Archive

The molecular biologist Bonnie Bassler is deciphering the chemical languages that bacteria use to coordinate their assaults on a host.

By harnessing randomness, a new algorithm achieves a fundamentally novel — and faster — way of performing one of the most basic computations in math and computer science.

A former graduate student reflects on how Isadore Singer, who died on February 11, brought together mathematicians, physicists and anyone else interested in the deeper connections between diverse fields.

A new thought experiment indicates that quantum mechanics doesn’t work without strange numbers that turn negative when squared.

In a second season of enlightened conversations, Steven Strogatz and leading researchers nourish our pandemic-starved minds.

The paleontologist Neil Shubin talks with host Steven Strogatz about hunting for a 375 million-year-old fossil and finding novel traits that evolved many times.

To the surprise of experts in the field, a postdoctoral statistician has solved one of the most important problems in high-dimensional convex geometry.

Researchers are tracking the different strains of SARS-CoV-2 and studying how they spread through our population and our bodies.

Twenty years ago, physicists set out to investigate a mysterious asymmetry in the proton’s interior. Their results, published today, show how antimatter helps stabilize every atom’s core.