MATHEMATICAL FICTION:

a list compiled by Alex Kasman (College of Charleston)

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Final Exam (2011)
Robert Dawson
(click on names to see more mathematical fiction by the same author)
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A math professor nearing retirement and displeased with trends in academia decides to use his final exam (the last he will ever give) to get his revenge on the cheating students in his calculus class.

This very nicely written story appears in the July 2011 issue of the Journal of Humanistic Mathematics. It includes quite a few explicit references to real calculus problems and insight into the way a college professor might view his students.

Contributed by Will

I just read this story and found it interesting except that I found the ending to be a bit abrupt. I would have liked to read about the aftermath of the exam.

More information about this work can be found at scholarship.claremont.edu.
(Note: This is just one work of mathematical fiction from the list. To see the entire list or to see more works of mathematical fiction, return to the Homepage.)

Works Similar to Final Exam
According to my `secret formula', the following works of mathematical fiction are similar to this one:
  1. Monster by Alex Kasman
  2. The Integral: A Horror Story by Colin Adams
  3. On the Occasion Of Your Graduation by Robert Dawson
  4. Damned Souls and Statistics by Robert Dawson
  5. Ladies' Night by Robert Dawson
  6. Strange Attractors by Rebecca Goldstein
  7. Gifted by Marc Webb (director) / Tom Flynn (writer)
  8. Music of the Spheres by Ken Liu
  9. Satisfactory Proof by Cynthia Morrison Phoel
  10. Zilkowski's Theorem by Karl Iagnemma
Ratings for Final Exam:
RatingsHave you seen/read this work of mathematical fiction? Then click here to enter your own votes on its mathematical content and literary quality or send me comments to post on this Webpage.
Mathematical Content:
3.5/5 (2 votes)
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Literary Quality:
3.5/5 (2 votes)
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Categories:
Genre
MotifAcademia, Math Education,
TopicAnalysis/Calculus/Differential,
MediumShort Stories, Available Free Online,

Home All New Browse Search About

Where are the new works of mathematical fiction?: As you can see from this chronological listing, this database includes many works of mathematical fiction for each year from 1990 to 2025. Strangely, only two are listed for 2026, so far. Either less mathematical fiction is being published than in previous years or I'm just having more trouble finding it. If you know of any works of fiction that should be added to this list, especially recently published ones, please let me know. (Keep in mind that I do not include self-published works or children's fiction that just covers elementary mathematical concepts.) Thanks!

(Maintained by Alex Kasman, College of Charleston)