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Math Goes Pop: Making the Media and Mathematics Connection

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Math Goes Pop: Making the Media and Mathematics Connection Available online at www.jmle.org The National Association for Media Literacy Education’s Journal of Media Literacy Education 2:2 (2010) 169 - 176 Voices from the Field: Math Goes Pop: Making the Media and Mathematics Connection Renee Hobbs Department of Broadcasting, Telecommunications and Mass Media, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA Media literacy educators are fond of saying that or the results of a recent study on math education. The media literacy can be integrated across the curriculum. best articles were ones which exposed the presence of “But what about math?” some wonder. If you have ever math in unlikely places: for example, one of the first wondered about how media literacy intersects with entries I wrote was in response to an article from the math, Matt Lane has some ideas on the topic. He is the New York Times on an apparent logical fallacy present founder and sole writer for Math Goes Pop, a blog fo- in many experiments from cognitive psychology. This cused on the ways mathematics intersects with popular fallacy is essentially equivalent to the Monty Hall Prob- culture. After graduating from Princeton University lem, which is a question from probability theory that with a degree in mathematics in 2005, he had a brief has an extremely counter-intuitive answer, and is named stint as an analyst for an Internet advertising company after the host of the classic game show Let’s Make a in San Francisco, but the pull of mathematics was too Deal (right away you can see my interest for combining strong, and since 2006 he has been studying mathemat- math and pop culture). Anyway, I would frequently re- ics at UCLA. Now a Ph.D. candidate in the mathe- ceive the same article from several different people, and matics department, this past year he received UCLA’s rather than write a response to each person individually, Robert Sorgenfrey Distinguished Teaching Assistant I thought it would be easier to just start a blog where I Award. He hopes that his blog will, among other things, could respond all at once. foster mathematical dialogue among people who might Figure 1: Math Goes Pop not otherwise consider themselves mathematically in- clined. In an interview with Renee Hobbs, he revealed his ideas about the intersections between math and pop- ular culture. Your website, Math Goes Pop, offers engag- ing connections between math and the behavior of sharks, zombies, vampires and octopi. You’ve writ- ten reviews of Logicomix and helped readers see math as an art form. What’s the story behind your decision to start writing about the media-math con- nection? Math Goes Pop started as simply a personal side project, mainly in response to two things. First, once I started grad school I found that friends and family would often send me links to articles whenever some- thing newsworthy was related to math. Frequently these articles would be about state education standards, 170 R. Hobbs / Journal of Media Literacy Education 2:2 (2010) 169 - 176 Secondly, the farther I got along in my studies, UCSD. A year or so before me, he started a blog called the more I wanted an outlet to talk about mathematics Motivated Grammar, in which he engages the reader on and mathematicians to a general audience. When you all sorts of grammar related issues in a fun way. If he study mathematics for a living, you very quickly see could do this for grammar (not exactly the most popu- people’s math phobias come to light. It’s surprising lar subject in school, either), I thought that perhaps I how quickly someone will tell you how much they hate could do something similar for mathematics. math upon hearing that math is what you do. I can’t Who is your target audience? What have you think of any other profession that inspires such vitriol learned about your readers since you’ve been writ- (maybe dentistry). In any event, many people who I’ve ing for this site? talked to absolutely despise math, and as a result, they As a general rule, I try to keep the mathematics frequently have certain preconceived notions about of my articles at the high school level. For the most part what mathematics is, or what a mathematician should I’m able to stick to this, although occasionally there is be. a point I really want to make that is more advanced, in These stereotypes are something I wanted to ad- which case I usually err on the side of inclusion. This dress, because they have a detrimental effect on the way is not to say that I don’t discuss topics for which the mathematics is perceived. Not to be too general, but math involved is beyond the scope of a general audi- in popular culture it’s usually a given that mathemat- ence, because I do, but in such cases I try to focus on ics is nearly impossible to understand, it is boring, and the general ideas rather than the mathematical details, it is lacking in innovation (in other words, all of the so that anyone reading can hopefully get something out mathematics that humans might ever need has already of what I’m saying. been discovered). These negative portrayals carry over I try to avoid overly technical language because to mathematicians as well; if everything I knew about I don’t want to just be preaching to the choir. Of course, mathematicians was what I had learned from television I’m happy when people with strong math skills read and movies, I’d probably be discouraged from studying what I write or are interested in my point of view, but it because I didn’t get my doctorate while still a teenag- I’m just as interested (if not more so) in getting readers er, I’m not socially awkward enough, and I don’t want who think that math isn’t something they like, or that to go insane. it’s something they like but think they’re no good at. In other words, I wanted to create a space where My aim is to show people that mathematics is a vibrant I could both talk about math as it’s portrayed in the and widely applicable field of study, so that if you hate news, and shed light on the way it’s portrayed in popu- math, maybe you’ll find something interesting, and if lar culture. Math doesn’t need to be impenetrable and you like math but lack confidence, maybe you can find dull (in fact, if it were, I doubt so many people would something that piques your interest enough to motivate study it). Given the right perspective, math is elegant you to dig deeper and learn something new. and simple, and it is as much of an art form as any of the Probably the most surprising thing I’ve learned about mediums that frequently misrepresent it. my readers is that I actually have any. When I started I started the blog on an impulse, and I wasn’t sure that this project I didn’t know if anyone would share my I’d be able to keep it going for that long. However, as interest in trying to cross-pollinate between these seem- the blog has forced me to think about the relationship ingly disparate fields, but for the most part, I’ve found between math and pop culture, I find that connections that people really enjoy exploring the links between appear much more frequently than one might expect. math and pop culture. From my own experience, these While I still comment on articles involving math in the postings have opened the doors to conversations with news, and I’ll still happily rag on a film that plays to ste- people who otherwise wouldn’t ever discuss mathemat- reotypes about people who do math, the blog has grown ics, which I certainly think is a good thing. to be a more general hub for the intersection of math One thing that helps is that I try to keep the tone and pop culture. of my articles relatively light, while not scrimping too I should probably also say that I was somewhat much on the substance. In this way, I can try to reel influenced by my peers. For example, I have a friend in folks who might otherwise shy away from a blog from my days as an undergraduate (we were both math that talks about math, but still give them something to majors) who is now a grad student in linguistics at think about. Overall, I’m happy with what I’ve done so 171 R. Hobbs / Journal of Media Literacy Education 2:2 (2010) 169 - 176 far. The best compliment I received was from someone whether or not I need to create other content (visual who said that my blog made him want to go back and aids, for example, or the occasional visual math gag). study math again. Usually I can find an afternoon one day a week to write something up, but if my schedule is too busy, I may just Help us understand your writing process. wait for the next week. What are your work habits? What factors helped As for how my work with Math Goes Pop af- you develop your amazing writing skills? How does fects my academic work, thus far there hasn’t been your popular writing relate to or affect your aca- much interaction. My academic work is fairly far re- demic work? moved from the realm of popular culture.
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