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The Maths Inside the 2011 Summer Science Exhibition

Plus has teamed up with the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition 2011 to reveal the maths behind some of the science on show. We have chosen two exhibits from this year's participants and produced postcards for people to pick up at the stand, accopmanied by Plus articles to reveal some of the the maths behind them. Read the articles and if you can't make it to the exhibition yourself, you can also download pdfs of the postcards.

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Colouring by numbers

How does a computer understand the colours to be displayed on the monitor's screen? It's all about red, green and blue and numbers written in a special way.
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The philosophy of applied mathematics

We all take for granted that mathematics can be used to describe the world, but when you think about it this fact is rather stunning. This article explores what the applicability of maths says about the various branches of mathematical philosophy.
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Teacher package: Infinite series

One of the first bits of school maths that gives us a real glimpse of infinity are infinite series: those never-ending sums that may nevertheless add up to a finite number. For this teacher package we've brought together all our articles on these beautiful objects.
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Anyone for tennis (and tennis and tennis...)?

As the Wimbledon 2011 Championships hove into view, memories will be reawakened of the match of epic proportions that took place last year between the American John Isner and the Frenchman Nicolas Mahut. So just how freaky was their titanic fifth set and what odds might a bookmaker offer for a repeat?
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The maths of gold medals: Four Olympic thoughts

It's not the winning, it's the taking part that counts. At least, that's what the Olympic creed would have us believe. But, like it or not, what the media and governments focus on is the tally of gold medals. This article explores some of the maths of gold.
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Science fiction, science fact: reports from the frontiers of physics

What is time? What is space? Are there parallel universes? Join Plus and FQXi on a journey exploring these and many more questions on the frontiers of physics. What do you think is science fiction and what do you think we close to proving are science facts? Find out more about scientific developments in these areas, ask your own questions and debate the answers!
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Keeping track of immunity

Dengue fever does the opposite of what you might expect. Unlike for many diseases, if you've had this tropical virus and recovered, you might be worse off, as a second exposure to the dengue virus can be life threatening. So keeping track of the strains of the diseases is an important problem which can be solved with the help of a little randomness.
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Shaping our bones

We know that applying a force to a bone during its development can influence its growth and shape. But can we use our understanding of how developing bone reacts to mechanical forces to help people suffering from diseases that lead to bone deformities?
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Finding your way home without knowing where you are

Foraging ants have a hard life, embarking on long and arduous trips several times a day, until they drop dead from exhaustion. The trips are not just long, they also follow complex zig-zag paths. So how do ants manage to find their way back home? And how do they manage to do so along a straight line? Their secret lies in a little geometry.