Mathematics

In work that has been 30 years in the making, mathematicians have proved a major part of a profound mathematical vision called the Langlands program.

These metaphorical gardens have become central objects in modern mathematics.

The proof creates stricter limits on potential exceptions to the famous Riemann hypothesis.

Number theorist Ken Ono is teaching Olympians to swim more efficiently.

If you cover a surface with tiles, repetitive patterns always emerge — or do they? In this week’s episode, mathematician Natalie Priebe Frank and co-host Janna Levin discuss how recent breakthroughs in tiling can unlock structural secrets in the natural world.

After decades of uncertainty, a motley team of programmers has proved precisely how complicated simple computer programs can get.

Two mathematicians have proved a long-standing conjecture that is a step on the way toward finding the worst shape for packing the plane.

Useful mathematical concepts, like the number line, can linger for millennia before they are rigorously defined.

How are scientists able to crack fundamental questions about nature and life? How does math make the complex cosmos understandable? In this episode, the physicist Nigel Goldenfeld and co-host Steven Strogatz explore the deep foundations of the scientific process.