{"id":4065,"date":"2018-12-10T09:00:06","date_gmt":"2018-12-10T14:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.ams.org\/blogonmathblogs\/?p=4065"},"modified":"2018-12-10T08:59:29","modified_gmt":"2018-12-10T13:59:29","slug":"mathematical-gift-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ams.org\/blogonmathblogs\/2018\/12\/10\/mathematical-gift-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"A Mathematical Gift Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Some of the cherished math swag I’ve received over the years.<\/p><\/div>\n

It’s that time of year again. The semester is winding down, mathematically rigorous 6-fold symmetric snowflakes deck the halls, and Mariah Carey is on the top of the Spotify charts. And while all Mariah wants for Christmas is YOU<\/a>, finding the perfect gift for your special mathematical someone might not be so simple. But here are some suggestions to ease that gift hunting anxiety. <\/p>\n

The best thing any mathematician can have is a good notebook and smart writing tools. I swear by the beautiful Japanese made Apica Premium C.D. Notebook<\/a>, size B5, plain pages. It’s the perfect size to tote around to conferences, on trains, plains, and buses. The pages are smooth and thick enough to write with a fountain pen, but not so precious that you can’t tear one out for the occasional grocery list. To really optimize your experience I am a fan of the Lamy Safari fountain pen<\/a> or, if you really want to know it, a Faber-Castell mechanical pencil<\/a>. <\/p>\n

But maybe that’s a bit too practical to really gift someone other than yourself. <\/p>\n

The designers Christopher Hanusa<\/a> and Uyen Nguyen are about to launch a new line of Riemondrian jewelry<\/a>, which features pieces inspired by Riemann sums but done in the style of the artist Piet Mondrian<\/a>. Hanusa, an artist and a math professor at Queens College in New York, hosts his whole collection of mathematical jewelry<\/a> on his website. Nguyen, an origami artist and photographer, keeps a beautifully curated instagram page<\/a> of incredible feats in paper folding. <\/p>\n

If you’re looking for good mathematical books to buy your besties, my top pick of the last year is definitely Hello World<\/em> by Hannah Fry<\/a>. Also, the consistently awesome Quanta<\/em> just published a collection of essays about “the biggest ideas in math”<\/a> edited by Thomas Lin. If you need further inspiration, math and science writer Dana Mackenzie<\/a> also has his mathematical book endorsements on Five Books<\/em><\/a>. <\/p>\n

And finally, if games are your thing, then I have some ideas for you. First up, Decrypto<\/a> is a team game where opposing teams trying to encrypt and decrypt messages without being intercepted. From the reviews it sounds similar to Codenames<\/a> but with a little bit extra. For the programming fiend in your friend circle, I highly recommend Roborally<\/a>. The gist is that each player has to move a robot across a crowded factory floor by programming the moves using a sequence of cards without getting stopped by loops, pits, and lasers. It’s super frustrating, and super fun. <\/p>\n

For dice of all sorts, roll on over to Maths Gear<\/a>, the site where Steve Mould<\/a>, Matt Parker<\/a> and James Grime<\/a> sell all the cool maths things you see in their videos. They also have a nice collection of games<\/a>, kitchen gadgets<\/a>, and Rubik’s like cubes<\/a>. And don’t worry, it’s a UK site but they ship to the US. Just be sure to get your orders in early.<\/p>\n

And if you’re really looking to impress, go for this 10.5 inch white bonded marble-cast bust of Pythagoras<\/a>. My brother gave this to me several Christmases ago, and you can’t imagine the gravitas it lends my office. <\/p>\n

While on the topic of Christmas, I have to endorse The Aperiodical’s<\/em> Apriodvent Calendar<\/a>. Each day in December leading up to Christmas they reveal a new mathematical curiosity, from homemade parabolic Christmas cards to mathematically non-trivial Christmas decorations, and once again I’m so darn impressed. Aperiodical editors: you are #goals. <\/p>\n

Happy gifting and happy end of semester, and let me know @extremefriday<\/a> if you get any extra special mathematical swag this year. <\/p>\n

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It’s that time of year again. The semester is winding down, mathematically rigorous 6-fold symmetric snowflakes deck the halls, and Mariah Carey is on the top of the Spotify charts. And while all Mariah wants for Christmas is YOU, finding … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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