Martin B. Reed

Author's website: https://mbreed.co.uk

Since graduating with a 2:1 in Mathematics from the University of East Anglia in 1971 (see photo): have taught at universities both overseas (Germany, Lesotho, Swaziland, Papua New Guinea) and in Britain (Oxford, Brunel, Bath). I completed a PhD in numerical analysis at Bath in 1980. My research interests are in numerical analysis, specifically finite element methods, quasi-Newton methods, and most recently in genetic and evolutionary computation. You can read more about my mathematics research and publications on my website. I retired from the University of Bath in 2018.

I have always been passionate about communicating mathematics to students in interesting, amusing ways which show them that maths is not as difficult or scary as they might imagine. That it can even be fun. My communication skills were helped by having to explain analysis in German in Hamburg, and during a contract as a Teacher of English as a Foreign Language in Bournemouth.

I published my textbook 'Core Maths for the Biosciences' with Oxford University Press in 2011, with students commenting "Easy to understand, interactive and dictated in a way that seemed as though you were almost having a conversation with the author." I am now working on a follow-up textbook for OUP.

Since retiring I have been able to pursue a long-held dream of writing novels which also incorporate maths and science, in an entertaining story. 'The Hammond Conjecture' combines my interests in Forbidden History, 20th Century politics, espionage, neuroscience and quantum mechanics, in a comic thriller format. For more information check my pen name M B Reed.