After learning that the new Chanel 4 television show ‘Hunted’ [See here…] included mathematics on 17/9/15, I decided that I would investigate this further. To paraphrase, the show simulates what would happen if an individual had to go on the run from the authorities. The aim was for the 14 volunteers to go on the run and remain undetected for 28 days. While they were doing this, 30 experts would be trying to track them down as they would with a real criminal.
One pair, Sandra and Elizabeth were hunted down very quickly despite thinking they were doing well. They were hiding by constantly getting on and off busses around the South East of England, but were spotted through their use of an ATM. CCTV was able to show which busses they had been on, and from this it was shown that they were following a pattern in their travel plans. The hunters used this pattern to forecast the possible routes they would take and then found them. One of the hunters explained: “We all establish patterns just to get through the day, that’s how we work, and so it’s really hard for people to be random”. By this example we can see that she is right, we seem to have an almost innate affiliation to patterns built into us.
This got me thinking about if anyone wanted to hunt me. What would they be able to tell about me from my own routines? I think if someone observed me for just a few weeks they could learn a lot about my routines and would be able to pinpoint an exact time to catch me. Some examples include: I always leave to attend university exactly 30 minutes before the input is due to begin; I always take the same route there and my route back is always the same; I do not miss university regularly; I speak to my mum at the same time every morning; my boyfriend stays over the same nights every week; and I go back home to Edinburgh every 3 weeks. That list could easily be even longer, but it definitely shows that my daily life has fallen into a pattern, it means that I would be very easy to find if anyone wanted to – all they would really need to do so is a copy of my university timetable.
If I am honest, I was not very sure that this show included mathematics, and it did take me a long time to see any mathematics at all, but now I can see it, it is very interesting to think about. I think that it is very easy to follow patterns, it is human instinct, but I can see that the role of these experts to find the real criminals and it clearly requires a specific type of thinking. I think that this type of thinking is where mathematics comes into it, to find the criminals we would have to be able to look at the normal behaviours and routines of the individual and be able to use them to think as the criminal is and attempt to predict the moves that they will make, and their reasoning behind making them.
From a teacher’s point of view this is interesting to know as it can allow us to try to foresee events and either change or encourage them. We can try to predict what pupils will and will not understand, or perhaps we can predict an issue between pupils in the future and attempt to ease any tensions before that happens. It is also a possibility that we can identify this type of mathematical thinking and encourage children to use it to their advantage.
