Numbers (TV series)
| Numbers | |
|---|---|
 The NUMB3RS logo | |
| Created by | Nicolas Falacci Cheryl Heuton |
| Starring | Rob Morrow David Krumholtz Judd Hirsch Peter MacNicol Alimi Ballard Navi Rawat Diane Farr Dylan Bruno |
| Opening theme | Once In A Lifetime by Talking Heads (Season 1) |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 55 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 43 minutes (approx) |
| Original release | |
| Network | CBS |
| Release | January 23, 2005 – present |
NUMB3RS (Numbers) is an American television show that follows FBI Special Agent Don Eppes (Rob Morrow) and his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes (David Krumholtz), who develops formulae to predict the actions of various criminals. It was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, produced by CBS Paramount Network Television, and airs on the CBS network in the US.
The show focuses equally on the relationships between Don Eppes, his brother Charlie Eppes, and their father, Alan Eppes (Judd Hirsch) and on the brothers' efforts to fight crime, normally in Los Angeles. A typical episode begins with a crime, which is subsequently investigated by a team of FBI agents led by Don and mathematically described by Charlie, occasionally with the help of Larry Fleinhardt (Peter MacNicol) and/or Amita Ramanujan (Navi Rawat). The insights provided by Charlie's mathematics are always in some way crucial to solving the crime.
NUMB3RS and Mathematics
Several mathematicians work as consultants for each episode.[1] Actual mathematics is presented in the show; the equations on the chalkboards are real, and they are indeed applicable to the situations presented in each show. This phenomenon has been recognized by working mathematicians; see, for example, the article "NUMB3RS gets the math right", published by the Mathematical Association of America (MAA)[2] and the January 21 issue of Math Games[3] in which Ed Pegg, Jr. discusses related issues. e.g. Bayesian search theory, graph theory, combinatorics. However, at least one mathematician consultant to the show has expressed concern with its use of math and the failure to integrate consultants at various stages in each episode's development, in addition to its portrayal of female mathematicians, and inappropriate aspects of the relationship between Charlie Eppes and his graduate student Amita Ramanujan.[4]
While the mathematics are accurate, a great number of other ideas presented in the show are not as grounded in fact; for instance, in the episode "Dirty Bomb," the explosion caused by the "C4" in the plaza would require nearly twice as much C4 as the trash can could hold.[citation needed]
To assist the FBI in the show, Professor Charlie Eppes has invoked the following mathematical disciplines (among others): cryptanalysis, probability theory, game theory, partial differential equations, decision theory, graph theory, data mining and astrophysics.
American math teachers have used episodes of the show as a teaching tool, as it connects the forensics boom in America (triggered by such shows as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation) to classroom topics. Texas Instruments and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics have created the We All Use Math Every Day education outreach program, in which teachers are provided with class activities based on the concepts to be featured in the next episode.[5]
Cast and characters
Main Characters
| Name | Portrayed by | Division/Precinct |
|---|---|---|
| Don Eppes | Rob Morrow | FBI Agent |
| Charlie Eppes | David Krumholtz | Mathematician/ FBI/NSA Consultant |
| Alan Eppes | Judd Hirsch | Former LA City Planner |
| Megan Reeves | Diane Farr | FBI Agent/Profiler |
| Larry Fleinhardt | Peter MacNicol | Physicist/FBI Consultant |
| Amita Ramanujan | Navi Rawat | Mathematician/FBI Consultant |
| David Sinclair | Alimi Ballard | FBI Agent |
| Colby Granger | Dylan Bruno | FBI Agent |
Episodes
Season 1
Season 1 (January 23 2005 – May 13 2005) sees the start of the working relationship between Los Angeles' FBI department and Charlie Eppes. The main FBI agents are Charlie's brother, Don Eppes, and Terry Lake, as well as David Sinclair. Don and Charlie's father, Alan Eppes, provides emotional support for the pair, while Professor Larry Fleinhardt and doctoral student Amita Ramanujan provide mathematical support and insights to Charlie.
Season 2
Season 2 (September 23 2005 – May 19 2006) sees the continuation of the relationship between the FBI and Charlie. Terry Lake is reassigned to Washington, and Megan Reeves replaces her role as a psychological profiler for the team. Colby Granger is also introduced.
Season 3
NUMB3RS has been renewed for a third season,[6] which began airing in North America on September 22 2006. Perhaps the largest changes from previous seasons include the removal of the opening credit sequence (credits are now done during the first segment of the show).
U.S. television ratings
Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of NUMB3RS on CBS.
Note: Each U.S. network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May sweeps.
| Season | Timeslot | Season Premiere | Season Finale | TV Season | Ranking | Viewers (in millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st[7] | Friday 10:00PM | January 23, 2005 | May 13, 2005 | 2004-2005 | #36 | 10.77 |
| 2nd[8] | Friday 10:00PM | September 23, 2005 | May 19, 2006 | 2005-2006 | #32 | 11.62 |
| 3rd | Friday 10:00PM | September 22, 2006 | TBA | 2006-2007 | TBA | TBA |
For most of its series run, NUMB3RS has been the most-watched television program on Friday nights.
