• Emeritus Professor, University of Nottingham, (currently Vice-Chancellor at MILA University, Malaysia), University of Nottingham
Maths is everywhere and Pi is no exception. Holger Motzkau

A day in the life of Pi

Mathematics nerds abound, Pi Day is here, and this year it’s more accurate than ever.
Much harder than scoring a goal. EPA

Explainer: how are football fixtures set?

When the English football fixtures were announced in June, many fans would have studied them from their own perspective. Are the fixtures fair to their team? Why do they have to travel the full length…
Don’t blame the timetable. non-partizan

Explainer: what is the maths behind an exam timetable?

Sweaty-palmed and reciting facts over and over in their heads, the hordes of university and school students sitting down to exams this month will have precious little time to think about how their exam…
He is on a tour. artbystevejohnson

How to get ants to solve a chess problem

Take a set of chess pieces and throw them all away except for one knight. Place the knight on any one of the 64 squares of a chess board. Can you make 63 legal moves so that you visit every square on the…
Beating computers is hard, and it’s going to get harder. George Widman/AP

How to teach Deep Blue to play poker and deliver groceries

Deep Blue gained world-wide attention in 1997 when it defeated the then chess world champion Garry Kasparov. But playing chess was all that Deep Blue could do. Ask it to play another game, even a simpler…
It’s a long way for one man and his reindeer to travel. Jpatokal

Help solve Santa’s logistics troubles with a little maths

In just one night, Santa has to visit millions of homes to deliver presents. If he could travel at the speed of light, the task would be simple. However, Einstein’s formula, E=MC², tells us that anything…

Contact Graham for

  • General
  • Media request
  • Speaking request
  • Consulting / Advising
  • Research collaboration
  • Research supervision