Desmond MacHale (born 28 January 1946) is an Irish mathematician who is Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at University College Cork.[1][2] He is an author and speaker on several subjects, including George Boole, lateral thinking puzzles, and humour. He has published over 80 books, some of which have been translated into languages including Danish, Italian, Norwegian, Spanish, German, Korean, and Japanese.[3][4]
In 1985 MacHale published George Boole: His Life and Work, the first book length biography of Boole.[5] In 2014, a year ahead of Boole's bicentennial, this was reissued in revised and expanded form as The Life and Work of George Boole: A Prelude to the Digital Age. He is considered the world's leading expert on Boole and in 2018 published another book New Light on George Boole, co-authored with Yvonne Cohen.[6][7]
MacHale has also authored books on other subjects, including brainteasers and he has written more than 30 books of jokes and discussions of humour.[8] His Comic Sections: The Book of Mathematical Jokes, Humour, Wit and Wisdom is a book which combines two of his interests. He has written over a dozen books of lateral thinking problems with author Paul Sloane; and many of these problems are featured on the Futility Closet website.[9] He has written several books about the 1952 American film, The Quiet Man. He has spoken at schools, on radio, and television on the subjects of mathematics, humour, and puzzles.[10]
He is a longtime opponent of smoking, and for decades has played a role within the Irish Association of Non-Smokers. He appeared on RTÉ's The Late Late Show as early as the 1980s in an attempt to educate the public about the dangers of smoking.[5]
From 1984 to 2007, MacHale ran the Superbrain Competition at University College Cork, including setting the questions and grading the papers.[14] This annual competitive mathematics exam, now run by a committee of mathematics faculty, is open to UCC undergraduate and master's level students, and consists of 10 questions to be done in 3 hours.[citation needed] A book of the questions (with solutions) from 1984 to 2008 was published in 2011 as The First Twenty-Five Years of the Superbrain by Diarmuid Early & Des MacHale.[15]
2014 The First Twenty-Five Years of the Superbrain (with Diarmuid Early), United Kingdom Mathematics Trust, ISBN1906001227
2014 The First Twenty-Five Years of the Superbrain (with Diarmuid Early), United Kingdom Mathematics Trust, ISBN1906001227
2014 The Life and Work of George Boole : a Prelude to the Digital Age, Cork University Press, ISBN1782050051
2006 Puzzleology: Tough Puzzles for Kids, Mercier Press, ISBN9781856355087
2004 Picture The quiet man : an illustrated celebration, Appletree, ISBN9780862819309
2002 Sit & Solve - Lateral Thinking Puzzles (with Paul Sloane), Puzzlewright, ISBN9780806957050
1995 Best Irish Humorous Quotations, Mercier Press, ISBN1-85635-138-6
1993 Comic Sections: The Book of Mathematical Jokes, Humour, Wit and Wisdom, Boole Press, ISBN1-85748-006-6
1989 The World's Best Maggie Thatcher Jokes, Angus & Robertson, ISBN0-207-16224-7
1987 The Book of Irish Bull: Better than All the Udders, Mercier Press, ISBN0-85342-822-0
1985 George Boole: His Life and Work, Boole Press, ISBN0-906783-14-3
Awards and honours
On George Boole Day, 2 November 2015, University College Cork awarded MacHale an honorary doctorate of literature in recognition of his contributions to scholarship on Boole.[17][18]
On 15 October 2016 Maths Week Ireland presented MacHale with the inaugural "Raising Public Awareness of Maths" award.[7][19]
^On receiving the award MacHale said, "The world has finally come to realise the genius of George Boole internationally and the United Nations' declaration this year was a major achievement. Everyone in the world now has heard about George Boole."