Production notes
- The original concept for the show had the events take place at MIT.[9]
- Scenes which take place at CalSci, where Eppes, Fleinhardt and Ramanujan are on the faculty, are filmed at Caltech and USC. One of the most frequent campus locations at Caltech is the vicinity of Millikan Library, including the bridge over Millikan Pond, the Trustees room, and the arcades of nearby buildings. At USC, locations include Doheny Library and the Town and Gown dining room.
- Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, the show's creators, won the Carl Sagan Award for the Public Understanding of Science in 2006.[10]
- The Craftsman home used in the first season is owned by David Raposa and Edward Trosper.[11] From the second season forward, a repelica set has been used.
- Famous scientists and mathematicians mentioned in the series include Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, Archimedes, John von Neumann, Paul Erdős, Pierre-Simon Laplace, Michael Faraday, Richard Feynman, Werner Heisenberg, Bernhard Riemann and Edward Witten.
- The famous chess game Morphy v. Duke of Brunswick and Count Isouard is featured at least twice in the series, once in the ending scene of "Man Hunt" and again in the "chess interlude" of the episode "Assassin".
International first broadcast dates
| Country | First aired | Television network |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | August 15, 2005 | Network Ten |
| Belgium | September, 2006 | RTL-TVI |
| Brazil | August 7, 2005 | Telecine Premium |
| Bulgaria | January 19, 2006 | bTV |
| Canada | January 23, 2005 | Global TV |
| Denmark | September 20, 2006 | Kanal 5 |
| Finland | November 24, 2006 | MTV3 |
| France | April 14, 2006 | M6 |
| Germany | September 5, 2005 | Pro 7, now on Sat.1 |
| Hungary | May 22, 2006 | TV2 |
| India | AXN | |
| Ireland | Channel 6 | |
| Israel | October 27, 2005 | yesWeekend ("מספ7ים" - Misparim) |
| Italy | March 5, 2006 | Rai2 |
| Japan | 2006/2007 | Fox Crime/Fox |
| Malaysia | December 5, 2005 | RTM1 and AXN |
| The Netherlands | August 30, 2005 | SBS6 |
| New Zealand | July 20, 2005 | TV3 |
| Norway | December 21, 2006 | TV2 (Norway) |
| Philippines | AXN | |
| Poland | June 28, 2006 | TV4 |
| Portugal | October 19, 2006 | TVI |
| Quebec | January 6, 2006 | Z Tele |
| Russia | August 18, 2006 | TV3 |
| Serbia | March, 2007 | B92 |
| Spain | March 7, 2006 | Antena 3 |
| Sweden | April 29, 2006 | TV4 |
| Thailand | AXN | |
| Turkey | 2005 | Dizimax |
| United Kingdom | October 5, 2005 | ITV3 |
| Saudi Arabia and Arab World | October 30, 2006 | MBC 4 |
DVD releases
| DVD cover | Season | Episodes | Originally aired | Discs | DVD release date | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Region 1 | Region 2/4 | |||||||
| File:NUMB3RS season1 dvd cover.jpg | 1 | 13 | 2005 | 4 | US/CAN: May 30, 2006 | AUS: October 05, 2006 | ||
|
Running Time: 544 minutes
| ||||||||
| File:NUMB3RS Season2 DVD.jpg | 2 | 24 | 2005 – 2006 | 6 | US/CAN: October 10, 2006 | TBA | ||
|
Running Time: 1037 minutes
| ||||||||
References
- ^ "Hollywood Math and Science Film Consulting". Retrieved 2006-04-26.
- ^ Keith Devlin. "NUMB3RS gets the math right". Retrieved 2006-05-07.
- ^ "Math Puzzle.com". Retrieved 2006-04-27.
- ^ Silverberg, Alice (2006). "Alice in NUMB3Rland" (PDF). FOCUS. 26 (8): 12–13.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ "We all use math everyday Math Education Program". Retrieved 2006-06-24.
- ^ Mahan, Colin. "Voila! CBS renews 14 shows at once". TV.com. Retrieved 2005-06-07.
- ^ Viewer numbers of the official 2004-2005 U.S. television season
- ^ Viewer numbers of the official 2005-2006 U.S. television season
- ^ ""Numb3rs (2005)". Retrieved 2006-05-07.
- ^ "Official Numb3rs website". Retrieved 2006-05-13.
- ^ Arts and Crafts by the 'Numb3rs' by Christy Hobart, Special to The Times Los Angeles Times, February 17, 2005
- ^ Numb3rs (Numbers) - Featurettes, a gag reel and commentaries Tvshowsondvd.com. March 17, 2006. Retrieved July 1, 2006.
- ^ Numb3rs - The Complete First Season (2005) Amazon.com. Retrieved July 1, 2006.
