Randomness

Mathematicians have proved that a random process applied to a random surface will yield consistent patterns.

Pure, verifiable randomness is hard to come by. Two proposals show how to make quantum computers into randomness factories.

All descriptions of change are a unique blend of chance and determinism, according to the sweeping mathematical proof of the “weak Pinsker conjecture.”

City blocks help illustrate why walking randomly tends to take you away from your starting point.

Why is it that when you walk randomly, the more you walk, the farther you get from your starting point?

Mathematicians have had a hard time finding commonalities in large groups of random shapes — until recently.

Researchers have uncovered deep connections among different types of random objects, illuminating hidden geometric structures.

A previously unnoticed property of prime numbers seems to violate a long-standing assumption about how they behave.

The counterintuitive solution to this month’s puzzle raises philosophical questions about randomness and information.