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A Drunkard’s Walk in Manhattan
...and a lifelong puzzle enthusiast. One of the most cherished mathematical learning moments of my youth came from an old and very funny math book, whose name I have sadly...
Mathematicians Bridge Finite-Infinite Divide
...1921 commanded mathematicians to weave infinity completely into the fold of finitistic mathematics. Hilbert saw finitistic reducibility as the only remedy for the skepticism then surrounding the new mathematics of...
A Mathematician Who Decodes the Patterns Stamped Out by Life
...Corina Tarnita was a budding mathematician, she found her interest in mathematics flickering, about to burn out. As a girl she had stormed through Romania’s National Mathematical Olympiad — where...
With Category Theory, Mathematics Escapes From Equality
...20th century, mathematicians increasingly began to do math in terms of weaker notions of equivalence such as homotopy. “As math gets more subtle, it’s inevitable that we have this progression...
Mathematicians Calculate How Randomness Creeps In
...of the mathematical understanding of randomness. “They’re in this sweet spot where we can still analyze them, [yet] they describe many phenomena of interest,” said Yuval Peres, a mathematician who’s...
The Mathematician Who Sculpted the Shape of Space
...1976, Yau met with Calabi and another mathematician, who confirmed the validity of his proof, establishing the mathematical existence of objects now called Calabi-Yau manifolds. In 1982, Yau won a...
How Can Some Infinities Be Bigger Than Others?
...have to do with the foundations of mathematics itself? (01:14) Joining me today to discuss infinity is Justin Moore, professor of mathematics at Cornell. His research interests include set theory,...
Yves Meyer, Wavelet Expert, Wins Abel Prize
...cited “for his pivotal role in the development of the mathematical theory of wavelets.” [No Caption] The French mathematician Yves Meyer, a self-described “nomad” who has made deep contributions to...
A Mathematician Whose Only Constant Is Change
Amie Wilkinson searches for exotic examples of the mathematical structures that describe change. Amie Wilkinson is an explorer. Instead of seeking uncharted land, she’s after undiscovered mathematical worlds — complex...