Kevin Hartnett

Kevin Hartnett

Contributing Writer

Latest Articles

Universal Pattern Explains Why Materials Conduct

May 6, 2019

Mathematicians have found that materials conduct electricity when electrons follow a universal mathematical pattern.

A New Approach to Multiplication Opens the Door to Better Quantum Computers

April 24, 2019

Quantum computers can’t selectively forget information. A new algorithm for multiplication shows a way around that problem.

Mathematicians Discover the Perfect Way to Multiply

April 11, 2019

By chopping up large numbers into smaller ones, researchers have rewritten a fundamental mathematical speed limit.

Cryptography That Is Provably Secure

April 2, 2019

Researchers have just released hacker-proof cryptographic code — programs with the same level of invincibility as a mathematical proof.

In Quantum Games, There’s No Way to Play the Odds

April 1, 2019

These games combine quantum entanglement, infinity and impossible-to-calculate winning probabilities. But if researchers can crack them, they’ll reveal deep mathematical secrets.

Proof Finds That All Change Is a Mix of Order and Randomness

March 27, 2019

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

Smaller Is Better: Why Finite Number Systems Pack More Punch

February 11, 2019

Recent progress on the “sum product” problem recalls a celebrated mathematical result that revealed the power of miniature number systems.

How a Strange Grid Reveals Hidden Connections Between Simple Numbers

February 6, 2019

A graduate student has helped illuminate a long-suspected connection between addition and multiplication.

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