Ricky Nathvani

The magic of programming is that a little goes a long way. With just a few simple elements of Java: declaring variables, assigning values with simple expressions, inputting data and printing it to a screen, we have what we need to write complete Java programs to tackle problems including... radioactive mice??

One of the main purposes of programming is to get a computer to do data crunching that would be difficult or tedious for people to do. In this episode, we explore the basic building blocks for getting computers to do useful things with data: expressions.

Memorizing and keeping track of lots of details, like numbers and text, is essential for the kinds of complicated tasks we want computers to do. In this episode, we explore the different systems of computer memory, what they accomplish, and how we make use of them in programming using variables.

Computers are an essential part of everyday life, from running our cars to enabling lightning-fast communication around the world. And that incredible versatility comes from the different programs they run. Amazingly, this power is something everyone can harness through programming, which is writing programs. This episode takes us through the main functions of a computer and some of the core concepts in the programming process.

What can you do with an information technology degree?

Information Technology (IT) is a topic that explores computing infrastructure and how to manage it in the context of an organization. A degree in IT can equip you with technical skills highly sought for by different employers looking to use technology to be more effective. If problem-solving, tinkering with computers, analytical and creative thinking all sound appealing, then an IT major might be the right choice for you!

Sometimes, you ask ChatGPT to do a math problem that an arithmetically-inclined grade schooler can do with ease. And sometimes, ChatGPT can confidently state the wrong answer. It's all due to its nature as a large language model, and the neural networks it uses to interact with us.

What can you do with a math major?
Math is the study of patterns and abstract relationships, in both the real world and the lofty realms of pure theory. Basically, math is about understanding patterns, quantifying relationships, and reaching logical conclusions. A degree in math can equip you with quantitative problem-solving skills that are highly sought after in many careers. If self-study, creative thinking, persistence and deep, intricate logic all sound appealing, then a math major could be the right choice for you!

From rooftops and collections of objects, to GPS navigation satellites orbiting Earth, everything in the world around us is at some kind of an angle. Geometry has a whole set of tools for making use of all these angles everywhere: trigonometry. In this episode, we discuss the world of trigonometry and the mathematical functions it uses to describe the relationship between sides and angles.

Knowing how much space things occupy is important because… well that’s sort of what the whole universe is! Space with objects in it. In the three dimensions that we’re familiar with, the way we measure the space that stuff takes up is called volume, and it’s another way math helps us get to the heart of objects that make up the world around us. In this episode, we discuss volume and the tools that can help us handle more complicated physical structures and the spatial relationships that we encounter in everyday life.

Right angles are just about everywhere. We see them in everything from coffee tables to buildings, from washing machines to gaming consoles. They’re part of the way we use vectors in linear algebra, and understanding them opens up doors beyond the realms of geometry. In this episode, we discuss right-angled triangles, the mathematical methods for calculating them and how these pop up just about everywhere, from lurking in the physical space to the theoretical level when dealing with abstract relationships!

If you've ever had a pest problem in your home or garden, you may have come across diatomaceous earth as a bug-killing option. This white powdery pest control is made of 100% pure fossils, and we don't just use them for killing bugs! They're used in tons of things, including in nanotechnology!

Whether it’s painting, constructing, wrapping things or even just designing a soda can, understanding surface areas is essential to designing the world around us. And being able to move between two and three dimensions with this type of thinking helps us learn more about the shapes that we interact with. In this episode, we discuss surface area and the ways in which this knowledge can help us navigate and better understand the world around us.

Scientists like to measure things, but they've had a heck of a time doing that with sharpness. And even if no one agrees on exactly how to measure it, our search for better tools has recently led to some of the sharpest objects we’ve ever created.

Units are the way we measure things, like, meters and feet; the U.S. dollar and the Euro, or Celsius and Fahrenheit. And, depending on the context, people often use different units for the same problem. In this episode, we discuss Dimensional Analysis, a toolkit math provides for dealing with all the different choices of units and conversions.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ezGO0kN6yM