One of the strong and consistent promoters of connections between mathematics and the arts is Sarah Hart and she recently gave the 2025 Einstein Public Lecture at Clemson University (sponsored by AMS, the American Mathematical Society) entitled "A Mathematical Journey Through Literature."
Hart is the author of Once Upon a Prime: The Wondrous Connections Between Mathematics and Literature (Flatiron Books, 2023) -- NYTimes review here; purchase info here. Her presentation, summarized here in an AMS article entitled "The Axiom of a Sonnet," explored ways that the guidelines for a sonnet -- or other poetic structure -- are similar to the guidelines for a mathematical structure such as a group or a ring. A thought-provoking quote from her presentation:
"We talk about mathematics as being the language of the universe, a vital tool for science . . ." She also noted that mathematics also provides the rhythm of music, symmetries in art, poetry rhyme schemes, and symbolism in literature. She further noted, "Literature itself has an inherent structure much like geometry." (Read more here .)
A variety of poetic stanzas are scattered throughout Hart's wide-ranging exploration of math-poetry connections -- including attention to Martin Gardner and the Oulipo. AND . . . one of my long-ago childhood favorites that she brings to mind is this counting rhyme:
As I was going to St. Ives,
I met a man with seven wives.
Each wife had seven sacks,
Each sack had seven cats,
Each cat had seven kits.
Kits, cats, sacks, and wives,
How many were going to St. Ives?
Read more and learn -- and enjoy! Once Upon a Prime by Sarah Hart.
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