‘Mathemagician’ Dazzles Students With High-Energy Performances

He could recite the squares of random three-digit numbers in his head faster than a calculator, power through a Sudoku-like “magic box” in seconds, and tell anyone in the audience what day of the week they were born on.

Showing off jaw-dropping math skills in an entertaining presentation, “mathemagician” Arthur Benjamin delighted Middle School and Upper School students last week with rousing performances on the Hurlbut Theater stage.

The special presentation was made possible by St. Margaret’s junior Natalie Yee, a “Shining Star” recipient in the Disneyland Dreamers & Doers program last spring. The program recognizes Orange County high school students who take action to improve their communities, homes and schools, and honorees are awarded a $1,000 pay-it-forward grant.

“I’ve seen Dr. Benjamin perform twice before,” said Natalie, who leads St. Margaret’s STEM Club. “I was amazed by his performance and knew that I wanted to share his incredible magic tricks with the St. Margaret’s community. I was awarded a grant and wanted to use it to bring Dr. Benjamin to St. Margaret’s as one of our STEM Club-organized events.”

Dr. Benjamin gave a brief performance to Middle School students at the end of last week’s Middle School Math Bee, before a more extended presentation for Upper School students in Hurlbut Theater. His performance was interactive and similar to popular TED Talks he has given in the past, involving several students from the crowd and taking time to answer questions afterward. Unlike a true magician, Dr. Benjamin showed some of the secrets to his lightning-quick math skills, such as a shortcut to figuring out the square of larger numbers. 

Dr. Benjamin has degrees from Carnegie Mellon and Johns Hopkins and is a math professor at Harvey Mudd College. His performances and math skills have earned him national recognition, including appearances on The Today Show, The Colbert Report, NPR and CNN, and profiles in the New York Times, USA Today, People Magazine and Reader’s Digest.

“It was an honor to host the Mathemagician here on campus and we are so grateful to Natalie for making this happen,” Math Department Chair Elizabeth O’Shea said. “It was particularly great to have an assembly that was academic in nature, but also really fun for everyone at the same time. It was fascinating​ to learn how Dr. Benjamin has developed his talent for mental math, and I think everyone came away with a new appreciation for numbers and some really good math tricks.”