Des MacHale facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Des MacHale
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Desmond MacHale
28 January 1946 Castlebar, County Mayo, Ireland
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| Nationality | Irish |
| Alma mater | University College Galway (BSc, MSc) University of Keele (PhD) |
| Occupation | Mathematician, author |
| Known for | Biography of George Boole |
| Children | Dominic MacHale |
Desmond MacHale, born on January 28, 1946, is an Irish mathematician. He used to be a professor of mathematics at University College Cork. He is also a writer and speaker, known for his books on topics like George Boole, lateral thinking puzzles, and humor. He has written over 80 books, and some have been translated into many different languages!
Contents
About Des MacHale
Des MacHale grew up in Castlebar, a town in County Mayo, Ireland. He studied math at University College Galway. Later, he earned his PhD from the University of Keele in 1972. After that, he became a professor at University College Cork. His research focused on special areas of math called group and ring theory, especially Boolean rings. Boolean rings are a type of math that helps us understand how computers work with "true" and "false" information.
Expert on George Boole
In 1985, MacHale wrote George Boole: His Life and Work. This was the first full book about the life of George Boole. Boole was a very important mathematician whose ideas helped create the digital age and computers. In 2014, a new and updated version of the book was released. It was called The Life and Work of George Boole: A Prelude to the Digital Age. Many people consider MacHale the world's top expert on George Boole. In 2018, he wrote another book about Boole with Yvonne Cohen, called New Light on George Boole.
Books and Puzzles
MacHale has written many books on different subjects. He has written over 30 books filled with jokes and discussions about humor. One of his books, Comic Sections: The Book of Mathematical Jokes, Humour, Wit and Wisdom, combines his love for math and humor.
He has also written more than a dozen books of lateral thinking problems with author Paul Sloane. These are puzzles that make you think outside the box! Many of these puzzles can be found on the Futility Closet website. He has also written several books about the 1952 American film, The Quiet Man. MacHale has given talks at schools, on radio, and on television about math, humor, and puzzles.
He also designed the logo for the Irish Mathematical Society.
Promoting Healthy Living
Des MacHale has always been a strong supporter of healthy living. For many years, he was involved with the Irish Association of Non-Smokers. He even appeared on a TV show called The Late Late Show in the 1980s. He wanted to teach people about the importance of healthy choices.
Family Life
Desmond MacHale's son is the actor Dominic MacHale. Dominic is known for his role in the film The Young Offenders.
The Superbrain Competition
From 1984 to 2007, Des MacHale organized the Superbrain Competition at University College Cork. He created the questions and graded the papers himself. This competition is an annual math exam for students at University College Cork. Students have three hours to answer 10 challenging math questions.
Today, a committee of math teachers runs the competition. In 2011, a book was published with all the questions and solutions from 1984 to 2008. It was called The First Twenty-Five Years of the Superbrain.
Selected Books by Des MacHale
Here are some of the books written by Des MacHale:
- 2023 Sip & Solve Two-Minute Brainteasers (with Paul Sloane), Puzzlewright, ISBN: 9781454947974
- 2022 Comic Sections Plus, Logic Press, ISBN: 9781471761478
- 2020 The Poetry of George Boole, Logic Press, ISBN: 9781716520273
- 2020 Number and Letter Puzzles, Logic Press, ISBN: 9780244231002
- 2018 New Light on George Boole (with Yvonne Cohen), Cork University Press, ISBN: 9781782052906
- 2016 Lateral Thinking Puzzles in Mathematics, (with Paul Sloane), Puzzlewright, ISBN: 9781454911678
- 2015 Mathematical Lateral Thinking Puzzles (with Paul Sloane), Sterling Publishing, ISBN: 978-1-4549-1167-8
- 2014 The First Twenty-Five Years of the Superbrain (with Diarmuid Early), United Kingdom Mathematics Trust, ISBN: 1906001227
- 2014 The Life and Work of George Boole : a Prelude to the Digital Age, Cork University Press, ISBN: 1782050051
- 2006 Puzzleology: Tough Puzzles for Kids, Mercier Press, ISBN: 9781856355087
- 2004 Picture The quiet man : an illustrated celebration, Appletree, ISBN: 9780862819309
- 2002 Sit & Solve - Lateral Thinking Puzzles (with Paul Sloane), Puzzlewright, ISBN: 9780806957050
- 1995 Best Irish Humorous Quotations, Mercier Press, ISBN: 1-85635-138-6
- 1993 Comic Sections: The Book of Mathematical Jokes, Humour, Wit and Wisdom, Boole Press, ISBN: 1-85748-006-6
- 1989 The World's Best Maggie Thatcher Jokes, Angus & Robertson, ISBN: 0-207-16224-7
- 1987 The Book of Irish Bull: Better than All the Udders, Mercier Press, ISBN: 0-85342-822-0
- 1985 George Boole: His Life and Work, Boole Press, ISBN: 0-906783-14-3
Awards and Honours
Desmond MacHale has received special recognition for his work:
- On George Boole Day, November 2, 2015, University College Cork gave MacHale an honorary doctorate degree. This was to celebrate his important contributions to understanding George Boole.
- On October 15, 2016, Maths Week Ireland gave MacHale the first-ever "Raising Public Awareness of Maths" award. This award recognized his efforts to make math interesting and understandable for everyone.
