A Problem Squared

There's no new episode of A Problem Squared this week - sorry everyone - but we will be back with your scheduled Episode 140 on MONDAY 10TH AUGUST 2026, and our normal twokly service will be resumed from MONDAY 17TH AUGUST 2026. We're delaying one episode by one week due to general busyness and time-zone clashes but rest assured you will be getting your full quota of August episodes of A Problem Squared.Thank you for your patience!

03/08/2026 • 00:50

🎺 What would standard instruments sound like if they were played under water?🎯 What would be the average score of one randomly thrown dart?📂 And there’s some Any Other Business.AOB.zipOn THIS episode of A Problem Squared we’re joined by a special guest! The musical (and regularly quite wet) musical maestro Steve Pretty tells us all about playing music underwater - illustrated with some very bubbly examples. You can hear more from Steve on his podcast Origin Of The Pieces: https://www.originofthepieces.com/ and hear more from Steve playing shells here: https://www.shellectronica.com/ This is the episode of Steve Pretty’s Origin of the Pieces with Richard Sabin, whale expert and lead curator of mammals at the Natural History Museum, who shares sonic insights from the deep. https://www.originofthepieces.com/episodes/episode-31-earwax-echoes-and-entropyTo find out more about Aquasonic, the ethereal underwater quintet, head here: https://www.betweenmusic.dk/aquasonic Here is the full Hermeto Pascoal video in all its glory: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZbfNtDCHdM And here’s the video of a hydraulophone https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgU0OZkGhGI World Darts Federation Playing and Tournament Rules for all the specifications used in Matt’s working out: https://dartswdf.com/storage/uploads/fb05b306-c92c-4f08-b512-affb092a1b3d/2018-02-28_WDF_Playing_and_Tournament_Rules_rev20.pdf The fabulously detailed Data Genetics blog post on where to aim on a dart board to maximise point-scoring - A Geek Plays Darts: http://www.datagenetics.com/blog/january12012/index.html Here’s more about the (excellent) book that Bec shouted out: Gemma Correll - Anxietyland https://www.gemmacorrell.com/ If you’d like to see Bec’s Work In Progress shows, her upcoming gigs can be found here: https://www.bechillcomedian.com/tour-gigsMatt has extended his tour - and he’s filming the show in London in October - all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here:http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

20/07/2026 • 56:22

📝 What is the perfect arrangement of black squares in a crossword?🚣 Does weight on an aqueduct increase as a boat goes over it?🛟 And there’s some Any Other Boardness (not ‘boredness’)Head to our BlueSky/Twitter/Instagram to see some crossword arrangements and some cross-bridge arrangements.Michael Keith’s Crossword research paper: http://www.gathering4gardner.org/g4g16gift/KeithMichael-GiftExchange-CrosswordGrids-G4G16.pdf Michael Keith’s Pilish book, Not A Wake: https://www.cadaeic.net/notawake.htm If you’d like to see Bec’s Work In Progress shows, her upcoming gigs can be found here: https://www.bechillcomedian.com/tour-gigsMatt is bringing An Evening of Unnecessary Detail to New York! The Bell House, Brooklyn on Sunday 12th July. Tickets can be found here:https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/300064B84CCCF567And Matt has extended his tour - and he’s filming the show in London in October - all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here:http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

06/07/2026 • 59:35

👂Why do some people hate the sound of whispering?💡 How much does an electron cost?😎 And there’s some Any Other BozonessOn THIS episode of A Problem Squared - which comes with our special No Whisper Guarantee - we’re joined by a special guest! The clinical psychologist Dr Jane Gregory tells us all about Misophonia. You can find out about her fantastic (and very helpful) book Sounds Like Misophonia, and you can sign up to her research mailing list here: https://soundslikemisophonia.com/ And here is Ava’s EPIC Spreadsheet - A Problem Squared Episode Catalogue: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1nXmEH9BrCr6hEBBhHkfuciPEKimDgZjrwhi2oeyErog/edit?usp=sharingIf you’d like to see Bec’s Work In Progress shows, her upcoming gigs can be found here: https://www.bechillcomedian.com/tour-gigsMatt is bringing An Evening of Unnecessary Detail to New York! The Bell House, Brooklyn on Sunday 12th July. Tickets can be found here:https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/300064B84CCCF567And Matt has extended his tour - and he’s filming the show in London in October - all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here: http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

