Humble Pi: A Comedy of Maths Errors by Matt Parker – Book club

In this month’s podcast, Australian author Matt Parker looks at the unique relationship that exists between human beings and numbers, and how it inevitably leads to mistakes large and small. Using a series of examples sourced from mainly publicly available information, Parker explains how a simple misunderstanding between a human and a computer could lead to a catastrophic accident – or just a bizarre chain of events that a human being would never have otherwise made. As well as stories of how computers have got it wrong, the author also suggests ways that we can work with technology to avoid problems occurring.