Math Club Day – December 14th
On this day in 1566, Tycho Brahe, a Danish astronomer and mathematician, lost the front of his nose during a sword duel versus Manderup Parsbjerg. The conflict began, as it often did with Tycho, with an argument over a math formula (the exact equation is a mystery).
16th century math geeks were expected to know their way around a sword. Many scientists during the Renaissance were noblemen and wealthy by birth, which gave them ample time to conduct experiments and conjure theories. That same wealth would pay for sword fighting lessons in their youth, which came in handy if a peer insisted on using shoddy trigonometry to prove their point. Tycho was an eccentric character in other ways. He had a pet elk who drank beer and a little jester named Jepp who had psychic powers.
After the duel, Tycho wore a golden prosthetic nose for 34 years. The wound had done nothing to deter him from continuing to squabble with fellow scientists over math equations. After his death (very possibly by murder with Mercury poisoning), his pupil, Johannes Kepler, discovered a catalog of more than 1,000 new stars that Tycho had compiled and guarded while he lived. Kepler used this data to help him become what Carl Sagan would call “the first astrophysicist and the last scientific astrologer.”
Music Du Jour: Mathematics Playlist
Films Du Jour:
- A Beautiful Mind (2001)
- Gifted (2017)
- Cosmos (2014 Series)
- Good Will Hunting (1997)
- Fermat’s Room (2007)
- The Rockstar of Science (Tooky History)
- Tycho Brahe TedEd Short
Snacks du Jour: Danish pastries, open-faced sandwiches, and any other Danish cuisine
Cocktail Du Jour – Tycho Martini
The band Tycho Brahe has their own vodka martini recipe:
- 2 oz vodka (Stoli red label)
- 1 oz white vermouth (Cinzano Bianco)
Shake ingredients well with ice and strain into martini glass. Garnish with 3 green olives and a lemon twist (expressed).
Mocktail Du Jour – Tycho Martini Mocktail
Shake ingredients well with ice and strain into martini glass. Garnish with 3 green olives and a lemon twist (expressed).
Beer Du Jour
Carlsberg or any Danish beer
Wine Du Jour
Dansk Mjod Viking Blod Mead, Anaba 2013 Denmark Vineyard labels, or any wine from Denmark
Use freshly squeezed citrus in your cocktails and mocktails when called for – It makes such a difference! Here’s a reliable and inexpensive juicer.
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Photo credit: “Duel with Swords and Daggers” by Jacques Callot is marked with CC0 1.0.