22/06/2026 • 71:47

#️⃣ What’s the best way to explain the number e to an 8-year-old?💗 How early in a relationship should you reveal that you’re a bit weird?🤧 And there’s some any other blow-your-nose-nessHead to our socials to see The Beautiful Old Calculator and The World’s Tallest Comedian.Matt is bringing An Evening of Unnecessary Detail to New York! The Bell House, Brooklyn on Sunday 12th July. Tickets can be found here: https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/300064B84CCCF567Matt has extended his tour - and he’s filming the show in London in October - all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here: http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

08/06/2026 • 61:14

🍝 Why do we put salt in pasta water?👾 Can you put bespoke characters in to a QR Code?🌼And Spring Has Sprung (in the UK) so there’s some Any Other BloomsnessHead to our socials to see some frankly-very-silly-but-fully-operational QR Codes.Boiling and Freezing Points of Pure and Salty Water https://van.physics.illinois.edu/ask/listing/1457Matt has extended his tour - and filming the show in London in October - all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here: http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

25/05/2026 • 51:35

🤘To mark the May Birthday of Dwayne 'The' 'Tooth Fairy' 'Rock' Johnson, Episode 134 is a Tooth and Rock Special!🪨 Matt answers your rock-based queries and shares a Salt of the Perth update🦷 Bec and Dentist Sophie answer your tooth-based queries and shares an Adult Tooth Fairy updateHead to our socials to look at some incredibly detailed Salt of the Perth imagery.And relatedly…Lead Explained:https://www.scottishwater.co.uk/-/media/ScottishWater/Document-Hub/Factsheets-and-Leaflets/Factsheets/100620SWFactSheet72020v5web.pdfThallium in Salt Substitutes: A Possible Health Hazard:https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0013935177900433And here’s Matt’s Moving Mountains sources:https://ourworldindata.org/energy-production-consumptionhttps://www.eoas.ubc.ca/courses/eosc350/content/foundations/properties/density.htmMatt has extended his tour - and filming the show in London in October - all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here:http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

11/05/2026 • 81:23

🥣 What percentage of a box of Weet-Bix is wheat again?🥚 What shape is an egg? 💬 What’s the most efficient way to write your name on a Pop-it Fidget Toy?👎 And would you like some AOB? We won’t take no for an answerHead to our socials to see all the Weet-Bix Pix, lots of names efficiently spelt out on a Pop-It Fidget Toy, lots of Girl Scout cookies, and a sheep being sheared by a robot…The Sheep’s Back Museum, Naracoortehttps://thesheepsbackmuseum.org.au/Creation: Between Art and Mathematics Exhibition in Paris: https://www.ihp.fr/en/news-science-and-society/creation-between-art-and-mathematicsLaura Taalman’s Granny Life Crochet:https://www.grannylifecrochet.com/ Get your own Egg-Shaped Spinning Top:https://mathsgear.co.uk/products/phitop Eve’s beautiful cross-stitch:https://www.instagram.com/p/DWY-_qzivz6/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3DMatt has extended his tour - and filming the show in London in October - all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here:http://standupmaths.com/shows And there is a Kickstarter to fund production of the filmed show, which you can get involved with here:https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/standupmaths/getting-triggy-with-itJoin us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

