permutation

The mathematics of shuffling

A journey into the maths of card shuffling gives us a great insight into how mathematicians work.

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Maths in a minute: Flipping pancakes

In time for pancake day here's a problem about flipping pancakes. It turns out to be surprisingly hard.

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Of pancakes, mice and men

Genes normally evolve by tiny mutations, but every now and then something more radical occurs and entire genes along a chromosome get flipped. Understanding gene flipping boils down to solving a problem from pure maths. Colva Roney-Dougal and Vincent Vatter explain, taking us on a journey from waiters sorting pancakes, via one of the richest men in the world, to the genetic similarities of mice and humans.

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Ringing the changes

Did you know that church bell ringers have to memorise sequences of several thousand numbers, and that it can take up to 18 hours to translate these sequences into perfect bell ringing? Burkard Polster and Marty Ross explain why, and explore the maths behind bell ringing.

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Knitting by numbers

Lucinda Mathews visualises tricky surfaces

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Chaos, chance and money

With the credit crunch dominating the news, columnists have been wailing about "chaos in the markets", and "turbulent" share prices. But what does move the markets? Are they deterministic, or a result of chance? Colva Roney-Dougal explores the maths, from chaos to group theory.

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Rubik success in twenty-six steps

Computer scientists prove how long it should take you to solve Rubik's cube

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Take a break

There are many errors that can occur when numbers are written, printed or transferred in any manner. Luckily, there are schemes in place to detect, and in some cases even correct, such errors almost immediately. Emily Dixon takes a break and discovers that codes are not just for sleuths.

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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.

Maths in a minute: Mathematical models

A basic introduction to the most powerful tools in science and enginnering.
Climate change: How can maths help?

As COP28, the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, kicks off we look at how maths can help understand the climate crisis.
The travelling salesman

How do you create dramatic film out of mathematics? We find out with writer and director Timothy Lanzone.
Disease modelling for beginners

Mathematics plays a central role in understanding how infectious diseases spread. This collection of articles looks at some basic concepts in epidemiology to help you understand this fascinating and important field, and set you up for further study.
Maths in a minute: Conditional probability

Find out why the formula we use to work out conditional probabilities is true!

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