(Music plays)

An animated clip shows a big orange X on a blue background. It explodes and letters and numbers come out of it in all directions and float around.

Mathemagician Eric appears on screen. He’s in his mid-twenties. He has short dark brown hair and a beard. He wears a red T-shirt with the show’s logo, blue jeans and red Tennis shoes.

The screen turns red and the logo of the show appears next. It reads "MathXplosion." Meanwhile, cones, cubes and dices float around it.

Kids voices sing a song with lyrics that go
WHAT A HIT
IT'S NOT A TRICK
IT'S MATHXPLOSION
JUST FOR YOU
COOL AND NEW
MATHXPLOSION!

The episode starts with Eric standing in a workroom, next to a table with block on it that look like a fort. He suddenly bends down to avoid getting hit by an object thrown at him.

Eric says WHOA, DUCK!
OKAY, I KNOW I MIGHT BE
TOO BIG TO MAKE FORTS,
BUT COME ON,
THEY'RE THE BEST!
AND DID YOU KNOW THAT
THERE'S A TRICK
TO ENSURING YOU CAN
HAVE THE BIGGEST FORT
YOU CAN POSSIBLY GET?

He bends down again and says DUCK!
WITH A SIMPLE
CALCULATION,
WE CAN FIND OUT HOW TO
GET THE MAXIMUM AREA
INSIDE YOUR FORT
WITHOUT CHANGING
THE MEASURE OF
THE PERIMETER.

The blackboard in the back blinks and illuminates the drawing of a fort.

He bends down again as the objects keep on coming his way.

He says OKAY, YOU
KNOW WHAT,
I NEED SOME
PROTECTION.

He flips a box around and a Roman warrior helmet comes out of it.

He puts it on and says NICE!
BRING IT!

(music plays)

Now, Eric is ready to start a new project.

He says HERE'S AN AMAZING WAY TO
ENSURE THAT YOU HAVE
THE LARGEST AREA WITH THE
SAME AMOUNT OF PERIMETER.
SO, PERIMETER IS THE
LENGTH OR DISTANCE
AROUND A
TWO-DIMENSIONAL SPACE.
AND AREA IS THE
AMOUNT OF SURFACE
INSIDE OF THE
PERIMETER.

He uses the graphics in the blackboard to explains. Next, he jumps on a pile of cushions.

He says HERE WE GO!
WE HAVE 20
CUSHIONS HERE.
SEE HOW THEY'RE ALL
EXACTLY THE SAME SIZE?
VERY IMPORTANT TO BUILD
THE BEST FORT EVER!
IF I ARRANGED THEM
LIKE THIS....

(music plays)

Eric builds a rectangular fort using the cushions. The captions on screen go up to 20.

Eric continues
THAT'S 20 UNITS IN TOTAL
FOR THE PERIMETER
BECAUSE WE USED
ALL 20 CUSHIONS.
HMM.
THIS RECTANGULAR PERIMETER
GIVES ME AN AREA
OF 16 SQUARE UNITS.
SEE?
2, 4, 6, 8, 10,
12, 14, 16.

A dynamic graphic on screen shows a representation of the space filled with cushions.

He continues
HMM, THIS SEEMS A
LITTLE TIGHT.
LET'S TRY THE
SAME PERIMETER,
AGAIN, USING ALL 20
CUSHIONS AND ARRANGE IT
A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY.

(music plays)

Eric tries a new fort with the cushions in a different position.

He says WE STILL USED
ALL THE CUSHIONS
AND THE PERIMETER
DIDN'T CHANGE,
BUT WOW, THAT MAKES A
TOTAL DIFFERENCE!
LOOK AT THE AREA NOW.
5, 10, 15, 20, 25.
THIS FORT'S AREA IS
25 SQUARE UNITS.
SAME PERIMETER,
BIGGER AREA.
COOL.

The graphic on screen shows the new space getting filled by cushions. The number goes up to 25 with the same 20 cushions.

Eric says THE TRICK IS THAT
SQUARE PERIMETERS
WILL ALWAYS GIVE YOU
THE LARGER AREA,
WHICH IS REALLY
IMPORTANT FOR FORTS.
MY FORT IS READY!
DID YOU KNOW THAT
WHOLE COUNTRIES
HAVE PERIMETERS TOO?

(music plays)

Eric draws a circle and colours it inside. He taps on it and a new clip plays. An animated map shows the territory of Chile. The area is highlighted in yellow. Next. a caption reads "12 times."

Eric says CHECK THIS OUT.
IF WE COULD CHANGE THE
PERIMETER OR BORDER OF CHILE
WHICH IS LONG AND NARROW
INTO A SQUARE PERIMETER,
THE COUNTRY WOULD HAVE
ALMOST 12 TIMES MORE AREA.
SAME PERIMETER,
DIFFERENT SHAPE,
WAY MORE SPACE.

Next, Eric appears back in the workroom, inside his fort, playing with toys.

He says DUCK!
OH, NO, THIS TIME I
JUST MEANT DUCK.
JUST REMEMBER, ONE PERIMETER,
MANY SHAPES AND AREAS.
IT'S NOT MAGIC -
IT'S MATH.

A big explosion brings the show’s logo back on the screen.

(music plays)

The end credits roll.

Produced by GAPC Entertainment in association with TVOKids.

Copyright GAPC Entertainment (MathPlosion) Incorporated, 2016.