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New Sphere-Packing Record Stems From an Unexpected Source
After just a few months of work, a complete newcomer to the world of sphere packing has solved one of its biggest open problems.
How Does Graph Theory Shape Our World?
Maria Chudnovsky reflects on her journey in graph theory, her groundbreaking solution to the long-standing perfect graph problem, and the unexpected ways this abstract field intersects with everyday life.
A New Pyramid-Like Shape Always Lands the Same Side Up
A tetrahedron is the simplest Platonic solid. Mathematicians have now made one that’s stable only on one side, confirming a decades-old conjecture.
Is Mathematics Mostly Chaos or Mostly Order?
Two new notions of infinity challenge a long-standing plan to define the mathematical universe.
Epic Effort to Ground Physics in Math Opens Up the Secrets of Time
By mathematically proving how individual molecules create the complex motion of fluids, three mathematicians have illuminated why time can’t flow in reverse.
The Core of Fermat’s Last Theorem Just Got Superpowered
By extending the scope of the key insight behind Fermat’s Last Theorem, four mathematicians have made great strides toward building a “grand unified theory” of math.
Graduate Student Solves Classic Problem About the Limits of Addition
A new proof illuminates the hidden patterns that emerge when addition becomes impossible.
New ‘Superdiffusion’ Proof Probes the Mysterious Math of Turbulence
Turbulence is a notoriously difficult phenomenon to study. Mathematicians are now starting to untangle it at its smallest scales.
Dimension 126 Contains Strangely Twisted Shapes, Mathematicians Prove
A new proof represents the culmination of a 65-year-old story about anomalous shapes in special dimensions.