Runner up in the general public category. Great minds spark controversy. This is something you'd expect to hear about a great philosopher or artist, but not about a mathematician. Get ready to bin your stereotypes as Rebecca Morris describes some controversial ideas of the great mathematician David Hilbert.

Outer space: How to beat that photocopier

Learn about the aerodynamics of footballs and perfect your free kick.

You've probably seen pictures of the famed Mandelbrot set and its mysterious cousins, the Julia sets. In this article Robert L. Devaney explores the maths behind these beauties and shows that they're loaded with mathematical meaning.

How to keep up the suspense

What goes up must come down — or does it? Find out how to cheat gravity with Julian Havil.

What does a mathematician from the 3rd century BC have to do with tuning musical instruments in 17th century Europe? Benjamin Wardhaugh tells us about one of the more unusual places you might find Euclid's algorithm being used.

In the last article of this three-part series, Phil Wilson shows how simple graphs can tell you a lot about the economy — and not only in Slugworld.