Book Me
James travels extensively giving public talks all over the UK and the world. These talks are for a variety of ages and abilities, including talks for schools, colleges, universities, festivals or other events.
Below is information on some of the talks you can book. If you are an organiser of such an event and wish to book, please read the information below and send me a message via the contact page.
Talk: Bits and Pieces: Secrets of a Digital World
Heard about Enigma? Then hear about the other German code machine, Lorenz – a machine used for the most important of messages, including those from Adolf Hitler himself.
Or hear the story of Hedy Lamarr, the Golden Age Hollywood film star and secret inventor who patented a way to transmit messages without being blocked that we still use in WiFi today.
See how messages and photos are transmitted on the internet, and the secret messages that tell a film studio when you are sharing movies illegally.
See how are messages transmitted without mistakes, even from space. And we’ll prove that you can drill a hole in a CD and it will still play – live!
This is a 60 minute talk, suitable for schools, that takes a look at the hidden maths behind the digital world, from WWII to WiFi.
Click here for more information, including information for schools and fees.
The Enigma Project: The Enigma Project talk and workshop for schools is currently taking a break.
Talk: Alan Turing and the Enigma Machine:
Alan Turing was one of our great 20th century mathematicians, and a pioneer of computer science. However, he may best be remembered as one of the leading code breakers of Bletchley Park during World War II. It was Turing’s brilliant insights and mathematical mind that helped to break Enigma, the apparently unbreakable code used by the German military.
We present a history of both Alan Turing and the Enigma, leading up to this fascinating battle of man against machine – including a full demonstration of an original WWII Enigma Machine!
This talk is 60 minutes and suitable for adult audiences and universities.
Here is a clip of me giving this talk at The Perimeter Institute.
Workshop: Mathematical Games
This workshop explore simple mathematical games that tests students strategic thinking and problem solving skills.
These games do not require dice or cards, just counters. Yet, each game requires you to think ahead and plan your moves for the best chance of winning. Plus, students can take their new-found skills and beat friends and family!
This is a 60-120 minute workshop, suitable for high ability Y7-Y11 and Y12-Y13. We ask for no more than 60 students in a workshop.
Workshop: Maths of a Connected World
The world is made up of connections. These might be a network of friends, roads or computers.
We will look at some of the famous problems and puzzles of networks including, how many handshakes were made at a party, could the people of Konigsberg cross all 9 bridges only once, the best place to position security cameras, and is it really possible to colour all maps using only 4 colours?
This is two 60 minute workshops, possibly made into one 120 minute session. Suitable for high ability Y7-Y11 and Y12-Y13. We ask for no more than 60 students in a workshop.
Workshop: Shapes and Numbers
In the early days of mathematics numbers and shapes were given special meaning, including love, perfection and the universe.
We will explore these special numbers, and discover that a history of these mystical numbers is a history of number theory itself.
This is a 120-150 minute masterclass, suitable for high ability Y7-Y11 and Y12-Y13. This masterclass originated as an RI Maths Masterclass. We ask for no more than 60 students in a masterclass.
Training: Talking Maths on YouTube for the General Public
This session is suitable for university students, PhD students and postdocs looking to increase their public engagement.
Talking maths on YouTube is a lot of fun. Your audience will contain maths enthusiasts, young people, and the general public. Making videos doesn’t have to be technically difficult, but is good practice in explaining difficult concepts in clear and succinct ways.
In this session we will discuss how to make your first YouTube video, including questions about content, presentation and video making.
This session is approximately 90 minutes.
Talk: Star Trek: The Math of Khan:
Star Trek featured many interesting mathematical ideas including the mathematics of alien biology; a paradox that upset 20th century mathematicians as well as 23rd century androids; and does the colour of your shirt really affect your chances of survival?
A quirky talk for science fiction and film fans who want to discover the hidden maths in Star Trek.
This is a one hour talk, or as a short film introduction (see below).
Talks: Film Introductions
Over the years I have done a number of introductions to mathematics-related films. These are 20 minute introductions where we discuss the maths of the film (real or not), followed by a screening of the film and a Q&A.
Film introductions I have done in the past include Enigma, Good Will Hunting, The Man Who Knew Infinity (Ramanujan biopic), Star Trek, Jurassic Park, Donald Duck in Mathmagicland and Alice in Wonderland.
To book any of the above talks, or to discuss other events, please contact me via the contact form.