Profs & Pints Richmond: Reel Numbers—Math in Movies

Profs and Pints Richmond presents: “Reel Numbers—Math in Movies,” on Hollywood’s evolving portrayals of math and mathematicians, with Brianna Kurtz, professor of mathematics at the University of Virginia.

[Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/profsandpints/math-in-movies .]

Movies have a long history of portraying mathematics in a way that perpetuate stereotypes about mathematicians and fuels anxiety about the subject, making it look beyond the reach of normal people. In recent years, however, a cultural shift has transformed the trope of the marginalized “math nerd” into someone to be celebrated on film.

Take an eye-opening look at the history of mathematics on film with Brianna Kurtz, a scholar of contemporary issues in global mathematics education who has used everything from zombie apocalypse to The Avengers to baseball to stir public interest in math.

We’ll look at mathematical themes in films from 1959 to today to see how portrayals of the field have changed. We’ll look at classics like A Beautiful Mind and Good Will Hunting and take account of how films like Agora, Hidden Figures, and A Brilliant Young Mind have challenged mathematician stereotypes.

We’ll consider what these films say about what it means to practice mathematics and who is a mathematician, framing the statements they made in the broader context of shifts in social views that have led people once shunned as “nerds” and “geeks” to become widely admired.

Among the questions Dr. Kurz will tackle: What is it about math that we’ve been so afraid of? (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.)

Image by Canva.