Shrinking blob speeds traveling salesman on his way

(Phys.org) —What is the shortest route that a traveling salesman must take to visit a number of specified cities in a tour, stopping at each city once and only once before returning to the starting point? The most accurate ...

Cutting through the spin on supermassive black holes

Astronomers have measured the spin of a black hole buried in the heart of a galaxy located 56 million light years away, and discovered it was spinning quickly – about as quickly as it could go. That was the big news, based ...

Math conundrums explained

How does the Google search ranking system work? Can mathematics explain the Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day? A new web series of 'The Algebra of Everything' will explore these questions and more.

Shipping technology streamlines UPS' holiday rush

When Keith Short began delivering packages for UPS 23 years ago, he used bulky pads of paper to track parcels and pens that froze in the cold. Today, Short scans packages on and off his truck with a handheld computer that ...

Celebrating the mathematical genius Ramanujan

On December 22, 1887, Srinivasa Ramanujan was born to a poor family in the state of Tamil Nadu in South India. From humble and obscure beginnings, he blossomed into one of the greatest mathematical geniuses of all time. Largely ...

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