Mathematics

So-called Rayleigh–Bloch waves can release an enormous amount of energy that can damage technical systems under certain circumstances. They only exist below a precisely defined cut-off frequency; above this, they disappear abruptly. Strangely enough, however, […]

A new study in Nature Communications explores the dynamics of higher-order novelties, identifying fascinating patterns in how we combine existing elements to create novelty, potentially reshaping our understanding of human creativity and innovation.This post was […]

How clans form and evolve within human societies has been modeled using a simple computer model developed by a RIKEN researcher and a collaborator. This demonstration opens the way to modeling complex human social phenomena […]

The temperature changes hour to hour and day to day; exchange rates behave no differently. Wherever studies of the variability of similar one-dimensional time series are concerned, analyses based on multifractals have managed to gain […]

Western researchers have developed a novel technique using math to understand exactly how neural networks make decisions—a widely recognized but poorly understood process in the field of machine learning.This post was originally published on this […]

Geometry is an important branch of mathematics, which we use to understand the properties of 2D and 3D space such as distance, shape, size and position. We use geometry every day: cutting paper to wrap […]

Partial Differential Equations (PDEs) are central to both pure and applied mathematics. Any quantity which changes in space and time will satisfy certain partial differential equations because the laws of nature, and the laws of […]

Political and ideological barriers can shape the progress of academic disciplines, warns Ivan Boldyrev. In a paper appearing in the Journal of Economic Literature , the historian of economics at Radboud University explores the complex […]

Hula hooping is so commonplace that we may overlook some interesting questions it raises: “What keeps a hula hoop up against gravity?” and “Are some body types better for hula hooping than others?” A team […]

With billions of children around the world anxiously waiting for their presents, Father Christmas (or Santa) and his reindeer must be traveling at breakneck speeds to deliver them all in one night.This post was originally […]