Mathematicians often find very useful structure in simplifications of harder problems. When we calculate using fractions, we can often split our problems into questions about the whole part and the fractional part of the number. Modular arithmetic was born in this way, and it’s the root of lots of amazing things from arithmetic rules of thumb, to deep tools for research and cryptography. We’ll look at a few of the magical behaviors of remainder arithmetic, including a wild game of musical chairs.

Join us at the Walton Reading Room at the Fayetteville Public Library on Saturday, November 4 at 2pm.