27/04/2026 • 61:57

🔠 Are there any English words containing four letters in alphabetical order?🥣 What percentage of a box of weet-bix is wheat?🎪 And there is some any other bah-bah-bahbahbahbah-buh-buh-businessHead to our socials to see Bec’s post-show photos and videos from her Adelaide run including Morgan and Morgan's mum’s tooth, Scott and the 6-7 shirt and Karn and his incredible APS Flipchart.  You’ll also find Matt’s list of all the 4-letters-alphabetised words and one of the many bridges.Matt has extended his tour - and filming the show in London in October - all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here:http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

13/04/2026 • 52:17

👋 When microwaving food, should you place it in the centre, or off to the side?📐 Does the longest diagonal in a 1m sided cube in 4D square equal root 4? 🐨 And there’s some Bonus Other Business.Head to our socials to see Bec’s Photographic Exhibition of Australian Wildlife, Cubie the Moon Rover, Bec’s Poppadom Experiment,  Matt’s Pythagorean Whiteboard Action, and the first glimpse of the most confusing game of Connect 4 ever to be played. A surprisingly visual audio podcast… so it’s all happening over on BlueSky / Twitter / InstagramJoin us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

30/03/2026 • 62:51

🌈 Is it true that "No Two Packs Of Skittles Are The Same?”🤧 Why a cold called cold?🤫 And there’s some ASMROBHead to our socials to see Matt’s Mission Patches, Matt’s Calculator, and the Skittles Combinatorics!The Liberation Laser Software by Seb Lee-Delislehttps://liberationlaser.com/ The Skittle Maths by Clare Wallacehttps://www.clarewallace.co.uk/skittlesAnd some Norfolk Punch, if you’re so inclinedhttps://www.norfolkpunch.com/ If you’d like to see Matt on tour, all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here:http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

16/03/2026 • 53:26

🛫 How many people are flying in the air at any given moment?⚖️ What weighs a pound and costs a pound?🏈 And there’s some Any Other (Foot)BallnessHead to our socials to see Bec’s glasses 🤓Pat Patriot 🇺🇲and our Pound for Pound items!Here is a link to the book Flying With Confidence (which helped Producer Laura with her fear of flying and also helped her answer the problem correctly!)https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/415543/flying-with-confidence-by-patricia-furness-smith-and-captain-steve-allright/9780091947859They Did The Math, They Did The Monster Math on Reddithttps://www.reddit.com/r/theydidthemath/ https://www.reddit.com/r/theydidthemonstermath/Flight Radar 24: https://www.flightradar24.com/If you’d like to see Bec at the Adelaide Fringe, you can get tickets here: https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/bec-hill-creates-the-perfect-show-work-in-progress-af2026 And if you’d like to see Matt on tour, all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here: http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard! If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

02/03/2026 • 54:25

❓ Have you sent in a question for our AMA episode?❔ Have Matt and Bec answered it in this AMA episode?⁉️ Here are your AMA questions, answered!We’ll be back solving your problems as normal in Episode 129!If you’d like to see Bec at the Adelaide Fringe in March, you can get tickets here: https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/bec-hill-creates-the-perfect-show-work-in-progress-af2026 And if you’d like to see Matt on tour, all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here: http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

16/02/2026 • 51:29

🫘 Can we come up with some fun names for common pantry items?🔢 What's the smallest number that has never been written down in human history?🧂 And there’s a sprinkling of Any Other Business.Numberphile’s take on a number NOBODY has thought of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdZrxkix9MkEvery Time "67" Has Been Said on Numberphile, if you dare: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlJMJfPPnVAGoogolplex Written Out: http://www.googolplexwrittenout.com/If you’d like to see Bec at the Adelaide Fringe in March, you can get tickets here: https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/bec-hill-creates-the-perfect-show-work-in-progress-af2026 And if you’d like to see Matt on tour, all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here: http://standupmaths.com/shows Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard! If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

