public understanding of mathematics
100 years after the birth of Paul Dirac, mathematicians and physicists gather to celebrate his beautiful work.
Evolution is the main theme of this issue. With Darwin's anniversary year not too far off, we find out how to reconstruct the tree of life and how to spot the fingerprint of natural selection. We report on the rapidly melting Arctic, bound to destroy much of evolution's achievements, and explore the maths used in ice and ocean models. And we have a look at cellular automata, simple mathematical models that can evolve surprisingly complex behaviour. Plus you can learn how to best distribute money amongst your employees without evolving envy.
Among all the coverage of celebrities' love lives, where is the news that counts? Plus examines maths in the media.
One million dollars is waiting to be won by anyone who can solve one of the grand mathematical challenges of the 21st century. But be warned...these problems are hard. In the first of two articles, Chris Budd explains how to hit the bigtime.
You will often hear it said that we live in
the "Information Age" - but are we drowning
in this sea of information?
And, can you be a mathematician without being good at sums?
Tell us what you think!
Whether you love maths or hate maths, your opinions on the subject were probably formed early. So primary teachers have a vital role to play in promoting mathematical skills. Plus meets primary teacher and maths coordinator Maureen Matthews.
It isn't often that a mathematical equation makes the national press, far less popular radio, or most astonishingly of all, is the subject of a debate in the UK parliament. However, as Chris Budd and Chris Sangwin tell us, in 2003 the good old quadratic equation, which we all learned about in school, reached these dizzy pinnacles of fame.
In issue 29 of Plus, we heard how a simple mathematical equation became the subject of a debate in the UK parliament. Chris Budd and Chris Sangwin continue the story of the mighty quadratic equation.
In this issue we illuminate logic, find out why everything's relative, take a journey on the interplanetary superhighway, and maybe even encounter extraterrestrial life.
What is maths? Is it an art form with every idea a work of perfect beauty? Is it a quest for truth that may one day deliver a Theory of Everything? Or is it a tool, essential in anything from fighting crime to calculating airline ticket prices? In this issue we show you that it's all of these, and that it can even produce its own media superstars.
The image on the left shows artist Carla Farsi's painting The birth of Hiroshima.
One hundred years ago, in 1905, Albert Einstein changed physics forever with his special theory of relativity. Since then his name — and hair do — have become synonymous with genius. John D Barrow looks at Einstein as a media star.
Plus celebrates its tenth birthday this year. Former editor and present executive editor of Plus, Robert Hunt, explores how maths popularisation in general, and Plus in particular, have changed over the last ten years.
What's the risk of passive smoking? Or climate change? How big is the terrorist threat? And should we trust league tables? These issues concern all of us, but it's not always easy to make sense of the barrage of media information. David Spiegelhalter, Winton Professor for the Public Understanding of Risk, gives Plus his take on uncertainty.
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