“Mathematics is, in large part, the search for patterns and for explanations as to why those patterns are there.” He extolled the delights of number theory in everything from the hibernation cycles of cicadas to encryption. On the first evening, at the Isabel Bader Theatre, he entertained 450 people and had them pondering “patterns in numbers and nature.” “I got interested in mathematics through the art of patterns,” he told the crowd. But, two nights in a row, Bhargava drew in the masses. They had cleared their calendars for a week to toast their beloved ambassador-a charming, mild-mannered geek-who often betrays his enthusiasm with a slight, pacing pogo bounce. Elementary and accessible problems in number theory, for instance, might include pondering the properties of Fibonacci numbers-a sequence of numbers that Bhargava is very fond of wherein each number is the sum of the previous two, like so: 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34 (and so on).ĭuring the day, the symposium involved heady talks on rather more advanced number theoretical concerns, steep terrain traversed by experienced mountaineers, such as Bhargava’s colleagues who had gathered from around the world.
Number theory is a branch of mathematics concerned with the properties of and relationships among whole numbers-such as 0, 1, 2, 3, -1, -2, -3-and ratios of whole numbers, a.k.a.
Can Science Bring Extinct Animals Back to Life?.The citation noted his “taste for simple problems of timeless beauty which he has solved by developing elegant and powerful new methods.” In 2014, at the age of forty, he became the first Canadian to win the Fields Medal-the so-called Nobel Prize of math-for his profound influence on the field of number theory. Bhargava was in Toronto for the annual Fields Medal Symposium, held that fall in his honour.
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