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AI challenges math by solving the unsolvable

Announcements over recent months that artificial intelligence models have cracked previously unsolvable problems are shaking top-level mathematicians to the core, and they are now asking themselves: Where do we come in?

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Mathematician challenges a 2,000-year-old legend about the Parthenon's optical illusions
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OpenAI says 10,000 AI agents cracked one of math's hardest problems in 88 hours
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Some disagreement makes groups more trustworthy, mathematical framework finds
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Can a full moon really bring bad luck? What about Friday the 13th?
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Rapid simulation of heat propagation through multiple rods
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New clustering method uncovers hidden regularities in data
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Switching gravity on and off leaves particles behind, mathematical model finds
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How high scores in an online brain teaser made mathematicians lie for three years
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More than half of adults in US say they lack basic statistical understanding
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Dice design solves board gaming's most surprisingly complex problem—who goes first?
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Can math prove that Humpty Dumpty was simply mismanaged?
Mathematics
Quantum Latin squares cannot solve Euler's 36 officers problem without entanglement
Mathematics
Consistency-based rewards could build lasting cooperation better than punishing free-riders
Mathematics
When it comes to predicting people's preferences, it pays to consider 'the power of three'
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Generative AI has changed mathematics forever. Where to from here?
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Building better prediction models for consumer choices
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Math shows why your vote may not count the way you think it does

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Plasma Physics
Single X-ray pulse reveals plasma nanostructures across scales with one camera
General Physics
'One-positron cyclotron' could test a key prediction of the Standard Model
Earth Sciences
Ancient stalagmites reveal exceptions to Asia–South America monsoon seesaw over the past 450,000 years
Plants & Animals
Seabird family tree predicts which species accumulate plastic better than diet, global analysis finds
Environment
Cleaner brick kilns cut pollution, but gains did not reach workers, research finds
Cell & Microbiology
Newly identified protein pathway helps HIV stay hidden despite treatment
Education
Swinging virtual lightsabers and punching improve pattern-based learning in VR tests
Plants & Animals
Glowing plants reveal immune responses around infection sites via two colors
Optics & Photonics
Counting magnetic flux quanta offers new way to measure photon numbers
Analytical Chemistry
Scientists demonstrate AI-designed enzyme for drug synthesis
Nanomaterials
Chemically modified sugars enable direct nanostructure formation
Optics & Photonics
Plain silicon grating reveals a hidden 'twist' in light from electron beams
Paleontology & Fossils
Rare fossils reveal what ancient Denisovans may have looked like
Biotechnology
DNA programs a cell-free material to build its own motors and move
Astronomy
ALMA spots 'dragon egg' that may represent the earliest stages of massive star formation
Astronomy
Black holes spinning near maximum rate could split in two, calculations suggest
Quantum Physics
Experiment shows when quantum 'cat' states stop bouncing back
Earth Sciences
Sinking Antarctic ice reveals a hidden lake's massive water loss
Evolution
An ancient virus in chimpanzee DNA switches off a gene that is active in humans
Political science
AI agents can form political camps—and changing their conversation partners does little to soften their views

Seeing global trade through the lens of physics

New research from the Complexity Science Hub (CSH) shows why widely used algorithms for measuring economic complexity produce trustworthy results and how these tools may benefit diverse areas such as ecology, social science, ...

Student serves up fresh solutions to the pancake problem

David Cutler is in the spotlight for his work on a tasty-sounding mathematics problem. In January, the New York Times featured a research paper authored by Cutler and Neil Sloane, the founder of The On-line Encyclopedia of ...