carl boyer, in the introduction of his 1949 calculus textbook,remarked that "mathematics is as much an aspect of culture as it is acollection of algorithms." indeed, any collection of human beings whichone might identify as having the rudiments of society -- a spokenlanguage, a sense of spirituality, a rule of law, etc. -- have also alwayshad some sense of number as a means of codifying the world around them.in this talk, we will examine how different cultures at different times havedeveloped their sense of number, space and form. we will also look therecurring roles basic tools --- such as rope, rods, and rocks --- haveplayed in their development and refinement --- be it ancient incaspreadsheets in south america, stone altars built by rope in india, orbroken notched sticks on which the british treasury depended well into the1800s! this talk is aimed at anyone with an interest in culture,language, philosophy, history, ... or, of course, mathematics.refreshments will be served!