We care about your data, and we'd like to use cookies to give you a smooth browsing experience. Please agree and read more about our privacy policy.
Quanta Homepage
  • Physics
  • Mathematics
  • Biology
  • Computer Science
  • Topics
  • Archive

Steve Nadis

Contributing Writer

Latest Articles

Fanciful illustration of galaxies with various geometric shapes at their centers.
mathematical physics

Mathematicians Find an Infinity of Possible Black Hole Shapes

By Steve Nadis
January 24, 2023
Comment
Read Later

In three-dimensional space, the surface of a black hole must be a sphere. But a new result shows that in higher dimensions, an infinite number of configurations are possible.

Harry Halpin in a T-shirt and sports coat outdoors
Q&A

The Computer Scientist Who’s Boosting Privacy on the Internet

By Steve Nadis
October 18, 2022
Comment
Read Later

Harry Halpin wants our internet conversations to be more private. He’s helped create a new kind of network that might make it possible.

An illustration with a black disc in the middle evoking a black hole.
mathematical physics

At Long Last, Mathematical Proof That Black Holes Are Stable

By Steve Nadis
August 4, 2022
Comment
Read Later

The solutions to Einstein’s equations that describe a spinning black hole won’t blow up, even when poked or prodded.

Illustration of a rotating object that warps the space-time fabric around itself, as seen by eyes located in different places
general relativity

Mass and Angular Momentum, Left Ambiguous by Einstein, Get Defined

By Steve Nadis
July 13, 2022
Comment
Read Later

Surprising as it may sound, 107 years after the introduction of general relativity, the meanings of basic concepts are still being worked out.

geometry

An Ancient Geometry Problem Falls to New Mathematical Techniques

By Steve Nadis
February 8, 2022
Comment
Read Later

Three mathematicians show, for the first time, how to form a square with the same area as a circle by cutting them into interchangeable pieces that can be visualized.

Color photo of Ana Caraiani in a black coat standing on a bridge
Q&A

The Mathematician Who Delights in Building Bridges

By Steve Nadis
November 17, 2021
Comment
Read Later

Ana Caraiani seeks to unify mathematics through her work on the ambitious Langlands program.

Illustration of people along a path classifying colorful mathematical trees
set theory

Mathematicians Solve Decades-Old Classification Problem

By Steve Nadis
August 5, 2021
Comment
Read Later

A pair of researchers has shown that trying to classify groups of numbers called “torsion-free abelian groups” is as hard as it can possibly be.

Color photo of Jordan Ellenberg sitting with a laptop by a lake at sunset
Q&A

A Number Theorist Who Connects Math to Other Creative Pursuits

By Steve Nadis
May 27, 2021
Comment
Read Later

Jordan Ellenberg enjoys studying — and writing about — the mathematics underlying everyday phenomena.

A looping image of two black holes orbiting one another, with the second one smaller than the first.
mathematical physics

New Black Hole Math Closes Cosmic Blind Spot

By Steve Nadis
May 13, 2021
Comment
Read Later

A mathematical shortcut for analyzing black hole collisions works even in cases where it shouldn’t. As astronomers use it to search for new classes of hidden black holes, others wonder: Why?


Previous
  • 1
  • 2
Next

About the author

Steve Nadis lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His articles have appeared in numerous magazines, including Discover and Astronomy. He is co-author, most recently, of The Shape of a Life.
Follow Quanta
Facebook
Facebook

Twitter
Twitter

Youtube
YouTube

Instagram
Instagram

RSS
RSS

Newsletter

All Time

Most Read From Steve Nadis

This Data is Current Loading...
This Data is Current Loading...
This Data is Current Loading...
The Quanta Newsletter

Get highlights of the most important news delivered to your email inbox

Recent newsletters
Quanta Homepage
Facebook
Twitter
Youtube
Instagram

  • About Quanta
  • Archive
  • Contact Us
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Simons Foundation
All Rights Reserved © 2023