02/02/2026 • 55:55

🧊 Why doesn’t the coldest day fall on the shortest day?🥂 If you don’t drink, what can you use fancy drinking glasses for?🏊 And we take the plunge into some Any Other Brrrrrrrness.If you’d like to read about defibrillator testing using a turkey, here’s the paper sent in by Hans: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12879378/If you’d like to see Matt and Bec - alongside Steve Mould and Helen Arney and more - at An Evening Of Unnecessary Detail in London on Monday 26th January, you can get tickets here:https://www.universe.com/events/an-evening-of-unnecessary-detail-tickets-TFK426?ref=ticketmasterIf you’d like to see Bec at the Adelaide Fringe in March, you can get tickets here: https://adelaidefringe.com.au/fringetix/bec-hill-creates-the-perfect-show-work-in-progress-af2026 And if you’d like to see Matt on tour, all the dates, venues and tickets can be found here: http://standupmaths.com/shows If you’d like to ask Matt and Bec anything for our special 2^7 episode in February go to the Problem Posing Page at aproblemsquared.com - select ‘Problem’ and start your message with AMA! Please get your AMA questions in by Friday 23rd January 2026!Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

19/01/2026 • 59:09

💨 How many people are needed to guarantee that there is always someone farting somewhere?🔠 If you match each letter with the corresponding number in the alphabet and add them together, which words add up to 100.🏁 And there is some unfinished business.Head to our socials for pictures of Matt’s Homemade Sea Salt and Bec’s Brilliant Branding, an assortment of Massive Hourglasses, the beautiful sketch of Bec, and a smiley jerk on the beach in the sunshine 🌅Here is the full list of words that add up to 100 (and do be warned that it contains some words that may not be suitable for young eyes)https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/r0u9hnx0c63ma3ovky3gp/100_letter_sum_shuffled.txt?rlkey=n62ik3j22tnwujod53wqrf4cc&e=1&dl=0 If you have a suggestion of dates for us to do a Rock Special and a Tooth Special,, go to the Problem Posing Page at aproblemsquared.com and select ‘Solution’ and do mention ‘International Teeth Day’See Matt on tour in 2026!http://standupmaths.com/shows Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter:https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt: https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

05/01/2026 • 60:30

👼 What is the Angle of Death?🎼 What is the best filing system for sheet music?🎄And there’ll be some A-ho-ho-ho-BIf you have any maths-studio-based-names for the Newdio, go to the Problem Posing Page at aproblemsquared.com and select ‘Solution’ and be as funny and punny as possible!If you’d like to ask Matt and Bec anything for our special 2^7 episode in February go to the Problem Posing Page at aproblemsquared.com - select ‘Problem’ and start your message with AMA!See Matt on tour in 2026! http://standupmaths.com/shows Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt: https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard - and a special APS Christmas Card!If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

22/12/2025 • 55:02

🍟 Why does the nutritional value of frozen chips change depending on whether they are cooked in an air fryer or in an oven?⛰️ How large a mountain could we make from 2.2 meters of dredged sea bed (combatting sea level rise in the process)?🃏And there’ll be some AOB, as easy as 123.Head to our socials for pics of LIVE MATHS, chip nutritional values, post-Totoro Bec, ESA Souvenirs.If you’d like to ask Matt and Bec anything for our special 2^7 episode in February go to the Problem Posing Page at aproblemsquared.com - select ‘Problem’ and start your message with AMA!See Matt on tour in 2026! http://standupmaths.com/shows Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter:https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt: https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard. If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

