Ever since Futurama came along, I’ve absolutely adored it. I think it’s way better than The Simpsons, which isn’t to say that I don’t love The Simpsons, mind you. It’s just that Futurama is better! And if that’s not enough for you, I can prove it mathematically. Not with any particular string of numbers and equations, but by showing you this! Apparently Futurama writer Ken Keeler actually created and proved his own mathematical theorem to explain the workings of the recent episode “The Prisoner of Benda”, wherein a mind-switching machine winds up sticking all the characters’ minds into different bodies. Unfortunately, the mind-switcher can only switch the minds of two bodies once, so the writers had to work out just how many people you’d need and how many switches would have to occur in order for all the characters to get back into their normal bodies! Sound complicated? Well, it is! And lemme tell ya – you’d never find this kinda intricate math theory on The Simpsons!
Click here for another great discussion of the math of Futurama with series producer David X. Cohen!