Mathematics

Plagued by jet lag?   If we can send a rocket to the moon why can't we figure out how to fly to different time zones and still be fresh?  Researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital and the University of Michigan say they have developed a software program that prescribes a light exposure regimen for avoiding jet lag. Traveling across several times zones can cause an individual to experience jet lag, including trouble sleeping at night and thus difficulty remaining awake during the day. These effects largely reflect de-synchronization between the body's internal time clock and local…

Given the thousands of years of modern human history, all the brilliant minds that have popped up in science during that time, and especially advances in the last half century or so in computers, how many Mersenne prime numbers do you think we've discovered? Turns out, only 46 - until recently, when the 47th was discovered by a "prime hunter" in Norway. (This one's for you, Bente, since I failed you in the thunder article.) Bear with me, even if you aren't a math wizard, as the story is a quirky testament to the power of the media and the ability of anyone to contribute to science, amateur or…

In his “Practical Security” column in the May/June issue of IEEE Internet Computing magazine, Stephen Farrell talks about strength of cipher-suites, and the fact that the overall strength is not simply measured by the key length of which the user is aware. It’s a useful thing to understand if you’re responsible for implementing encryption, and it’s something that we often get wrong, using strong asymmetric encryption up front, but weaker symmetric encryption behind it, or the other way around. As often happens, though, when we try to state things simply, he says something that’s a little…

Recently, I was discussing the relative virtues of four-door and two-door cars with a friend. I prefer four-door cars, because they make it much easier for back-seat passengers to get in and out (they make it easier to access the back seat, in general). My friend prefers two-door cars, because he seldom has back-seat passengers, and the larger doors of two-door cars make it easier for the front-seat occupants to get in and out. “But,” I say, “on a two-door car, the doors are larger and heavier. Also, if you’re in a limited space, the doors can’t open as far, and the smaller opening actually…

After the victory of IBM's Deep Blue against Garry Kasparov, the game of Go has replaced chess as a test bed for research in artificial intelligence (AI). Go is one of the last board games where humans are still able to easily win against AI. Although there has been quite some research in the Go domain for 40 years, the progress in Computer Go has been slow. However, researchers have discovered new performing algorithms and computers are catching up really fast. Since 2006, when a new algorithm called Monte-Carlo Tree Search was proposed, the level of Go programs has improved drastically.…

Frederick II (1194 –1250), Holy Roman Emperor and King of Sicily, so I have read, preferred equation-solving contests to watching knights impaling each other in jousting. Certainly, the great mathematician we know today as Fibonacci spent some time at his court. As a result of this development, Italy became a leading centre of the mathematical arts, and by the 1530s the solving of cubic equations was all the rage in Venice, with great prize money. In 1535 a spectacular victory was scored by Nicolo Tartaglia (1500 –1557). He was persuaded by Gerolamo Cardano (1501 –1576) to divulge the secret…

No matter what you read in the various published strategy guides and online chat rooms about pot odds, implied odds, reverse-implied odds and pot equity, there is no mathematically definite strategy for poker played in casinos. Because the best poker is unpredictable and in casinos you are likely to experience the best poker, all decisions are eventually somewhat intuitive. (Like the stock market, you can’t figure out Dan Harrington—if you could, you could beat him. Note: you can’t.) However, online poker—for better or for worse—is different. The sheer volume of online players (and the…

Science and engineering are advancing rapidly in part due to ever more powerful computer simulations, yet the most advanced supercomputers require programming skills that all too few U.S. researchers possess. At the same time, affordable computers and committed national programs outside the U.S. are eroding American competitiveness in number of simulation-driven fields, according to findings in the International Assessment of Research and Development in Simulation-Based Engineering and Science, released on Apr. 22, 2009, by the World Technology Evaluation Center (WTEC). Like other WTEC…

c.280 Pappus, an Egyptian mathematician, compiled a summary of all mathematical knowledge to date (list) c.300 In Bernares, Vatsayana Mallagana publishes the Kama Sutra, a comprehensive guide to sexual etiquete. c. 310 Diophantus of Alexandria outlined the elements of algebra, including the composition of formulas and the substitution of letters for unknown quantaties. Meanwhile, the Huns, originally from Siberia, invaded Europe 375 c. 500 India, Aryabhata demonstrates the use of negative numbers and trigonometry.  c.520 Indian mathematicians adopt the decimal system. 

Two researchers from the Spanish Centre of Astrobiology (INTA-CSIC) have developed a mathematical model which demonstrates that a mild increase in the mutation rate of some viruses can reduce their infectivity, driving them to extinction. The study, published recently in Europhysics Letters, could have clinical uses in the medium term. "The model we present shows how simple evolutionary mechanisms can cause the extinction of populations of fast mutating pathogens, such as certain viruses", co-author of the study and Centre of Astrobiology researcher Susanna C. Manrubia explained to Servicio…