We’ve seen that semialgebraic Teddy and semialgebraic Lambkin are both images of a four-dimensional ball. Could they be images of each other? The Teddy-Lambkin Theorem Ursula Whitcher Mathematical Reviews (AMS) My given name means bear—it’s the same root as the constellation Ursa Major—so growing up I had a huge collectionRead More →
Willa is an economist and Cara is a mathematician, so together they have decided to turn the problem of which game to play into a separate meta-game. Because they both love numbers, Willa and Cara start by creating matrices... Elliptic curves come to date night Ursula Whitcher Mathematical Reviews (AMS)Read More →
One of the fundamental forces in the universe is the weak force. The weak force is involved in holding atoms together or breaking them apart... Putting a period on mathematical physics Ursula Whitcher Mathematical Reviews (AMS) You've heard of periods at the ends of sentences and periods of sine waves.Read More →
What is the E8 lattice that appears in Viazovska's proof? What makes it special? How do you use it to pack spheres? Eight-dimensional spheres and the exceptional E8 Ursula Whitcher Mathematical Reviews (AMS) In Helsinki this summer, Ukrainian mathematician Maryna Viazovska was awarded a Fields Medal "for the proof thatRead More →
Studying supersymmetry in physically realistic situations requires a tremendous amount of physical and mathematical sophistication. We’re going to simplify as much as possible: all the way down to zero spatial dimensions! Designing supersymmetry Ursula Whitcher Mathematical Reviews (AMS) Mathematicians and physicists both love symmetry, but depending on who you’re talkingRead More →
The Battle of Numbers Our topic is the game called rithmomachia or rithmomachy—literally, the battle of numbers... Ursula Whitcher AMS | Mathematical Reviews, Ann Arbor, Michigan This month, we're going to explore a very old—indeed, medieval—educational game and correct a mathematical error in a sixteenth-century game manual. But before weRead More →
The Once and Future Feature Column We’re going to look back at the Column’s history, revisit some of our favorite columns, and talk about what comes next. Spoiler alert: We’re recruiting new columnists! Ursula Whitcher AMS | Mathematical Reviews, Ann Arbor, Michigan The number 24 has many charming properties. ForRead More →
Risk Analysis and Romance Happily ever after for Courtney Milan’s math-major heroine Maria Camilla Lopez involves a master’s degree focused on risk analysis. Let’s explore real-world research in risk and management, from food bank strategies to the moons of Jupiter. Ursula Whitcher AMS | Mathematical Reviews, Ann Arbor, Michigan FebruaryRead More →
Just as a YouTube algorithm might recommend videos with more and more extremist views, machine learning techniques applied to crime data can magnify existing injustice. … Ursula Whitcher AMS | Mathematical Reviews, Ann Arbor, Michigan What is predictive policing? Predictive policing is a law enforcement technique in which officers chooseRead More →
From Strings to Mirrors To tell you where mirror symmetry came from, I have to tell you about string theory. And to do that, I have to tell you why you should care about string theory in the first place. That story starts with an old question: what is theRead More →