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Four Is Not Enough

June 18, 2018

How many colors do you need to color an infinite plane so that no points 1 unit apart are the same color?

Why Winning in Rock-Paper-Scissors (and in Life) Isn’t Everything

April 2, 2018

What does John Nash’s game theory equilibrium concept look like in Rock-Paper-Scissors?

How Math (and Vaccines) Keep You Safe From the Flu

February 5, 2018

Simple math shows how widespread vaccination can disrupt the exponential spread of disease and prevent epidemics.

The (Math) Problem With Pentagons

December 11, 2017

Triangles fit effortlessly together, as do squares. When it comes to pentagons, what gives?

The Math Behind Gerrymandering and Wasted Votes

October 12, 2017

Simple math can help scheming politicians manipulate district maps and cruise to victory. But it can also help identify and fix the problem.

Q&A

Why Math Is the Best Way to Make Sense of the World

September 11, 2017

To tell truth from fiction, start with quantitative thinking, argues the mathematician Rebecca Goldin.

Symmetry, Algebra and the Monster

August 17, 2017

To begin to understand what mathematicians and physicists see in the abstract structures of symmetries, let’s start with a familiar shape.

Do You Love or Hate Math and Science?

October 20, 2016

Quanta Magazine invites readers to share about their early math and science learning experiences and to explore the interactive survey results.

A Wormhole Between Physics and Education

October 18, 2016

The theoretical particle physicist Helen Quinn has blazed a singular path from the early days of the Standard Model to the latest overhaul of science education in the United States.

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