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geometry
polynomials
Mathematicians Resurrect Hilbert’s 13th Problem
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
Imagine if we lived on a cube-shaped Earth. How would you find the shortest path around the world?
2020 in Review
The Year in Math and Computer Science
Even as mathematicians and computer scientists proved big results in computational complexity, number theory and geometry, computers proved themselves increasingly indispensable in mathematics.
geometry
After Centuries, a Seemingly Simple Math Problem Gets an Exact Solution
Mathematicians have long pondered the reach of a grazing goat tied to a fence, only finding approximate answers until now.
geophysics
Scientists Uncover the Universal Geometry of Geology
An exercise in pure mathematics has led to a wide-ranging theory of how the world comes together.
Quantized Academy
Some Math Problems Seem Impossible. That Can Be a Good Thing.
Struggling with math problems that can’t be solved helps us better understand the ones we can.
Q&A
A Scientist Who Delights in the Mundane
From crumpled paper to termite mounds to three-sided coins, L. Mahadevan has turned the whole world into his laboratory.
Quantized Columns
When Math Gets Impossibly Hard
Mathematicians have long grappled with the reality that some problems just don’t have solutions.
Q&A
Conducting the Mathematical Orchestra From the Middle
Emily Riehl is rewriting the foundations of higher category theory while also working to make mathematics more inclusive.