Manon Bischoff is a theoretical physicist and an editor at Spektrum der Wissenschaft, the German-language sister publication of Scientific American.
Dennis Gaitsgory, Who Proved Part of Math’s Grand Unified Theory, Wins Breakthrough Prize
By solving part of the Langlands program, a mathematical proof that was long thought to be unachievable, Dennis Gaitsgory snags a prestigious Breakthrough Prize
Mathematicians Solve Decades-Old Spinning Needle Puzzle
For a long time, the Kakeya conjecture, which involves rotating an infinitely narrow needle, kept mathematicians guessing—until now
Abel Prize Goes to Pioneer Whose ‘Math Toolbox’ Can Be Used to Describe the Natural World
Masaki Kashiwara, this year’s Abel Prize winner, co-founded a new field of mathematics called algebraic analysis
Math Reveals the Formula for a Hollywood Blockbuster
Most movies follow one of six emotional arcs. Which one sells the most tickets?
How Anime Fans Stumbled upon a Mathematical Proof
When a fan of a cult anime series wanted to watch its episodes in every possible order, they asked a question that had perplexed combinatorial mathematicians for years
Are Cats Actually Liquid?
A physicist weighs in on the fluid feline meme
These Prime Numbers Are So Memorable That People Hunt for Them
Math enthusiasts challenge one another to find special prime numbers, including those that are palindromes and Smarandache numbers
Mysterious Constant That Makes Mathematicians Despair
The proof that the Apéry constant is irrational remains one of the most bizarre events in the history of mathematics
The Perfect Beer Glass Shape, according to Math
A mathematician has calculated the ideal shape for a beer glass to keep the liquid inside as cool as possible
Math and Physics Can’t Prove All Truths
Physicists have described a system that requires an incomputable number to fully understand, another example of the provably unprovable puzzles of mathematics
How Geometry Revealed Quantum Memory
The unexpected discovery of a geometric phase shows how math and physics are tightly intertwined
Why Are Close Elections So Common?
When voters decide between two alternatives, as is effectively the case in the U.S. presidential election, it usually comes down to a neck-and-neck race. Researchers can now explain this mathematically
How Mathematicians Wrestled with the Biggest Controversy in the Field
A surprisingly simple concept shook the foundations of mathematics
Evidence of ‘Negative Time’ Found in Quantum Physics Experiment
Physicists showed that photons can seem to exit a material before entering it, revealing observational evidence of negative time
The Strange Story of the Algorithm Meant to Solve Life, the Universe and Everything
Some researchers dream of solving all mysteries with a common method—but a mathematical paradox may keep such solutions out of reach
A New Quantum Cheshire Cat Thought Experiment Is Out of the Box
The spin of a particle seems to detach and move without a body—a strange experimental observation that’s stirring up debate
String Theorists Accidentally Find a New Formula for Pi
Two physicists have come across infinitely many novel equations for pi while trying to develop a unifying theory of the fundamental forces
Three of the Strangest Paradoxes in Mathematics
A barber shaves all men who don’t shave themselves. Does he shave himself? Mathematics offers explanations for this and other curious contradictions
AI Reaches Silver-Medal Level at This Year’s Math Olympiad
During the 2024 International Mathematical Olympiad, Google DeepMind debuted an AI program that can generate complex mathematical proofs
Is the Paris Olympics’ Swimming Pool ‘Slow’? Let’s Dive into the Math
Controversy surrounds whether the Olympic pool in the Paris La Défense Arena is not deep enough and slows swimmers. Is this contention true?
Quantum Physics Has Reopened Zeno’s Paradoxes
For thousands of years, scholars pondered the question of how anything can move in our world. The problem seemed to have been solved—until the development of quantum mechanics
Mathematicians Have Finally Found the Fifth ‘Busiest Beaver’
The busy beaver function is unpredictable. But now, after more than 40 years, the fifth value of the function has been revealed
The Biggest Problem in Mathematics Is Finally a Step Closer to Being Solved
Number theorists have been trying to prove a conjecture about the distribution of prime numbers for more than 160 years
How a Secret Society Discovered Irrational Numbers
Myths and legends surround the origins of these numbers