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When Data Is Missing, Scientists Guess. Then Guess Again.

October 2, 2024

Across the social and biological sciences, statisticians use a technique that leverages randomness to deal with the unknown.

Topologists Tackle the Trouble With Poll Placement

March 26, 2024

Mathematicians are using topological abstractions to find places where it’s hard to vote.

Scientists Find Optimal Balance of Data Storage and Time

February 8, 2024

Seventy years after the invention of a data structure called a hash table, theoreticians have found the most efficient possible configuration for it.

Q&A

The Computing Pioneer Helping AI See

October 24, 2023

Alexei Efros has spent his career learning how machines see differently from humans. Now he’s helping to bridge the gap.

Q&A

The Computer Scientist Peering Inside AI’s Black Boxes

April 27, 2023

Cynthia Rudin wants machine learning models, responsible for increasingly important decisions, to show their work.

Q&A

The Researcher Who Would Teach Machines to Be Fair

March 10, 2023

Arvind Narayanan uses quantitative methods to expose and correct the misuse of quantitative methods.

How Wavelets Allow Researchers to Transform, and Understand, Data

October 13, 2021

Built upon the ubiquitous Fourier transform, the mathematical tools known as wavelets allow unprecedented analysis and understanding of continuous signals.

Q&A

A Computer Scientist Who Tackles Inequality Through Algorithms

April 1, 2021

Rediet Abebe uses the tools of theoretical computer science to understand pressing social problems — and try to fix them.

Chasing the Elusive Numbers That Define Epidemics

March 22, 2021

Most modeling efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic have sought to address urgent practical concerns. But some groups aim to bolster the theoretical underpinnings of that work instead.

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