Partition functions, which enumerate the distinct ways a positive integer may be expressed as a sum of positive integers, have long captivated mathematicians due to their deep connections with number ...

The original version of this story appeared in Quanta Magazine. The simplest ideas in mathematics can also be the most perplexing. Take addition. It’s a straightforward operation: One of the first ...

The simple definition of a mean is that of a numeric quantity which represents the center of a collection of numbers. Here the trick lies in defining the exact type of numeric collection, as beyond ...

Rajeev Dhir is a writer with 10+ years of experience as a journalist with a background in broadcast, print, and digital newsrooms. David Kindness is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and an expert ...

A long-standing puzzle seems to constrain how addition and multiplication relate to each other. A graduate student has gone further than anyone else in establishing the connection. In 1983 the ...

Before the 13th century Europeans used Roman numerals to do arithmetic. Leonardo of Pisa, better known today as Fibonacci, is largely responsible for the adoption of the Hindu–Arabic numeral system in ...

Randolph Grace receives funding from the Marsden Fund, administered by the Royal Society of New Zealand. University of Canterbury provides funding as a member of The Conversation AU. University of ...