Two designers tell us how they took the long way round to design, and how the maths and science they took in on the way helps them with their work today.

Teaching a machine to understand music is an incredibly difficult task, which uses all the mathematical power of digital signal processing. But teaching a machine to compose music is quite another matter, and the wonderful world of mathematical patterns proves to be a gold mine. Nick Collins talks to Plus about his artificial musician.

Adrian Dow has a huge change ahead of him: after fourteen years in the UK and around the world, he's about to return to his native Trinidad with the ultimate aim to open his own school. Plus intercepted him on the way to the airport.

Riaz Ahmad's mathematical career has led him from the complexities of blood flow to the risks of the financial markets via underwater acoustics. Plus found out how maths can explain all this and more.

Shane Whelan likes a challenge, and his career path has been defined both by what he enjoyed and by a desire to keep learning. Becoming an actuary seemed like the perfect solution.

Nick Crawley had recently set up his own financial consultancy firm in Sydney, Australia, offering advice on large-scale financing deals. He tells Plus about the challenges and rewards of working in an incentive-driven environment.

Jose Munoz explains how engineering can allow you to explore the unknown, from understanding how mechanical structures bend to investigating the way genes affect the shape of embryos.

Francesca Harris has always known she wanted to work in the music or film industry, and she has found that her maths skills have stood her in good stead as she works her way up.

Jason Winborn specialises in human resource management software Peoplesoft, and has been working freelance as a consultant for four years.

André Léger studies the fluid mechanics of food travelling through the intestines for consumer goods giant Unilever.

Bharat Dodia tells Plus how his love of maths has taken him from turbulent times to building better IT systems for Ford.

In this issue we talk to maths student Emily Dixon about her university studies, and where maths might take her in the future.