Mathematics in the Modern World |1

LESSON 2: MATHEMATICS IN OUR WORLD

INTRODUCTION
Mathematics is everywhere. We cannot ignore that math is an essential tool in understanding nature and
the world. It is vital in understanding natural phenomena and human activities as well. Similarly, discovering
patterns in nature and the world will be investigated where balance and harmony are always present in these
wonderful creations. Many people consider mathematics to be a boring and formal science. But any good work in
mathematics always has: Beauty, Simplicity, Structure, Imagination, and Crazy Ideas.

DISCUSSION

I. Understanding Mathematics

Like almost every subject, mathematics is easy or as difficult as we choose to perceive it. The usual pattern
among students who got stuck in their journey to math success is that they looked into the patterns of solutions
made by their teacher not knowingly after making it on their own they will get stuck with the problems they work
on. Remember that “Mathematics is NOT a Spectator Sport.

What is Mathematics?
Anybody would agree that math is:
 The study of numbers and operations, a body of formulas and
rules for solving equations, a set of tools to the questions of how
many or how much.
Others view math as an/a:
 Exact science: which uses logical reasoning to be able to draw
sound conclusions;
 Language: with structure, form, vocabulary and grammar;
 Art: which studies patterns for aesthetic purposes or for
predictive purposes.
It plays a vital role in almost all fields: engineering, health sciences,
education, economics and finance, social and physical sciences,
environmental sciences and even in the field of music and arts.

“Mathematics is a formal system of thought for recognizing, classifying, and exploiting patterns.” - Ian Stewart
This is explained in the book of Ian Stewart (1995) Nature’s Numbers, that mathematics is a systematic
way of digging out the rules and structures that lie behind some observed pattern or regularity, and using this rules
and structures to explain what is going on. He also described that mathematics reveals the simplicities of nature,
and permits us to generalize from simple examples to the complexities of the real world.
The connections between art and mathematics go deep in the history of mankind. It is evident in the
different architectural designs, music, painting, and sculpture. Nature also plays a part on recognizing beauty of
nature’s mathematical patterns.

Where is Mathematics?
Observe the following illustrations:
A regular hexagon has 6 sides of equal length, and this shape is seen again and
again in the world around us. The most common example of nature using hexagons is in a
bee hive. This is done to maximize the use of space for food storage. Honeycombs structure
is also an example of wallpaper symmetry. This is where a pattern is repeated until it covers
a plane. A beehive is also considered as one model for packing efficiently.

Pinecones have seed pods that arrange in a spiral pattern. They consist of a pair
of spirals, each one twisting upwards in opposing directions.

Orbs spiders weave a near-perfect circular webs that have near equal-distanced
radial supports coming out of the middle which makes easy for them to catch its prey.

We have seen that many of natural creations follow what others might think it is not math. But we see that
these are clues to ponder on. The great secret uncovered by mathematics as Stewart explained, “Nature’s patterns
are not just there to be admired, they are vital clues to the rules that govern natural processes.”
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Mathematics finds many practical applications in in our daily life. Your interest in gadgets, games and
technologies have employed the use of mathematics. You unknowingly use your number sense in your transactions
that starts with your purchase of the gadgets, to the instructions on how it will be operated, to your game plan till
you discovered the many chances of winning or losing. It all matters because there is math in all of these doings.
In the communities where we work, events that we do, in the different scientific innovations, mathematics is there.

What is it for?
Mathematics is a useful way to think about the complexities of nature’s creations. It helps us unravel the
puzzles of nature. Appreciation of patterns brought variety of opportunities to better understand and explore the
world leading us to many significant theories in mathematics which in turn have been utilized by other discipline.
Inventions and discoveries are not possible without the use of mathematics.

Let me give a few examples of practices where math is used for;

 Math and the Human heart: Mathematical models of the heart help in the design and implementation
of artificial valves.
 Mystery of how flocks of birds fly: in the same direction without collisions can be explained by
mathematical equation. This also explains how air traffic is handled by our experts.
 Math can help solve crimes: Probability, combinations, graph theory are used by the investigators to
solve crimes.
 Prime number and internet security: The study of prime numbers is important for computer security

What do Mathematicians do?

