Movies with Mathematics Activities
A rare and fascinating look inside the world's largest computer manufacturer, Dell Inc., where thousands of computers are custom-built and shipped around the world every day. From the call center to the assembly line, one thing is certain: The whole operation relies on math skills every step of the way.
Running time 5:00 minutes.
"Seeing your drawing come to life and become a real building is absolutely fantastic." When Penn Station needed a new front entrance, they called upon architect Frances Halsband, and she called upon her knowledge of geometry.
Running time 3:06 minutes.
A set is a created place where the action of a film or TV show happens. Actors, animals and objects are placed on a set for filming. Creating a set where everything fits just right calls for an understanding of "area".
Running time 2:36 minutes.
Whether he's making mouth-watering chocolate croissants or perfectly flaky apricot danishes, this baker has to make sure that he has just the right amount of each ingredient and that requires math.
Running time 5:35 minutes.
For some people, bats are one of the scariest groups of creatures out there. Not for Bert Grantges. He knows that without bats we'd be overrun by bugs, and that would be scarier. He uses basic math like estimation, percents and ratios to track bat populations.
Running time 1:43 minutes.
When GT Bicycle Designer Forest Yelverton gets to work designing the latest bike for kids or the US Olympic Cycling Team, his ability to think with the math and geometry he learned in school makes all the difference. Take a look.
Running time 2:32 minutes.
On location at Easton Sports for an inside look at what it takes to build and test durable, high-performance bike wheels.
Running time 5:00 minutes.
There are more than 350 different commodities grown in California. In a state that provides approximately 15 percent of U.S. agricultural products, statistics are an important tool for agricultural economists to keep up with supply and demand.
Running time 4:30 minutes.
Want to show your students specific real world examples of radius, area and algebra? Wind Analyst Emily Hardy does just that... in under two minutes!
Running time 1:45 minutes.
If you asked Jessica Shulman about her job as a graphic designer, she’d probably tell you she has the most fun job out there. It is a creative field that requires an understanding of ratios, percents and geometry.
Running time 3:53 minutes.
A mountain biker and an engineer explain why the collection and analysis of data is so critical to creating strong bicycle handlebars.
Running time 1:50 minutes.
Rumor has it that if you lined Barbie Dolls up head to toe, they would circle the globe eight times. This movie takes students behind-the-scenes to meet a Barbie designer who uses everything from measurement to fractions to patterns to design new dolls.
Running time 3:28 minutes.
It's pretty common for skateboards to break. So Tim Piumarta makes skateboards that "last a ridiculously long time." He has to understand everything from force and kinetic energy to measurement and algebra in order to make extremely strong, long-lasting boards.
Running time 5:50 minutes.
As a professional toy car designer for Mattel's Hot Wheels, Larry Wood uses basic math concepts such as fractions, measurement and scale to create accurate replicas of the coolest cars on the road.
Running time 2:42 minutes.
Steve Contursi owns the first gold coin minted in the US. It's worth 6 million dollars. But numismatists like Steve don’t just collect coins—they also collect their stories. From the meaning behind the term "two-bits" to Martha Washington's silverware, the stories of our money are rich in history and math!
Running time 5:55 minutes.
You buy a dozen roses - he buys 3 million! Plus 1,250 sunflowers, 4,000 irises, and 5,000 calla lilies. In fact, he buys more than 100 million flowers a year. Introduce your students to someone who works with really big numbers.
Running time 5:05 minutes.
Lines, curves, polygons and planes--gemstones and jewelry are rich in geometry. A jewelry appraiser, a jewelry historian and a Brazilian gem cutter give your students an inside look at the many facets of this dazzling subject.
Running time 6:00 minutes.
"What? Growing bugs is a real job? And it requires math?!" Organic farmers depend on Jan Dietrick to supply them with good bugs that attack bad bugs. She depends on her knowledge of numbers to get the job done.
Running time 1:19 minutes.
Imagine 100 people coming to dinner. For Chef Dennis Burrage that means creating special dishes with new and different recipes that will give his customers a unique dining experience. How does he do it? For one thing, he combines his passion for great food with his background and love of architecture.
