In Our Time Maths and Storytelling
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Sep 30, 1999 Mathematician John Allen Paulos and novelist Marina Warner discuss the fascinating relationship between maths and storytelling. They explore the hidden mathematical logic in stories, the origins of both in our ancestors' need to measure the world, and the possibility of applying mathematical logic to literature. The podcast delves into the formalist approach of analyzing folk tales, the intersection of mathematics and humor in jokes, and the link between mathematics, language, and storytelling.
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Common Origins In Practical Needs
- Both mathematics and storytelling grew from practical needs like counting and warning about danger.
- Greek geometry and bundled oral tales evolved from everyday rules of thumb and communications.
Weighing Souls Connects Counting And Story
- Marina Warner links teller/tale and the weighing of souls as cultural metaphors tying counting to narrative.
- Ancient Egyptian weighing of the soul illustrates counting as moral assessment in stories.
Numeric Patterns Support Oral Tradition
- Numeric motifs like threes, nines, and twelves recur in oral traditions but often serve mnemonic or social functions.
- Such patterns aid recall and reflect cultural practices rather than pure formal structure.