Anna's Blog

Numbers appear all the time in our lives. I'll use this blog to illustrate how they appear in my daily life and in the wider world.
#650: The Chester By-Election and Apocalyptic Numbers

#650: The Chester By-Election and Apocalyptic Numbers

In Chester, where I live in Northwest England, we are preparing for a by-election on the 1st December where we will elect a new Member of Parliament (MP). Our previous MP resigned and it has been a rush to nominate candidates and canvass for all parties. The MP for...

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#19: The Pandemic, Prime Numbers and Taxicab Numbers

#19: The Pandemic, Prime Numbers and Taxicab Numbers

By September 2022 most people I knew had had COVID-19. In our house we had somehow managed to avoid it. However, come the beginning of October, we had both tested positive and were very ill. Now we have both tested negative and feel quite a bit better but still have...

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The Number 55: Fibonacci Numbers & the Role of the Sunflower

The Number 55: Fibonacci Numbers & the Role of the Sunflower

Each post that I have written has been inspired by a number that has occurred naturally during my everyday life. My husband, Howard, and I were cycling out for lunch on what may well be the last sunny day of the year in the UK. Our table at our chosen pub just...

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8,730: A Shortage of Doctors and Odious Numbers

8,730: A Shortage of Doctors and Odious Numbers

We don’t have enough doctors in the UK: we’re about 12,000 short of where we (apparently) should be. In 2019, 8,730 students graduated with a medical degree in the UK. There is a cap on the number as the training is subsidised by the government and also the students...

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