The Concept of Mathematics, Television and How It Defeats Its Purpose to Attract Young Potential Mathematicians
One thing has been bugging me for a long time, and it took me a long time to figure out exactly what it was. You see, I'm a huge fan of the television show NUMB3RS, which is about a young professor who is massively gifted, was born a prodigy of math, and solves FBI crimes using mathematics. As a mathematics-based researcher (I love math), I always thought the show was good because it showed the positive nature of using mathematics to solve problems. And then I realized that wasn't the premise.
No, it does what Hollywood tends to do a lot. It created a character who is not normal, who is a prodigy, who had to be born to do what he does. Then it shows how great mathematics is, but leaves you with the impression that in order to do mathematics of that order you have to be as gifted as that young man. And because the rest of us usually aren't prodigies who were recruited by Stanford, or whatever, when we were 10 years old, we can only see such circumstances as fiction.
But whenever I've watched the show, I've enjoyed remarking that I understood a lot of the concepts the main character brings up because I loved mathematics and studied it extensively when I was first going to college. But then I get that bad taste in my mouth because I realize that the show is telling me that even though I love math, I'm never going to be a Charlie (the guy who is the math genius on the show). So, I find myself somewhat disliking the show.
This bothers me because they created what could have been a great vehicle to attract young people to math. We certainly don't do it in our school systems, where we spend a great deal of energy equating mathematicians with nerds, losers and geeks. Most of our popular entertainment points out that the jock is the hero, and the geek is really the anti-hero, or made the hero is comedies because people can laugh at him as he tries to be what no one expects him to be.
Anyway, that's my thought on the television show NUMB3RS. I'm sure there are those wo disagree with me, but they're all geeks and losers, so who listens to them anyway?
Stumble It!
No, it does what Hollywood tends to do a lot. It created a character who is not normal, who is a prodigy, who had to be born to do what he does. Then it shows how great mathematics is, but leaves you with the impression that in order to do mathematics of that order you have to be as gifted as that young man. And because the rest of us usually aren't prodigies who were recruited by Stanford, or whatever, when we were 10 years old, we can only see such circumstances as fiction.
But whenever I've watched the show, I've enjoyed remarking that I understood a lot of the concepts the main character brings up because I loved mathematics and studied it extensively when I was first going to college. But then I get that bad taste in my mouth because I realize that the show is telling me that even though I love math, I'm never going to be a Charlie (the guy who is the math genius on the show). So, I find myself somewhat disliking the show.
This bothers me because they created what could have been a great vehicle to attract young people to math. We certainly don't do it in our school systems, where we spend a great deal of energy equating mathematicians with nerds, losers and geeks. Most of our popular entertainment points out that the jock is the hero, and the geek is really the anti-hero, or made the hero is comedies because people can laugh at him as he tries to be what no one expects him to be.
Anyway, that's my thought on the television show NUMB3RS. I'm sure there are those wo disagree with me, but they're all geeks and losers, so who listens to them anyway?
Labels: Mathematics, Television
Stumble It!
posted by Duane @ 7:04 PM
2 Comments:
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