In 1886 the mathematician Leopold Kronecker famously said, “God Himself made the whole numbers — everything else is the work of men.” Indeed, mathematicians have introduced new sets of numbers besides ...

A team of four prominent mathematicians, including two Fields medalists, proved a conjecture described as a “holy grail of additive combinatorics.” Within a month, a loose collaboration verified it ...

Consider this sequence of numbers: 5, 7, 9. Can you spot the pattern? Here’s another with the same pattern: 15, 19, 23. One more: 232, 235, 238. “Three equally spaced things,” says Raghu Meka, a ...

Teaching set theory to six-year-olds as a way into mathematics, from arithmetic on, would come to be considered misguided, overcomplicating the basics and introducing jargon. Yet however radical a ...

Gear-obsessed editors choose every product we review. We may earn commission if you buy from a link. Why Trust Us? A mathematician may have just proved the impossible possible. For 30 years, ...