08/12/2025 • 56:02

🔥 How many quickfire problems is it possible to solve in a single episode of A Problem Squared? 🧑‍💼 Why is Matt dressed like a maths teacher?🃏And we will deal out some Any Other BusinessIf you’d like to ask Matt and Bec anything for our special 2^7 episode go to the Problem Posing Page at aproblemsquared.com - select ‘Problem’ and start your message with AMA!A chicken slapping machine - click to view at your own riskhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68L6JA_CnmUHere’s where you’ll find the video of Matt in 374 different outfits (and the 375th outfit is on our socials)https://www.youtube.com/@standupmaths/videos From AOB here’s Chris’ working…https://chrisboettner.github.io/blog/posts/2025-10-28-card_game_blog.html…and here’s Dede’s working…https://github.com/dedebenui/cardgame See Matt on tour!http://standupmaths.com/shows Specifically, see Matt in London on Monday 1st December!https://lwtheatres.co.uk/whats-on/matt-parker/ Or if you would like to see Bec in Brighton on Monday 1st December, tickets are here:https://www.komedia.co.uk/shows/john-luke-roberts-geoffrey-chaucers-mediaeval-christmas-festivitye/Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter:https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt: https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard. If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

24/11/2025 • 51:20

🗓️ Does bi-weekly mean every two weeks or twice a week?🧊 What is the name of the line between two opposing corners of a cube?🕑 And daylight will be saved with some Any Other Brightness.For more on Rupert and Nopert Shapes:Euler Brick: https://mathworld.wolfram.com/EulerBrick.htmlTom7 - Rupert's Snub Cube and other Math Holes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QH4MviUE0_sTom7’s Print files for Platonic, Archimedean and Catalan Solids: https://makerworld.com/en/models/1617011-platonic-archimedean-and-catalan-solids#profileId-1706419Follow Dr Ben Whittle, The Excellent Etymologist, on Instagram! @schnebwhittleJoey Parrish and his Sega Slides https://github.com/joeyparrish/sega-slidesSee Matt on tour! http://standupmaths.com/shows Specifically, see Matt in London on Monday 1st December! https://lwtheatres.co.uk/whats-on/matt-parker/ Or if you would like to see Bec in Brighton on Monday 1st December, tickets are here: https://www.komedia.co.uk/shows/john-luke-roberts-geoffrey-chaucers-mediaeval-christmas-festivitye/Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt: https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6Join us on Patreon for early releases and our monthly bonus podcast I’m A Wizard. If you’re already on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post! If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

10/11/2025 • 51:42

🃏 What are the odds of actually winning Morgan’s very specific, very fun card game?🤯 Are people more gullible now? And what are the best ways to persuade someone they are wrong?👻 And, appropriate to the season, there will be some Any Other BoooooooooooooosnessIf you have some ingenious suggestions of what Matt can do in lunar gravity, head to www.aproblemsquared.com and submit your idea as a ‘Solution’Head to our socials to see Matt’s graph plot and stats on the odds of winning the card game, as well as Bec’s beautifully laid out existence proof of the 52 Card Game!Some further reading on The Gullibility Problem:Why are people so gullible? https://www.bbc.co.uk/future/article/20160323-why-are-people-so-incredibly-gullibleResearch paper on political extremism: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797612464058Nobel Disease: https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Nobel_diseaseAnd some tetrahedron-shaped packaging - or TetraPaks, if you will:TetraPak: https://www.tetrapak.com/solutions/packaging/packages SunnyBoys: https://australianfoodtimeline.com.au/2016-goodbye-sunnyboy/ See Matt on tour! http://standupmaths.com/shows And if you want to see Matt in London on Monday 1st December, tickets are here: https://lwtheatres.co.uk/whats-on/matt-parker/Or if you want to see Bec in Brighton on Monday 1st December, tickets are here: https://www.komedia.co.uk/shows/john-luke-roberts-geoffrey-chaucers-mediaeval-christmas-festivitye/Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter:https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt: https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6If you’re on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

27/10/2025 • 68:04

🍌 Is there a more consistent system of measuring things (and is it ‘Banana For Scale’)?🌋 Why and how do hexagons occur in nature?🔔 And there will be a whole Bec of Any Other BecnessHead to our socials to see Matt and Bec playing The Metre Game, lots of bananas for scale, and Matt sporting some very fetching headwear.Some further reading on the origins of ‘Banana For Scale’:https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/banana-for-scale Some further reading on hexagons in basalt:European Geoscience Union article:https://blogs.egu.eu/divisions/ts/2023/05/26/features-from-the-field-columnar-basalts-and-why-hexagons-are-natures-favourite-shape/Physical Review Letters: https://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.115.154301See Matt on tour!http://standupmaths.com/shows Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter:https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt:https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6If you’re on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

