Column
- Humans
The Ignobility of Wrinkles
A theoretical study of the way skin, apple peel, and bedsheets wrinkle has won this year's Ig Nobel Prize in Physics.
- Math
A Tangled Tale
A piece of string tumbled over and over quickly develops knots, explaining why your headphone cords are always in a tangle.
- Math
A Prayer for Archimedes
A long-lost work by Archimedes shows his subtle grasp of the notion of infinity, and how close he was to developing calculus.
- Math
Beating the Bush for Patterns
Across some arid landscapes, sparse vegetation grows in fractal patterns that hold clues to its resilience.
- Math
The Essence of Group Conflict
Eruptions of open conflict between ethnic or religious groups have a lot to do with the way communities are geographically distributed.
- Math
Separate Is Never Equal
Economic forces alone can explain why social segregation leads to inequalities in wealth and achievement.
- Math
May the Best Team Win
In sports leagues and playoffs, the strongest teams often don't triumph, but redesigning the schedule of games can improve their chances.
- Math
Kidney Matchmaking
A mathematical optimization strategy for pairing patients who need kidneys with willing donors could increase the number and quality of transplants.
- Computing
Squashing Worms
Defeating computer worms that mutate will take some smart defense strategies.
- Math
Calculating the Word Spurt
Mathematics, not brain development, explains why toddlers begin to pick up words quickly after a slow start.
- Math
Cracking the Cube
A combination of mathematical analysis and supercomputer number-crunching proves that any Rubik's Cube can be solved in 26 moves or fewer.
- Computing
Cloudy Crystal Balls
Computer programs that model climate may be so complex that global warming predictions will never settle on a single, definitive answer.
