What's up in

Mathematics

Latest Articles

Decades-Old Computer Science Conjecture Solved in Two Pages

July 25, 2019

The “sensitivity” conjecture stumped many top computer scientists, yet the new proof is so simple that one researcher summed it up in a single tweet.

Quantum Supremacy Is Coming: Here’s What You Should Know

July 18, 2019

Researchers are getting close to building a quantum computer that can perform tasks a classical computer can’t. Here’s what the milestone will mean.

How Randomness Can Make Math Easier

July 9, 2019

Randomness would seem to make a mathematical statement harder to prove. In fact, it often does the opposite.

Random Surfaces Hide an Intricate Order

July 2, 2019

Mathematicians have proved that a random process applied to a random surface will yield consistent patterns.

When Magic Is Seen in Twisted Graphene, That’s a Moiré

June 20, 2019

What do moiré patterns seen in optics, art, photography and color printing have to do with superconducting layers of graphene?

How to Turn a Quantum Computer Into the Ultimate Randomness Generator

June 19, 2019

Pure, verifiable randomness is hard to come by. Two proposals show how to make quantum computers into randomness factories.

A New Law to Describe Quantum Computing’s Rise?

June 18, 2019

Neven’s law states that quantum computers are improving at a “doubly exponential” rate. If it holds, quantum supremacy is around the corner.

A 53-Year-Old Network Coloring Conjecture Is Disproved

June 17, 2019

In just three pages, a Russian mathematician has presented a better way to color certain types of networks than many experts thought possible.

Q&A

A Mathematician Whose Only Constant Is Change

June 13, 2019

Amie Wilkinson searches for exotic examples of the mathematical structures that describe change.

Get highlights of the most important news delivered to your email inbox