Mathematical Terms in Popular Culture Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. One way to find an average is to total a set of numbers then divide the answer by how many numbers were in the set. eg: i) 4 + 5 + 6 + 10 + 15 = 40 ii) 40/5 gives you an average of 8. Which of these movie titles contains a word which most closely relates to this procedure?

Answer: Mean Streets

The method of totalling a set of numbers then dividing the answer by how many numbers there were is known as the mean average or arithmetic average.
"Mean Streets" was a 1989 movie.
To find a mode average the most frequently occurring number in any given set of figures is given the highest weighting. There are several ways of modifying or calibrating this method.
There were several old films with "... a la Mode" in the title including "Maids a la Mode", "Divorce a la Mode" and "Adam and Eve a la Mode" etc. "Love a la Mode" was released in 1930.

2. An angle greater than 180 degrees but less than 360 degrees could have been the inspiration for which Duran Duran hit single?

Answer: The Reflex

A reflex angle is one that lies in the range of 180 - 360 degrees, ie greater than a straight line. "The Reflex" was a number hit in Britain for Duran Duran in 1984.
A right angle contains 90 degrees. "Have I the Right" was a number one single for The Honeycombs way back in 1964.
An acute angle is less than 90 degrees. I'm afraid "My Girl's Acute Girl" is a fictitious title.
An obtuse angle lies between 90 - 180 degrees. I don't know of any song called "The Obtuse" but can think of some musicians for whom the phrase might be appropriate.

3. When using trigonometric functions in right-angled triangles the formula of opposite side over adjacent side would reveal the values of which of these movie titles?

Answer: Tangents

Maths was never my strong suit at school but I really liked trigonometry. I still remember the mnemonic 'Some Officers Have Curly Auburn Hair 'Til Old Age' to this day. This meant sine = opposite/hypotenuse; cosine = adjacent/hypotenuse and tangent = opposite/adjacent. I can't recall ever using it to any practical use but it was good fun.
The time-travel movie "Tangents" was released in 1994 and starred Matthew Bruch and Bonnie Pritchard.

4. A geometrical term meaning "coinciding at all points when superimposed"* would give which of these musical titles? *Definition from Dictionary.com

Answer: "Congruent" by Six Feet Deep

Two or more geometric shapes are said to be congruent if they are similar in all aspects of size and shape. "Congruent" is album track by Christian metal band Six Feet Deep.
A parabola is a conic section. The Tool track "Parabola" appears on their album "Lateralus".
Symmetry is defined as patterned self-similarity. Muse released their album "Origin of Symmetry" in 2001.
Two are more lines are said to be parallel if the distance between them is constant. Blondie's album "Parallel Lines" was released in 1978.

5. A combination of 'multiplied by' and an equilateral rectangle would give which of these movie titles?

Answer: Times Square

Times can be a synonym of multiplied by as in 7 times 3 equals 21. An equilateral rectangle is a square. Put them together to form "Times Square" which was a 1980 movie starring Tim Curry and Trini Alvarado.
"Cube Zero" is a 2004 movie starring Zachary Bennett and Stephanie Moore. A cube is a three dimensional square. Zero is a mathematical term for nil or 0.
"An Equal Share" is a 2007 short movie.
A rhombus is a equilateral quadrilateral in which opposite angles are equal but adjacent angles are not. The movie "Catching the Rhombus" has yet to be made.

6. If one angle in a triangle is given as 102 degrees and a second angle is given as 56 degrees which of these book titles correspond to the value of the third angle?

Answer: "Catch 22" by Joseph Heller

There are 180 degrees in a triangle. In this case 180 - (102 + 56) = 22.

"Catch 22" by Joseph Heller was first published in 1961.
"24 Girls in 7 Days" by Alex Brady was first published in 2005.
"21 Proms" by Daniel Ehrenhaft and David Levithan was first published in 2007.
"The Life of Pi" by Yann Martel was a best-selling novel published in 2001.

7. The cube root of 27 connected with units of angle measurement will produce which musical act?

Answer: The Three Degrees

Three is the cube root of 27. Angles are usually measured in degrees, sub-divided into arc minutes and arc seconds.
The two together give us The Three Degrees who were popular in the 1970s with hits such as "When Will I See You Again?".

8. A number only divisible by itself and one combined with a mathematical objective will give which title of a book by Joe MacAnthony?

Answer: Prime Target

A number only divisible by itself and 1 such as 2, 3, 5, 7, 11 etc is known as prime number. A number to be achieved by any mathematical means could be described as a target figure.
"Prime Target" by Joe MacAnthony was first published in 1982.
Real numbers, complex numbers and irrational numbers are all mathematical terms but the other three book titles containing those terms I'm afraid I fabricated.

9. How a hexagon might be described coupled with a shape that can be scalene, isosceles or equilateral will give the mathematically incorrect title of which 1963 movie?

Answer: The Six-Sided Triangle

A hexagon by definition has six sides, it may be a regular or an irregular shape. Triangles can be defined as being scalene, with no equal sides; isosceles, with two equal sides or equilateral, with all sides equal.
The movie short "The Six-Sided Triangle" was released in 1963 and was nominated for an Oscar.
A trapezium is a four-sided figure with at least one pair of parallel lines
(usually called a trapezoid in USA).
Polygons are plane figures with an indeterminate number of straight edges. They do not have any curved or circular lines in their outline.

10. Which of these could be either a circumference divided by pi or a song written and recorded by David Bowie?

Answer: The Width of a Circle

Pi is an irrational number usually expressed as 22/7 (or 3.142). The formula for finding the circumference of a circle is usually stated as diameter multiplied by pi. For the purpose of this question I have reversed this formula.
"The Width of a Circle" by David Bowie can be found on his 1970 album "The Man Who Sold the World".
"In Search of the Lost Chord" was a 1968 album by The Moody Blues. The reference there was to a musical chord but in geometry a chord is a straight line drawn across a circle joining two points on the circumference.
"Joan of Arc" was a song by OMD about the French heroine. An arc in geometry is the curved section of a circumference which is formed by a chord.
A tangent is a straight line which touches the circumference of a circle but which does not enter it.

Source: Author Mutchisman

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor crisw before going online.
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Terms from maths can turn up in unexpected places. Here are some from music, movies and the world of books. I'll describe a mathematical term and you choose the right title etc, have fun.

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