News

Congratulations to the new Stephen W Hawking Professor of Cosmology!

Cosmologists celebrated with champagne and cake today, in honour of Stephen Hawking's new Chair in Cosmology.

Maths in a minute: Counting numbers

Are there more irrational numbers than rational numbers, or more rational numbers than irrational numbers? Well, there are infinitely many of both, so the question doesn't make sense. It turns out, however, that the set of rational numbers is infinite in a very different way from the set of irrational numbers.

Ice, ice baby

With spring (hopefully) on its way, it looks increasingly less likely that we will be blessed with the cold, white, fluffy stuff this year. But if the winter Olympics leave you yearning for snow and ice, here are some related maths stories for you.

Infinity or -1/12?

What do you get when you add up all the natural numbers 1+2+3+4+ ... ? Not -1/12! We explore a strange result that has been making the rounds recently.

Maths solves frozen mystery

A mathematical model of the evolution of glaciers solves 88-year-old mystery.

Living in the matrix?

There's no doubt that maths is very good at describing the world around us. Could this be because the Universe we live in is itself a mathematical structure? We talk to Max Tegmark.

Find out why star crossed lovers take a chance

The upcoming Gresham College lectures will brighten the greyest February day – from the brightest stars to finding true love, you have to give these a chance.

Sick of Facebook? Read on...

A new study suggests that Facebook is heading for a very rapid decline.

Maths in a minute: Is greed good?

Not necessarily, when it comes to money.

Looking for lost primes

Look for hidden gems in the gaps between known prime numbers.

Plus Advent Calendar Door #24: Santa's knapsack problem

Can Santa fit all the presents in his sack in time?

Plus Advent Calendar Door #23: Beautiful ellipses

Santa's not the only one who cares if you've been naughty or nice!