Mathematics provides us the tools to make sense of the physical/ perceptual world. But also gives us the
facility (and the power) to understand the unseen, the abstract.

Two views
1. Platonism 2. Formalism
 Mathematical objects are real.  Mathematical objects are creations of the
mind.
 Mathematicians discover mathematics.  Mathematicians create mathematics.
 Math is part of objective reality, it exists out
there, independent of human experience.

II. Math, Nature, and Arts

Many of us think of mathematics as numbers, operation, algebra, calculus and the like but we can also
view mathematics as study of patterns. Recognizing patterns feel just natural as learning 1, 2, 3… or a, b, c ….
Though mathematicians use number patterns and equations to express the ingenuity of their explorations and
discoveries, you only need to be imaginative of how mathematics is exhibited in nature and arts through patterns
of form, number, shape and movement in the world around us.

Mathematics and Nature

Mathematics is not all about numbers. If you want to understand the world, you need to find patterns, then
you need to represent these patterns in the form of symbols, notations or shapes or numbers, and finally interpret
these patterns. We know that patterns in nature are visible regularities of form, shape, and movement found in the
natural world. There is beauty in appreciating nature’s clues even without mathematical training.

Figure 1.1: Patterns found in succulents, ferns, and cones are spiral-shaped depicting maximum efficiency.

Figure 1.2: Patterns such ocean waves, sand dunes, formation of typhoon and water drop with ripple serve as
clues in the rules that govern water flow.
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Figure 1.3: Patterns of spots, stripes and blotches show mathematical regularities in biological growth and form.

Figure 1.4: Occurrences like changing of the seasons, phases of the moon, and the constellation are basis of time
and predictions.

Mathematics and Arts

We now turn our attention to connections between mathematics and arts. We will explore idea of
mathematics to perspective, symmetry and proportion. People of all ages and culture used geometrical ideas and
patterns in their artwork.
 Greece – which is the center of arts and mathematics during the ancient times developed strong inclination
to these areas because these are central to their view of the world.
 Perspective – Imagine looking along a set of long parallel lines and stretches far into the distance such
as a set of train tracks or a set of telephone lines, or you may put yourself in the center of a hallway. The
lines will appear to your eyes to get closer to each other as you look into the distance.
 All lines that are parallel in the real scene and perpendicular to the canvas must intersect at the principal
vanishing point.
 Vanishing Point – a point at which receding parallel lines seem to meet when represented in linear
perspective.

Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519) has great contributions to the science of perspective.

The Last Supper shown with several lines that are parallel in the real scene and converge at the principal
vanishing point behind Christ
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According to Da Vinci, there are three aspects to perspectivity

1. How the size of the objects seems to diminish according to distance;
2. The manner in which the colors change the farther away they are from the eye;
3. How objects ought to be finished less carefully the farther away they are.

Rules for drawing open up to new possibilities of expression of the art and creativity, where balance and
harmony is used.

Symmetry

Symmetry – is a property of an object that remains unchanged under certain operations such as translation,
reflection, and rotation. It is a sense of harmony and balance. The human body is symmetrical because a vertical
line drawn through the head and navel divides the body into two identical parts.
Example: The painting of Last Supper by Da Vinci shows symmetry because the disciples are grouped in
four groups of three, with two groups on either side of Christ which is the central figure.

Symmetries are integral part of nature and the arts of culture worldwide.

Bilateral symmetry on butterfly

A symmetry in which the left and right sides (reflection) of the organism can be
divided into two identical or mirror image of each other.

Rotational symmetry on Starfish

A symmetry around a fixed point and can be classified as either cyclic or dihedral.

Another example of symmetry is a five-pointed star with five lines about which it can be flipped ( reflected
) without changing its appearance and because it has five vertices that all look the same, it can also be rotated by
one-fifth of a full circle and it still look the same ( 3600 / 5 = 720 ) the star has rotation and reflection symmetries.

