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Some Math Problems Seem Impossible. That Can Be a Good Thing.

By Patrick Honner
November 18, 2020
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Struggling with math problems that can’t be solved helps us better understand the ones we can.

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The Epigenetic Secrets Behind Dopamine, Drug Addiction and Depression

By R. Douglas Fields
October 27, 2020
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New research links serotonin and dopamine not just to addiction and depression, but to the ability to control genes.

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The Simple Math Problem We Still Can’t Solve

By Patrick Honner
September 22, 2020
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Despite recent progress on the notorious Collatz conjecture, we still don’t know whether a number can escape its infinite loop.

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When Math Gets Impossibly Hard

By David S. Richeson
September 14, 2020
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Mathematicians have long grappled with the reality that some problems just don’t have solutions.

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Social Distancing From the Stars

By Emily Levesque
August 11, 2020
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Professional astronomers may not point their telescopes by hand anymore, but COVID-19 has still closed observatories and impeded research.

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Spotting Quantum Black Holes in the Lab

By John Preskill
July 15, 2020
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Can we test speculations about how quantum physics affects black holes and the Big Bang?

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The Math of Social Distancing Is a Lesson in Geometry

By Patrick Honner
July 13, 2020
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How to safely reopen offices, schools and other public spaces while keeping people six feet apart comes down to a question mathematicians have been studying for centuries.

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The Two Forms of Mathematical Beauty

By Robbert Dijkgraaf
June 16, 2020
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Mathematicians typically appreciate either generic or exceptional beauty in their work, but one type is more useful in describing the universe.

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Spreading the Word on a Possible Alzheimer’s Treatment

By R. Douglas Fields
May 27, 2020
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Neuroscientists could use brain waves to spur immune cells into action against the disease — but the process is almost too fantastic to believe.


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