmentsā¦
šAnd AOB will bring a little sunshine into your life
Here is NASAās Press Release about navigation on the moon:
And some further reading from Matt:Ā
šŗļø Is there an alphabetically perfect travel route?
šŖµ What can be done with karate chopped wood?
š¤ And we ride the crest of the Any Other Business wave
You can find the data-basis for the alphabetically perfect travel route here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_and_territories_by_number_of_land_borders
Here are some of Becās aesthetically pleasing solutions:
š When is the next Prime Number Day?
š¤£ What is the oldest joke?
šŖØ And we get to the rock bottom of Any Other Business
You can find Mattās Divisibility Rules video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pLz8wEQYkA
You can read more about the worldās oldest joke here:
https://www.wbur.org/endlessthread/2022/08/05/sumerian-joke-one
And you can get your Philogelols right here:
https://archive.org/details/philogelos-the-laugh-addict-the-worl...
š Is a sheet of A-45 paper big enough to wrap the earth?Ā
āļø Why do we still call pencil graphite lead?
š Thereās business to attend to.Ā
You can find Matt and Hannahās protractor up the shard video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckcdqlo3pYc&ab_channel=Stand-upMaths
Hereās Mattās Truncatable Prime Pencil: https://mathsgear.co.uk/products/truncatable-prime-pencil?srsltid=AfmBOorhZ6qk_IAhKnCjtjoVM3wM-GXMTaFporL13aTjdOokjGG_h...
š¤« Which synonyms are Caesar ciphers of each other?
šØ Bec and Matt attempt to help a listener decorate their home.Ā
š¼ The tax business briefcase is wide open.Ā
āļø And battleships heats up.Ā Ā
Itās time to go see āBec Hill: Guess Who's Bec, Bec Again?ā at The Adelaide Fringe! https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/bec-hill-guess-who-s-bec-bec-again-bec-hill-s-bec-tell-a-friend-af2025
You can see Matt Live! https://f...
ā Whatās the best way to leave your mark?
šļø Can Saturday Night Live be on Every Day?
š And there are some big locations in AOB
Top Marks: https://neatnik.net/steganographr/#results
SNL Spreadsheet: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/i9leqlafx0orjfp6l8a6t/weekend_whatdate.xlsx?rlkey=vetpi2qg9etbb35jq0zculjt1&e=1&st=q5vl7052&dl=0
Big Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/8kf2XcYPXWnqGqn88
See Matt Live! https://festivalof...
šŗ What are the most āinterestingā years?
š Bec goes big on Big Things
š When Party Tricks Go Wrong
š¢ And there's some numerical AOB
Hereās Max-maticsā video that Matt mentioned - Turning a 2024 Ball Pyramid in to a 2025 Ball Square for NYE 2025 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXUlKCIgV8U
Some further reading on the 2025 maths https://aperiodical.com/2025/01/numerical-coincidences-for-2025/
Itās a banger - https://www.y...
Hello you wonderful listener,
Welcome to a new year. 2025 - has a nice ring to it doesn't it?
This is a short announcement to say that there will be a very short feed break - just an episode or two, don't worry - to allow us all rest for the first two weeks of January.
Matt will tell you everything you need to know in his very organised PSA. Have a listen.
Thank you for your continuted support and understanding. We love you very...
To celebrate A Problem Squaredās 100th episodeā¦
š¼ What is the least popular instrument in an orchestra?Ā
š Matt is appalled.Ā
š® Another unplanned, unexpected mystery segment!Ā
š¼ And the business briefcase is (briefly) open.Ā
A big thank you to Katie Steckles for her brilliant contributions to this episode. You can find more from her on her website: https://www.katiesteckles.co.uk/index.html, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/stec...
099 = Most Watched Films and Homonyms
āļø What single word in the English Language has the most different meanings?Ā
šŗ Is the most consumed media of all time a holiday movie or song?
š Thereās some Any Other Business!Ā
āļø Battleships continues.Ā Ā
If you want to find out more about the Royal Flying Doctor Service, do that here:Ā https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/nswact/visit/broken-hill-visitor-centre/
098 = Something Blue and Diamond Birthdays Too
šWhat are the most extreme examples of something old, something blue, something borrowed, something new?Ā
Ā šWhatās up with diamond birthdays?
Ā š„A new special one-time bonus section from Matt.
Ā š¼And a look into the business briefcase.Ā
Ā
For the Diana Spencer Tiara, look no further: https://www.sothebys.com/en/digital-catalogues/power-image-royal-aristocratic-tiaras/the-spencer-tiar...
097 = Number of Maps & Numbered Pads
šŗ Are there enough OS maps to cover Great Britain?
0ļøā£ Why does zero come after nine on a mobile phone?Ā
š° And, of course, some AOB!
If you want to see Becās friend Amyās summary of accessibility in Thorpe Park and theme parks more generally, head on over to her instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/longcovidrockstar/
Here is a picture of The Big Tractor: https://amp.theguardian.c...
š Why would competing studios release movies in the same year that have the same concept or plot?Ā
š Why are we seeing the Aurora Borealis in the UK?Ā
š Business of an any other nature.Ā
If you want to have a listen to Bec on Tom Scottās podcast āLateralā you can do that here, at some point soon: https://open.spotify.com/show/1TthQOE4Fx6gBPW8l48cfNĀ
Their book can also be brought here! Itās really good: https://lateralcast.com/b...
š Does the 13th reallyĀ fall more frequently on Friday?Ā
šæ Ā How do you make a giant disco ball wearable?Ā Ā Ā
š© And we have some any other doughness.Ā
If you want to find out more about the cardboard related event (called Number City!) Matt attended on Orkney Island, have a look at this link:Ā https://oisf.org/fest-event/number-city/.
Do send your problems and solutions to the website: www.aproblemsquared.com.
If youāre on PatreonĀ a...
šæ What did the first ever podcast sound like?
š³ How do you REALLY lose an election in the US?Ā
š° Business will be closed, and opened.
Thank you to Emily for the Maths mittens! To see pictures of those, head over to APS socials.Ā
You can see the incredible Agree to Disagree podcast pages from 1999 here: Ā
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