-4

I am on a quest to gather a wide range of cultural examples of myths, legends, fables, tales of heroes, or ethnic stories that incorporate mathematical concepts in a meaningful way. For instance, the legend of Theseus and the Minotaur highlights the mathematical concept of a labyrinth and strategies for navigating or solving it. Another intriguing example is that of Dido of Carthage, which introduces the isoperimetric problem. Additionally, the tale of Hercules and the Hydra touches upon recursive or sequential mathematical strategies. However, these examples predominantly reflect Western perspectives. My objective is to compile a more culturally diverse collection of stories to enrich my students' understanding of ethnomathematics.

Could the community share examples from various cultures that intertwine mathematics with folklore, myth, or legend? The goal is to illustrate the universal nature of mathematical thought across different societies and historical periods, thereby broadening our educational approach to encompass a global perspective on mathematics.

Humberto José Bortolossi
  • 2,324
  • 9
  • 23
  • 2
    (1) In general, questions on the SE network should be relatively narrowly focused, and admit authoritative, objectively correct answers. While there are exceptions to every rule, questions which ask for a bit list of examples of a phenomenon are typically not on topic. – Xander Henderson Mar 29 '24 at 13:51
  • 3
    (2) This site is for questions about mathematical education, at all levels. This does not mean that every question should be about mathematical education at all levels; it means that a question about any particular level of education can be on-topic. Without knowing what level of student you are targeting and how you are planning on using this in the classroom, it is nearly impossible to know how to answer the question. Who are your students? Who are you? What kind of class(es) do you teach? – Xander Henderson Mar 29 '24 at 13:54
  • 5
    (3) Even if other users here believe that this question is on-topic, and overrule my closure, I do not think that your second example actually meets the criteria you set out, i.e. that mathematics is incorporated into the story in a "meaningful way". The exponential growth of hydra heads is not solved via mathematics, but with fire. The mathematical content here is no more significant than the fairy tale opening "Across seven seas and seven mountains." – Xander Henderson Mar 29 '24 at 13:58
  • 1
    While your question would be fascinating to research, it's too broad for Math Educators in its current form. I agree with @XanderHenderson. – J W Mar 29 '24 at 14:16
  • I appreciate the perspective that this question should be closed as it is off topic. Having said this, a question about how best to sort exam papers seems to suffer the same criticism.

    https://matheducators.stackexchange.com/questions/27628/whats-the-most-practical-and-efficient-way-to-sort-exams-on-paper

    I do not think there is fair and reasonable consistency in what is deemed off topic.

     – user52817 Mar 29 '24 at 14:28
  • 4
    @user52817 I actually did make that criticism, and asked the moderators at [academia.se] if we could migrate the question. They didn't want it, and it had already attracted a large number of upvotes and answers. I agree that it is not a great fit for the site, and if I had seen it before it had five answers, I might have closed it. But SE sites are community moderated, and I don't want to overrule the community's consensus (which, in the case of the sorting question, seems to be "This question belongs here"). – Xander Henderson Mar 29 '24 at 14:55
  • @XanderHenderson I understand. – user52817 Mar 29 '24 at 14:57
  • 5
    @user52817 I should also make the point that "being a good question" is completely orthogonal to "being a good question for Math Ed SE". As an anthropology major (which I was, for a while), I studied folklore relatively intensively---I absolutely love fairy stories and folk tales. I love the idea of looking at those stories to find interesting mathematics. I just don't think that such a question is a good fit for the SE format. It seems like more of an independent research question. – Xander Henderson Mar 29 '24 at 17:44
  • @XanderHenderson, I've remoced the hydra example I agree with you. – Humberto José Bortolossi Mar 30 '24 at 12:58
  • @XanderHenderson storytelling sits at the core of what defines us as a species, as Yuval Noah Harari eloquently highlights in his book "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind." My inquiry delves into the intricate ways in which stories and myths intertwine with the realm of Mathematics, specifically seeking examples from non-Western traditions. This quest for examples is not just relevant but vital, as they often serve as the spark for profound reflection and understanding. Hence, it should be deemed an on-topic discussion. – Humberto José Bortolossi Mar 30 '24 at 13:05
  • If you want to pose a question that will be accepted for this site, it would be helpful to explain how it would be used in terms of math education. I also do not think this is a good question for this site. – Sue VanHattum Mar 30 '24 at 19:58

0 Answers0