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Unscrambling the Hidden Secrets of Superpermutations
A science fiction novelist and an internet commenter made breakthroughs on a longstanding problem about the number of ways you can arrange a set of items. What did they discover?
The Year in Math and Computer Science
Several mathematicians under the age of 30 left their marks all over the field, and amateur problem-solvers of all ages made significant contributions to long-dormant puzzles.
Mathematicians Seal Back Door to Breaking RSA Encryption
Digital security depends on the difficulty of factoring large numbers. A new proof shows why one method for breaking digital encryption won’t work.
In the Universe of Equations, Virtually All Are Prime
Equations, like numbers, cannot always be split into simpler elements.
A Collector of Math and Physics Surprises
Tadashi Tokieda discovers new physical phenomena by looking at the everyday world with the eyes of a child.
Amateur Mathematician Finds Smallest Universal Cover
Through exacting geometric calculations, Philip Gibbs has found the smallest known cover for any possible shape.
New Proof Shows Infinite Curves Come in Two Types
Alexander Smith’s work on the Goldfeld conjecture reveals fundamental characteristics of elliptic curves.
Mystery Math Whiz and Novelist Advance Permutation Problem
A new proof from the Australian science fiction writer Greg Egan and a 2011 proof anonymously posted online are now being hailed as significant advances on a puzzle mathematicians have been studying for at least 25 years.
Without a Proof, Mathematicians Wonder How Much Evidence Is Enough
A new statistical model appears to undermine long-held assumptions in number theory. How much should it be trusted when all that really matters is proof?