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Fibonacci Everywhere
Fibonacci numbers and the golden ratio are encountered in many seemingly unrelated places in math, physics, nature, art, and possibly martial arts – or are they really? Read more
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Imaginary Partners
From imaginary martial art partners to imaginary numbers, your power of imagination can help you and science in a very real way. Read more
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A Balancing Act
Keeping your balance is essential in all martial arts – and also in solving equations, not to mention life in general. Read more
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The Geometry of Aikido
The three basic shapes of geometry have deep meaning in Shinto religion, where much of budo philosophy originates. Read more
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Why Learn Math?
Why do you need to learn algebra and beyond if you’re going to be an actor, a history teacher, a car mechanic? The short answer: you don’t. Read more
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Beauty in Math
Do you have to be a professional mathematician to appreciate beauty in math? No more than you need a black belt to enjoy Bruce Lee movies. Read more
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Complex or Complicated?
Too many people think of math as complicated – and some parts of it are. But the best parts of math are complex. Read more
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Fear Itself
Fear can prevent you from solving a math problem or doing a martial arts technique correctly. Acknowledge and confront you fear to move ahead.… Read more
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Kata and Waza
Kata and waza are martial art terms. Learn what they mean and why you need them – in math as well as in martial arts.… Read more
Budo? What is this about?
Budō (武道) is a Japanese term describing modern Japanese martial arts. It is loosely translated as the “Way of War”. However, studying budo is not just about learning the fighting techniques (the term bujitsu relates more to the techniques) – it emphasizes personal development, being in harmony with others and the universe. It is not the way of prevailing over your opponent but the way of achieving peace and balance by learning control over your mind and body.
What does math have to do with it?
Budo principles are applicable to many areas of life as ways of achieving peace and harmony in a difficult or confrontational situation. This includes studying math and science. Many students who “take” math classes consider them, unfortunately, as just another hurdle, an obstacle to be overcome on their way to a diploma. They might feel math is just a long list of facts and rules to be memorized for the test and naturally forgotten afterwards. However, this notion is as far from real math as budo is from just a list of fighting techniques. Math is an art to be studied deeply and savored, whether you are a professional mathematician or a middle school student. Read the blog posts below to learn more about some of the parallels between math and martial arts.
Who created this website and who is the site for?
Hi, I’m Julia, a web developer and math tutor in Boulder, CO. I was going to create a simple website about my tutoring business, but got carried away. Read more about my love affairs with math and martial arts. The blog posts are geared mostly towards high school students who are familiar with algebra, but anyone who has an interest in one or both of these subjects may find something for themselves here.