Tom Rocks Belfast

On Friday 11 September, our Year 14 Further Maths pupils visited the Ulster Museum for an inspiring talk by famous mathematician Dr Tom Crawford (Tom Rocks Maths). The interactive session was split into 2 engaging parts:

Part 1: Pop Culture & Maths Modelling

Pupils explored how mathematical modelling applies to fictional concepts, including:

1. Calculating the weight and impossible buoyancy of a Pokémon from Pokédex stats.

2. Analysing the Death Star's blast radius.

3. The Hercules Hydra problem & defeating the Avengers (without infinity stones!).

4. Deciding who is richer: Mario or Sonic?

Part 2: University Preparation

Drawing on his background as a lecturer at both Oxford and Cambridge, Dr Tom shared top tips for university entrance exams before guiding pupils through hands-on group problem-solving.

An entertaining and valuable day out that showed our pupils the power of real-world (and fictional!) maths!