Inventors Who Died Due To Their Own Inventions: The Irrational Death of Hippasus

Inventors Who Died Due To Their Own Inventions: The Irrational Death of Hippasus

Author: iHeartPodcasts March 12, 2026 Duration: 34:48
Ridiculous History
HistoryCultureSocietySociety & Culture

We all know pi, right? It's one of the most famous 'irrational numbers' in history, and mathematicians are still trying to figure it out in the modern day. While this may seem arcane to some of us non-mathheads, in today's episode, Ben, Noel and Max learn these numbers were3 once such a big deal that legends say folks got murdered for discovering them. Tune in to learn the harrowing tale of Hippasus, a Pythagorean cultist who discovered irrational numbers -- and, in doing so, pissed off the Gods so much that they drowned him.

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History is beautiful, brutal and, often, ridiculous. Join Ben Bowlin and Noel Brown as they dive into some of the weirdest stories from across the span of human civilization in Ridiculous History, a podcast by iHeartRadio.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 100

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