MathFiction: Moriarty by Modem (Jack Nimersheim)

a list compiled by Alex Kasman (College of Charleston)

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Moriarty by Modem (1995)

Jack Nimersheim
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Contributed by "William E. Emba"

A cyberversion of Sherlock Holmes is created to track down an accidently released cyberversion of Moriarty. The big clue involves both the binomial theorem and binomial variables.

Published in Mike Resnick and M H Greenberg (eds) SHERLOCK HOLMES IN ORBIT

I'm afraid that this story, though cute, really strained my abilities to suspend disbelief. Not only are we expected to believe that Charles Babbage actually created a computer which became a state secret, but this computer was supposed to have been powerful enough to run an artificially intelligent program which was a sentient "Sherlock Holmes". The mention (but apparently, not much of an understanding) of the binomial theorem and its counterpart in probability theory are not enough to save this story in my mind.

More information about this work can be found at www.amazon.com.
(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 Moriarty by Modem

According to my `secret formula', the following works of mathematical fiction are similar to this one:

Reading by Numbers by Aidan Doyle
The Adventure of the Russian Grave by William Barton / Michael Capobianco
The Ultimate Crime by Isaac Asimov
The Future Engine by Byron Tetrick
A Calendar of Chaos by G. David Nordley
Mirror Image by Isaac Asimov
The Image in the Mirror by Dorothy Leigh Sayers
Hidden in Glass by Paul Ernst
After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall by Nancy Kress
The Investigation by Stanislaw Lem

Ratings for Moriarty by Modem:

Ratings

Have 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:
2.5/5 (2 votes)

Literary Quality:
3.5/5 (2 votes)

Categories:

Genre	Mystery, Science Fiction,
Motif	Evil mathematicians, Sherlock Holmes,
Topic	Computers/Cryptography, Algebra/Arithmetic/Number Theory, Probability/Statistics,
Medium	Short Stories,

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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)