Where did the Rubik’s Cube come from? How did it become so popular? And just how many possible combinations are there? Broadcast on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.
Funbers 20
From the number of children of composer Johann Sebastian Bach, to the number of championships won by Manchester United, its fair to say that 20 gets around. Then there’s the 1920’s, seen as a time of boom and bust with the creation of jazz music followed by the great depression. Not to mention the Mayan counting system which uses base 20…
You can find all of the episodes in the Funbers series with BBC Radio Cambridgeshire and BBC Radio Oxford here.
Funbers 19
The 1900’s saw inventions that made a BIG change to our lives. Aeroplanes in 1903 changed the way we travel, TVs in 1925 changed home entertainment, and Microwaves in 1946 changed the way we eat. Nineteen also played an important role in the British Civil War and was the title of Adele’s first album…
You can listen to all of the Funbers episodes from BBC Radio Cambridgeshire and BBC Radio Oxford here.
Funbers 18
Time to celebrate with a glass of bubbly as we’ve reached the number 18! The legal drinking age in most countries around the world, unless you’re the US, Saudi Arabia or Haiti. In fact, in Haiti you only need to be ‘of school age’ to get your hands on the devil’s nectar…
You can listen to all of the Funbers episodes from BBC Radio Cambridgeshire and BBC Radio Oxford here.
Funbers 17
Yet another applicant for the title of ‘world’s unluckiest number’, 17 spells ‘I am dead’ when rearranged in Italian. It’s also the ‘world’s most popular random number’ according to scientists at MIT and the number of ‘givens’ at the beginning of a Sudoku game that are required for there to be only one possible way to solve the puzzle correctly…
You can listen to all of the Funbers episodes from BBC Radio Cambridgeshire and BBC Radio Oxford here.
Funbers 16
My super sweet 16! As well as being possibly one of the best (or worst) television shows ever created, sixteen is the age where you can start to do some of the more ‘fun’ things in life… It’s also used in computing to define the RGB colour system and is the average number of hours a human being spends awake per day.
You can listen to all of the Funbers episodes from BBC Radio Cambridgeshire and BBC Radio Oxford here.
Funbers 15
15 is possibly the most ‘quotable’ of the double digit numbers, with everyone from Andy Warhol to Jack Sparrow using it in one way or another. It’s also the total of every row, column and diagonal in a 3 x 3 magic square containing the numbers 1-9 and the average amount of seconds an employer spends looking at an applicants CV… It’s time for some fun with numbers!
You can listen to all of the Funbers episodes from BBC Radio Cambridgeshire and BBC Radio Oxford here.
Funbers 14
From plagues and lambs, to wives and rams the Bible loves a good reference to the number 14. And then of course there’s St Valentine and his quest to fill the world with love – not unlike a certain Gene Simmons from KISS…
You can listen to all of the Funbers episodes from BBC Radio Cambridgeshire and BBC Radio Oxford here.
Funbers 13
The unluckiest number in the world… or is it? The Far East might have something to say on the matter… Plus, the Last Supper, the gallows and puberty.
You can listen to all of the Funbers episodes from BBC Radio Cambridgeshire and BBC Radio Oxford here.
