NUMB3RS

Only a few network TV shows interest me, and NUMB3RS is one of them. Why? Because of its respect for higher mathematics. Rarely does anyone on TV even mention math, much less show a deep admiration for it.

You say you haven't seen this show? Well, here is how CBS talks about it on their web site:

"NUMB3RS is a drama about an FBI agent who recruits his mathematical-genius brother to help the Bureau solve a wide range of challenging crimes in Los Angeles. The two brothers take on the most confounding criminal cases from a very distinctive perspective. Inspired by actual cases, the series depicts how the confluence of police work and mathematics provides unexpected revelations and answers to the most perplexing criminal questions. A dedicated FBI agent, Don Eppes (Rob Morrow), couldn't be more different from his younger brother, Charlie Eppes (David Krumholtz), a brilliant mathematician who, since he was little, yearned to impress his big brother. As a seasoned investigator, Don deals in hard facts and evidence, whereas Charlie, a math professor at a California university, functions in a world of mathematical probability and equations. Now, despite their disparate approaches to life, Don and Charlie are able to combine their areas of expertise and solve some killer cases."

As someone who loved math in high school and college, and later as an MBA student at the University of Chicago, where advanced mathematics was used in many of my courses, I'm delighted by NUMB3RS. I remember all the long evenings doing my math homework. Some problems were a snap, but others were a real challenge.

I remember a statistics professor at Chicago, Dr. Patinkin, who always made the class laugh after he spent a couple of hours solving one problem whose answer was 9W.

"Say," Professor Patinkin said, "that reminds me of a German musical joke. If the answer is 9W, what is the question?"

No one in my class had a clue. After a few minutes, Professor Patinkin said, "OK, I'll tell you...."

"Mr. Richard Wagner, do you spell your name with a V?"

"Nein,W," he answered.

So it goes....