My Isle of Man trip

Isle of Man scenery

Isle of Man scenery

Last week I went to the Isle of Man to give a couple of talks. The sixth forms on the island have an annual maths symposium where the students get together in a school, listen to a speaker and then spend the day doing maths activities. By tradition the speaker also gives a talk to the island’s mathematics society and I had some hard acts to follow since previous speakers have included Christopher Zeeman, Chris Budd and Colin Wright.

So on Thursday morning I had to rise particularly early to get to Manchester airport and fly to Ronaldsway airport on the south of the island. I was met by Heather Bellinger, who had initially invited to give the talks, and her husband. They then showed me some of the sights on the island, including seals in the south.

The evening talk was to the mathematical society and I chose to try out my new talk on Autotune. This is a piece of software that corrects a singer’s pitch and it is safe to say it has had a massive impact on the music industry. I’ll explain in a different post about how it works. However, I can tell you the talk features not only some interesting maths but The X Factor, The Beatles, SingStar, Pinky and Perky and the original Doctor Who theme. If you are a school teacher or run a mathematical event, then get in touch if you want to hear this talk!

The next day I was at Ramsay Grammar for the symposium and did my Card Cheating/Maths and Magic talk. Some initial technical problems meant that I set up in a hurry, didn’t feel prepared and so messed up the start, though I suspect no one noticed. Also, I had opened up the wrong file and part of the talk was missing so I did that part on a flip chart. Again I’m not sure people noticed anything too untoward. The reception to the talk was great and one of the students even got the hard calculation right.

I had a great time and looking back I regret that I didn’t arrange to stay longer to take part in the symposium. In the past I would have done but these days I try to get home earlier so I can see my daughter. If you are maths communicator and get an invitation, then make sure you go – you won’t be disappointed. The hospitality is great.

My particular thanks to Heather Bellinger for inviting me and Carol Bamford for accommodation. Thanks to both for their hospitality and showing me around the island.


Isle of Man from the plane

Isle of Man from the plane

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