What's up in
Puzzles
Insights puzzle
How Star Trek’s Lieutenant Uhura Overcame Astronomical Odds
Readers rescued a Star Trek crew from a probabilistic predicament armed only with the power of mathematical reasoning.
Insights puzzle
Help Star Trek’s Lieutenant Uhura Overcome Astronomical Odds
In honor of the actor and activist Nichelle Nichols, this month’s puzzle imagines a Star Trek adventure in which her character, Lieutenant Uhura, faces a life-and-death conundrum.
Insights puzzle
Seeking Mathematical Truth in Counterfeit Coin Puzzles
Readers balanced logical reasoning and mathematical insights to find phony coins with a double-pan balance scale.
Insights puzzle
How to Weigh Truth With a Balance Scale and Math
In recreational mathematics, the balance scale is an endless source of puzzles that require precise and elaborate logic and teach the fundamentals of generalization.
Insights puzzle
The Secret Math Behind Mind-Reading Magic Tricks
Four puzzle solutions reveal different ways to divine someone’s hidden number with impossibly little information.
Insights puzzle
Think of a Number. How Do Math Magicians Know What It Is?
Mathematical magic can seem like mind reading. Your job is to reveal the secret behind these four tricks.
Insights puzzle
The Secrets of Zugzwang in Chess, Math and Pizzas
Learn the magic and math of how to win games when your opponent goes first.
Insights puzzle
Play First and Lose: Zugzwang in Chess, Math and Pizzas
How to win games by going second and leaving your opponent with no good options.
Insights puzzle
Why e, the Transcendental Math Constant, Is Just the Best
The solution to our puzzle about Euler’s number explains why e pops up in situations that involve optimality.