One of my heroes: Vi Hart. Photo: Wikipedia (CC BY 2.0)

One of my heroes: Vi Hart. Photo: Wikipedia (CC BY 2.0)

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, if you’re in the geek world, you know who Vi Hart is. But just in case you aren’t already aware, she’s a Geek Math Hero, to me and to the rest of my family. Her videos on hexaflexagons and twelve tone music, among others, have enthralled us and inspired us to dig further into the awesome world of math.

I’ve always loved math, but watching her play around with it like she does gives a new perspective on the topic.

Vi Hart is an extremely smart and talented gal whose YouTube channel regularly delights us geeks with new aspects of the math universe. Wikipedia lists her occupation as a Recreational Mathemusician. Inspired from a young age while attending a computational geometry conference with her dad, being surrounded by such passion for a subject made an impression on her. I know it makes a huge difference for me to learn about something from someone who is passionate about the subject. Someone just going through the motions isn’t nearly as good of a teacher.

Vi Hart’s videos likely won’t fulfill any Common Core requirements, but they will inspire you to learn more about math, and to play around with math and music. Learning how to think and how to remain curious about the world are vital in one’s education.

Vi Hart is one of my heroes. She’s a woman who has followed her interests and has not compromised them to make a buck. She’s found a way to turn her interests into something that teaches others. She’s also fortunate to live today, when smart women are (usually) valued for their contributions on their own merit, and where she can easily and widely spread her particular flavor of geek.