Mathematics

For over 150 years, a rule of thumb dating back to the French mathematician Pierre Ossian Bonnet has been accepted in surface theory: If the metric and mean curvature of a compact surface are known […]

New research from the Complexity Science Hub (CSH) shows why widely used algorithms for measuring economic complexity produce trustworthy results and how these tools may benefit diverse areas such as ecology, social science, and agentic […]

David Cutler is in the spotlight for his work on a tasty-sounding mathematics problem. In January, the New York Times featured a research paper authored by Cutler and Neil Sloane, the founder of The On-line […]

At some point, most people have found themselves holding a tilted carton of milk or bottle of cooking oil, patiently waiting for the last drops to drip out. Now, physicists at Brown University have done […]

A comprehensive game plan and strategic tactics are critical to winning soccer, but how much does a team’s unpredictability in moving the soccer ball around the pitch matter? In a new article published in PLOS […]

Probability underpins AI, cryptography and statistics. However, as the philosopher Bertrand Russell said, “Probability is the most important concept in modern science, especially as nobody has the slightest notion what it means.”This post was originally […]

In crowds, most people are strangers to you, and everyone else for that matter. However, until now, the effect of stranger-to-stranger interactions on the choices people make in crowds has not been properly examined. Ziqi […]

Why do some melodies feel instantly right, balanced, memorable and satisfying, even if you have never heard them before? New research from the University of Waterloo suggests that more than creativity is at play.This post […]

Many personal transportation-related decisions—such as vehicle purchases—are influenced by life events, like the birth of a child or a change in employment. Modeling tools that reflect how life trajectories evolve over time enable researchers and […]

Why do some systems collapse suddenly after what seems like a minor disturbance? A single transmission line failure can cascade into widespread blackouts. A delayed shipment can ripple through a global supply chain, emptying store […]