13/10/2025 • 54:04

🎲 What are the odds of rolling snake eyes? (And does it make for good TV?)🤹How long does it take to learn to juggle with seven balls?🛌 And there’s some Any Other Bed’n’BoardnessHead to our socials to see Matt and Bec in action, rolling dice and juggling balls!To find out more about our juggling expert Darryl J Carrington, head to his insta: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DPTqhTwDEeb/?igsh=MXdyMDJvNGhma2ZtNg==And here’s Colin Wright’s video about Sideswap: “Juggling by Numbers - Numberphile” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dwgusHjA0Y Here are Jasper’s links (in Dutch and in English) about the Belgian family and their children’s themed nameshttps://vrtnws.be/p.NvjDVZw5w  (Dutch)  https://www.reddit.com/r/tragedeigh/comments/17h7ka6/gwenny_32_is_pregnant_of_a_twelfth_child_a/ (English)  And here are the visualised shuffles of the card question in Episode 113Tom - https://tehtommeh.github.io/riffle-me-this/Bernhard - https://www.bernhard-werner.de/assets/cindy/applets/card_weave.htmlShaun - https://svermaak.github.io/VisualiseCardShuffle/ See Matt on tour!http://standupmaths.com/shows  Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter:https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths  And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt: https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6 If you’re on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps.  Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

29/09/2025 • 56:49

Unfortunately, Matt has been ill and lost his voice so we were unable to record the episode that should be coming out this week.To make up for it, we are releasing an episode of the usually-Patreon-only I Am A Wizard for you to listen to. It's the one from April this year and features a magical offer from our listener who is, apparently, a wizard - USBinPRL. But we begin with a message from Bec, who can still speak.If you want more wizarding silliness then join our Patreon at patreon.com/aproblemsquared - you'll get access to all the past episodes of I Am A Wizard, a new wizard episode every month, and early access to all episodes of A Problem Squared!Normal Service will be resumed in Two Weeks!

15/09/2025 • 19:31

👁️ How do you remember things if you can’t visualisethem in your mind’s eye?🍭 What’s the best shape for a freeze pop?🪣 And there’s some Any Other Beachness  Head to our socials to see freeze pop pics, Matt(not that one)’s tooth and the AOB gifts!  Here’s a link to the University of Exeter’s The Eye’s Mind project: https://blogs.exeter.ac.uk/eyesmind/   And here’s a selection of freeze pops and anti-prisms…https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/del-monte-quality-pineapple-freeze-pop-8-x-62mlhttps://www.vimto.co.uk/vimto-range/product/vimto-pyramids/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Square_antiprismhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disphenoid  See Matt on tour! http://standupmaths.com/shows/  Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter:https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths  And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt: https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6 If you’re on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps.  Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

01/09/2025 • 53:37

￡ What’s the optimum strategy to win The Price Is Right?🦷 Why have Tim’s baby teeth fallen apart?🛠️ And there’s some Any Other Billy Bookcase BusinessHead to our socials to play along with The Price Is Right and to see a video of Ikea Wars!Here are the GIANT LETTERS sent in by Phillip:https://maps.app.goo.gl/yZaofcfNPaF5HyX17https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillside_lettersIf you’re in Edinburgh for the Fringe, get tickets to see Bec here:https://tickets.gildedballoon.co.uk/event/14:5884/And get tickets see to Matt here:https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/getting-triggy-it-matt-parker-does-mathsHere’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter:https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt:https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6If you’re on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

