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

What's up in

Mathematics

Latest Articles

An illustration of a doughnut-shaped elliptic curve intertwined with the Julia set.
number theory

Mathematicians Set Numbers in Motion to Unlock Their Secrets

By Kelsey Houston-Edwards
February 22, 2021
Comment
Read Later

A new proof demonstrates the power of arithmetic dynamics, an emerging discipline that combines insights from number theory and dynamical systems.

Po-Shen Loh standing on a stairway in front of a colored wall outside of his office in Pittsburgh.
Q&A

The Coach Who Led the U.S. Math Team Back to the Top

By Max G. Levy
February 16, 2021
Comment
Read Later

Po-Shen Loh has harnessed his competitive impulses and iconoclastic tendencies to reinvigorate the U.S. Math Olympiad program.

Insights puzzle

Zen and the Art of Puzzle Solving

By Pradeep Mutalik
February 10, 2021
Comment
Read Later

Sometimes the act of solving a puzzle can itself reveal hidden insights.

Abstractions blog

Undergraduates Hunt for Special Tetrahedra That Fit Together

By Kevin Hartnett
February 9, 2021
Comment
Read Later

A group of MIT undergraduates is searching for tetrahedra that tile space, the latest effort in a millennia-long inquiry. They’ve already made a new discovery.

Colorful isualization of the 59 isolated examples of tetrahedra that have rational dihedral angles
geometry

Tetrahedron Solutions Finally Proved Decades After Computer Search

By Kevin Hartnett
February 2, 2021
Comment
Read Later

Four mathematicians have cataloged all the tetrahedra with rational angles, resolving a question about basic geometric shapes using techniques from number theory.

Illustration showing a human figure sitting on a large straw, gazing at different topological figures.
Quantized Columns

Topology 101: The Hole Truth

By David S. Richeson
January 26, 2021
Comment
Read Later

The relationships among the properties of flexible shapes have fascinated mathematicians for centuries.

Photo of Darden sitting on her couch and smiling
Q&A

The NASA Engineer Who’s a Mathematician at Heart

By Susan D'Agostino
January 19, 2021
Comment
Read Later

Christine Darden worked at NASA for 40 years, helping make supersonic planes quieter and forging a path for women to follow in her footsteps.

Illustration of mathematicians descending through a cavern whose walls are lined with polynomials.
polynomials

Mathematicians Resurrect Hilbert’s 13th Problem

By Stephen Ornes
January 14, 2021
Comment
Read Later

Long considered solved, David Hilbert’s question about seventh-degree polynomials is leading researchers to a new web of mathematical connections.

Quantized Academy

The Crooked Geometry of Round Trips

By Patrick Honner
January 13, 2021
Comment
Read Later

Imagine if we lived on a cube-shaped Earth. How would you find the shortest path around the world?


Previous
  • 1
  • ...
  • 15
  • 16
  • 17
  • 18
  • 19
  • 20
  • 21
  • ...
  • 49
Next
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