Latest Articles
Computer Scientists Achieve ‘Crown Jewel’ of Cryptography
A cryptographic master tool called indistinguishability obfuscation has for years seemed too good to be true. Three researchers have figured out that it can work.
Computer Scientists Break Traveling Salesperson Record
After 44 years, there’s finally a better way to find approximate solutions to the notoriously difficult traveling salesperson problem.
Mathematicians Report New Discovery About the Dodecahedron
Three mathematicians have resolved a fundamental question about straight paths on the 12-sided Platonic solid.
Landmark Math Proof Clears Hurdle in Top Erdős Conjecture
Two mathematicians have proved the first leg of Paul Erdős’ all-time favorite problem about number patterns.
A Number Theorist Who Solves the Hardest Easy Problems
In his rapid ascent to the top of his field, James Maynard has cut a path through simple-sounding questions about prime numbers that have stumped mathematicians for centuries.
In a Single Measure, Invariants Capture the Essence of Math Objects
To distinguish between fundamentally different objects, mathematicians turn to invariants that encode the objects’ essential features.
Graduate Student Solves Decades-Old Conway Knot Problem
It took Lisa Piccirillo less than a week to answer a long-standing question about a strange knot discovered over half a century ago by the legendary John Conway.
‘Amazing’ Math Bridge Extended Beyond Fermat’s Last Theorem
Mathematicians have figured out how to expand the reach of a mysterious bridge connecting two distant continents in the mathematical world.
What Is the Geometry of the Universe?
In our mind’s eye, the universe seems to go on forever. But using geometry we can explore a variety of three-dimensional shapes that offer alternatives to “ordinary” infinite space.