18/08/2025 • 51:13

🍆 What’s the “female equivalent” of phallic? What’s the font size of the Hollywood sign?🦈 And we’re always open for AOBusinessThanks to our excellent experts appearing in voicenote form - Dr Ben Whittle, Chella Quint OBE, and Linus Boman.Daan’s paper in the American Journal of Archaeology which cites this very podcast: doi.org/10.1086/735650 The world’s largest enlarged letter: https://www.pleasedonotbend.co.uk/categories/world-recordIf you’re heading to the Edinburgh Fringe, you can get tickets to see Bec here: https://tickets.gildedballoon.co.uk/event/14:5884/And you can get tickets see to Matt here: https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/getting-triggy-it-matt-parker-does-mathsHere’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths And here’s how to volunteer for Calculate Pi By Hand with Matt: https://forms.gle/w44THpNJ3jWUPqHy6If you’re on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky,Twitter,Instagram, and on Discord.

04/08/2025 • 55:24

🃏 What’s the deal with cards?🫕 What is the perfect ratio of chips to dips?🍔 And there’s some Any Other B-B-Q-B-nessHead to our socials to see the card shuffle and patterns, Bec’s starstruck selfie, and our chips ‘n’ dips experiment!For all your homemade snacking needs:https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/tortillashttps://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/homemade-tortilla-chips-guacamole-charred-tomato-salsaIt’s 5 o’chop Somewhere! (Really excellent work from Eve)https://www.instagram.com/p/DKZSlCGIdCZ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== And some info about Aphantasia as mentioned by Keith…https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AphantasiaAnd synaesthesia…https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SynesthesiaIf you’re heading to the Edinburgh Fringe, you can get tickets to see Bec here:https://tickets.gildedballoon.co.uk/event/14:5884/And you can get tickets see to Matt here:https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/getting-triggy-it-matt-parker-does-mathsHere’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarterhttps://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths If you’re on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

21/07/2025 • 55:44

🚂 If you want a career change, how do you decide what to retrain as?👶 What would be a good set of names for twins or triplets?🦷 And there’s some Any Other BusiHere’s some baby naming code from Colin Beveridge: https://github.com/icecolbeveridge/zoe_namesIf you’re heading to the Edinburgh Fringe, you can get tickets to see Bec here: https://tickets.gildedballoon.co.uk/event/14:5884/And you can get tickets see to Matt here: https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/getting-triggy-it-matt-parker-does-mathsIf you are in Edinburgh and fancy seeing Matt and Bec battle it out in Ikea Wars on Sunday 10th August, tickets are here: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/ikea-warsHere’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths If you are on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky,Twitter,Instagram, and on Discord.

07/07/2025 • 55:28

🌞 How far away from the Sun do we have to travel before we can look at it without damaging our eyes?📆 Is there an off by one error with anniversaries?🍝 And AOB has been slow cooked and packed up in tupperware for safe storageThe starting point for Matt’s theory:https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-maximum-light-intensity-that-a-human-eye-can-withstand-without-being-damaged Astroid Mattparker: https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/sbdb_lookup.html#/?sstr=mattparker Distance to Voyager 1: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/voyager/where-are-voyager-1-and-voyager-2-now/ Here’s how to get involved with Matt’s Moon Pi Kickstarterhttps://www.kickstarter.com/profile/standupmaths If you’re heading to the Edinburgh Fringe, you can get tickets to see Bec here:https://tickets.gildedballoon.co.uk/event/14:5884/And you can get tickets to see Matt here:https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/getting-triggy-it-matt-parker-does-mathsIf you’re on Patreon and have a creative Wizard offer to give Bec and Matt, please comment on our pinned post!  If you want to (we’re not forcing anyone) please do leave us a review, share the podcast with a friend, or give us a rating! Please do that. It really helps. Finally, if you want even more from A Problem Squared you can connect with us and other listeners on BlueSky, Twitter, Instagram, and on Discord.

23/06/2025 • 46:36