List by Author: The Plus team

John Barrow: stories of the Universe

We remember the brilliant cosmologist, mathematician and science communicator, John D. Barrow.
Andrew Wiles: what does it feel like to do maths?
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We were very excited to meet Andrew Wiles this summer! In this interview and videos he tells us what it was like to prove Fermat's Last Theorem, and what it feels like to do maths.
What is a black hole – mathematically?

Pau Figueras explains how Einstein's theories predicted the existence of black holes, and how to describe them mathematically.
What is a black hole – physically?

Small, dark, and very hard to see. This and far more indepth answers to every question you ever wanted to ask about black holes.
The longitude problem

How longitude presented one of the greatest problems in history.
Latitude by the stars

Why the North Star tells you your latitude.
Finding your place in the world

What are global coordinates?
Sexual statistics

David Spiegelhalter's new book Sex by numbers takes a statistical peek into the nation's bedrooms. In this interview he tells us some of his favourite stories from the book. Read the article or watch the video!
Groups, geometry and Gromov
How close is close?
Operas, revolutions and nature's tricks: a conversation with Freeman Dyson
In February this year we were lucky enough to interview Freeman Dyson at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Princeton, USA. Dyson is now 89 and still does physics every day in his first floor office at the Institute. Here is an edited version of our interview that we hope conveys his generous nature, wit and intellect.
Building bridges from mathematics to the City

Many people's impression of mathematics is that it is an ancient edifice built on centuries of research. However, modern quantitative finance, an area of mathematics with such a great impact on all our lives, is just a few decades old. The Isaac Newton Institute quickly recognised its importance and has already run two seminal programmes, in 1995 and 2005, supporting research in the field of mathematical finance.
  • Maths in a minute

    Want facts and want them fast? Our Maths in a minute series explores key mathematical concepts in just a few words.

  • Chocolate and mayonnaise
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    What do chocolate and mayonnaise have in common? It's maths! Find out how in this podcast featuring engineer Valerie Pinfield.

  • From clicks to chords
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    Is it possible to write unique music with the limited quantity of notes and chords available? We ask musician Oli Freke!

  • The lungs of the Earth

    How can maths help to understand the Southern Ocean, a vital component of the Earth's climate system?

  • SBIDER Presents: Shining a light on COVID modelling
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    Was the mathematical modelling projecting the course of the pandemic too pessimistic, or were the projections justified? Matt Keeling tells our colleagues from SBIDER about the COVID models that fed into public policy.

  • Mathematical snapshots: Daniel Kreuter

    PhD student Daniel Kreuter tells us about his work on the BloodCounts! project, which uses maths to make optimal use of the billions of blood tests performed every year around the globe.