NOVA: The Great Math Mystery
NOVA leads viewers on a mathematical mystery tour -- a provocative exploration of math's astonishing power across the centuries. We discover math's signature in the swirl of a nautilus shell, the whirlpool of a galaxy and the spiral in the center of a sunflower. Math was essential to everything from the first wireless radio transmissions to the prediction and discovery of the Higgs boson and the successful landing of rovers on Mars. But where does math get its power? Astrophysicist and writer Mario Livio, along with a colorful cast of mathematicians, physicists and engineers, follows math from Pythagoras to Einstein and beyond, all leading to the ultimate riddle: Is math an invention or a discovery? Humankind's clever trick or the language of the universe?
Directed by Richard Reisz · Written by Dan McCabe
Where to Watch
Streaming
Rent or Buy
Cast
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Jay O. Sanders Narrator (voice) -
Glenn Kalison Actor - Max Tegmark Self
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Esperanza Spalding Self -
Sylvester James Gates Self - Adam Steltzner Self
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Janna Levin Self - Simon Schaffer Self
- Savas Dimopoulos Self
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Roger Penrose Self - Stephen Wolfram Self
Make it a double feature
2h 22m together
NOVA: The Great Math Mystery
Fermat's Room
A close match in mood and era.