Running time 2:15 minutes.
From having the right ingredients on hand for all 300 flavors to keeping the frozen treats at a frosty -30 degrees, the technicians at Ciao Bella Gelato Company have ice cream making down to a science.
Running time 5:05 minutes.
She designed a sailboat and a ferris wheel. He designed a motorcycle and a roller coaster. They're a team and they have jobs that most kids (and a lot of adults) would envy: They design toys and get paid for it.
Running time 4:45 minutes.
Chuck Hoberman’s inventions are more than just technological marvels; they’re works of art. See how basic principles of geometry help him create extraordinarily strong, expandable structures.
Running time 2:29 minutes.
Meet two landscape architects who tell the story of competing against top firms in the world to win the opportunity to design a one-of-a kind botanical garden for the city of Chicago: the Lurie Garden at Millennium Park.
Running time 6:45 minutes.
How do you design a park that is ideal for both people and animals? The landscape architects and engineers at the US Forest Service work with problems like these to create the best parks around the country, and they solve them using math.
Running time 4:28 minutes.
From planting the seeds to harvesting, and everything in between, Bryce Lundberg takes students through the process of growing one of our most important staples: rice. To ensure he grows a successful crop, Bryce depends on his algebra skills to get the job done.
Running time 3:50 minutes.
Today’s homework: Hand-feed tigers, divvy up raw meat for hyenas and teach the sea lion to play hide and seek. Show your students why math, especially measurement, is an essential tool when it comes to caring for animals.
Running time 4:58 minutes.
For Donna Vandenburg, knowing what your customers want in a motorcycle means getting down and dirty and, sometimes, hitting the open road. If you sell motorcycles for a living, you should test them out in all terrains.
Running time 2:23 minutes.
Movie poster design starts with up to 60 preliminary sketches and requires exact calculations to produce correct proportions and perfect colors. A lot more goes into a movie poster than you would think at first glance!
Running time 1:06 minutes.
Whether he’s trying to make the chase scenes exciting or the scary scenes scary, Oscar-nominated film composer James Newton Howard explains that he relies on patterns to write the musical scores for movies.
Running time 3:20 minutes.
Have you ever seen 3.6 million people in one day? If you worked behind the scenes of the New York Subway, you would. Watch this movie to see how one of world’s busiest subway systems around New York City every day.
Running time 2:18 minutes.
There’s more to running a restaurant than great food. The restaurant business is a perfect training ground for solving problems.
Running time 1:04 minutes.
NASA Aerospace and Industrial Engineer Robert Howard takes viewers inside the Habitability Design Center at Johnson Space Center for a look at the Orion space capsule--and the math, and engineering skills his fascinating career demands.
Running time 6:20 minutes.
If you were responsible for feeding 20,000 hungry baseball fans, how would you make sure you didn’t run out of food? See how the Food Services Director at Yankee Stadium makes it happen.
Running time 1:51 minutes.
There's more to money than money: chemists, inks, artists, engravers, presses, counterfeiting and Secret Service Agents. Watch the movie to see the math and science behind making money.
Running time 2:45 minutes.
When it comes to designing robots for space, making sure that they can complete their missions is the name of the game for NASA’s robotics engineers. That requires math, especially probability.
Running time 5:35 minutes.
Is there life on planets in other star systems? It's a very old question. But finding the answer may get simpler with a new invention by astrophysicist, professor and inventor Webster Cash.
Running time 5:55 minutes.
There are over 2.1 million farms in the U.S., totaling over 900 million acres. And those millions of harvests aren’t only producing food; they’re also producing data--a lot of data! That’s where statisticians like Sarah Hoffman and Jackie Brown of the USDA come in.
Running time 5:00 minutes.
Suppose you want to search for the largest sunken gold treasure in U.S. History. Who would you want on your team? Tom Thompson wanted a mathematician who specialized in probability.
Running time 5:40 minutes.
New York City uses 1.5 billion gallons of water every day. How do you get that much water to a city of more than 8 million people? Meet Bernie Daley, a hydro engineer, who knows how to solve this problem.
Running time 3:19 minutes.
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