III. Fibonacci Sequence, Proportion, and Golden Ratio

Proportion is generally used to express the relation of parts to each other or to a whole which is built upon
similarity of two ratios. We will focus to another major idea involved in balance and harmony in art and nature:
proportion. The Greeks claimed that the most visually appealing division of the line had the property that the ratio
of the length of the long piece to the length of the short piece is the same as the ratio of the length of the entire
line segment to the length of the long piece.

Number Patterns
Number patterns are familiar to us since they are among the patterns we first learned at home and at
school. The way we count the natural numbers as 1,2,3,4,5… and skip counting as 2,4,6,8,10… is useful because
it helps us to predict the next number in the sequence. Recognizing number patterns is also an important problem
-solving skills.
Example: The next number in the sequence 1,4,9,16, _______ is 25.

FIBONACCI NUMBERS
Fibonacci numbers appear everywhere – in leaves, flower petals, seeds of sunflower, scales of pineapple,
and many others.
1 , 1 , 2 , 3 , 5 , 8 , 13 , 21, ….
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This pattern was popularized in Europe by Leonardo of Pisa also known

as Leonardo Fibonacci. He is one of the most influential mathematicians of the
Middle Ages. His book Liber Abaci played a role in the adoption of the Arabic
decimal system of counting.

In this book, you will find the famous problem of breeding rabbits which
become instrumental in the study of patterns and Divine proportion. The sequence
is found by adding the previous two numbers of the sequence together. It looks
like this: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34... And it goes on.

The Problem
A problem that appears in the third section of Liber Abaci led to the discovery of Fibonacci sequence:
“A certain man put a pair of rabbits in a place surrounded on all sides by a wall. How many pairs of rabbits can be
produced from that pair in a year if it is supposed that every month each pair begets a new pair, which from the
second month on becomes productive.”
Solution:
Assume that the rabbits always produced one male and one female offspring such that they:
 Can reproduce once every month
 Can reproduce when they are one month old
 They never die

Finding the 𝒏th Term in a Fibonacci Sequence

Example: If the 16th Fibonacci number is 987, and the 18th Fibonacci is 2584, determine 17th Fibonacci
number.

Solution:

𝐹16 = 987 𝐹18 =2584 find: 𝐹17 = ?

Answer: 1597

But how can we find any Fibonacci number without enumerating the previous numbers? For example, how
can we find the 25th Fibonacci number without knowing 𝐹 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐹 ? With the help of a handheld calculator or Excel
we could find 𝐹 which is 75025. Now let us use bigger Fibonacci number. Suppose we want to find 𝐹 ? Fortunately,
there is an easier way of determining the nth Fibonacci number.
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It is called the Binet’s Formula. Look for this formula and show that 𝐹 = 75025
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Activity 01
Direction: Argue whether you agree or disagree on how the following mathematicians/ philosophers view
mathematics.

Activity 02

Directions: Your instructor wants near objects to look nearby and far objects to look far away in your drawing.
Make your own illustration using the CONCEPT OF PERSPECTIVITY.

Criteria SCORE
Completeness Drawing and actual figure is very 10
detailed and has no missing lines,
dimensions or other drafting
figure.
Creativity Exceptional use of ideas and 15
originality to create theme.
Neatness The figure is exceptionally 10
attractive in terms of neatness.
Well-constructed and not messy.
The skills are excellent.
Line Quality Clear and consistent lines (object 10
lines and dimensions of actual
figures stand out)
Accuracy Perfect dimensioned drawing and 5
in actual figure, no mistake.
TOTAL: 50

Activity 03

Directions: Determine the value of the following. Write your answer and solutions on the space provided after
each number.

1 – 2.

3 – 4.
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5 – 6.

7 – 10. The 18th and 20th Fibonacci number is 2584 and 6765 respectively. Use these values of Fibonacci to
determine the 21st Fibonacci number.