Some mathematical problems are easy to describe but turn out to be notoriously difficult to solve. Nonetheless, despite their reputed difficulty and repeated warnings from those who had failed to solve them in the past, these infamous problems continue to lure mathematicians into hours, days, and even years of futile labor.
Billiard-ball trajectory after 15 bounces on a table in the shape of an equilateral triangle.
Log in
Subscribers, enter your e-mail address for full access to the Science News archives and digital editions.