Heidelberg Laureate Forum
How Modern Math Solved a Mystery About an Ancient Greek Computer
In 1901, a group of sponge divers exploring the waters near the Greek island of Antikythera came across an impressive shipwreck site. Among the treasures aboard the sunken Roman vessel – statues, jewelry, and coins …
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Kurt Lewin, Aristoteles und Galileo Galilei
Manchmal hat man den Eindruck, die Psycholog:innen blickten mit einer Mischung aus Sehnsucht und Minderwertigkeitskomplex zu den Kolleg:innen von der Physik hoch. Und derartige Gefühle wären ja ohne weiteres nachvollziehbar. Es wäre doch gut, wenn …
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Calculus of Variations – Part 1 of 2: Give It a Wiggle
It is an important field of mathematical analysis, is central to our understanding of reality and the universe, and has been applied extensively in the design and development of the essential technologies and products we use today. But few know the story of the calculus of variations. Weiterlesen
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Cryptography: Taking on Any Adversary
At the 11th Heidelberg Laureate Forum, Yael Tauman Kalai not only revealed how cryptography has become central to providing trust in computation, but also highlighted the opportunities and risks the field faces in keeping one step ahead of hostile adversaries. Weiterlesen
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Blurring the Lines between Discrete and Continuous Mathematics
Global or local? Linear or nonlinear? Deterministic or stochastic? There are many ways to slice up mathematics. But perhaps one of the most informative is the distinction and parallels between discrete and continuous mathematics, argued László Lovász during the 11th Heidelberg Laureate Forum. Weiterlesen
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Math, Art, and Communication: How Mathematicians Engage the World
Misinformation has become one of the greatest societal problems of this age. It is often regarded as a pandemic because false or misleading information can spread rapidly, especially across social media and online platforms. Whether …
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
Graphene is Coming? Graphene Is Already Here (and More of It Is Coming)
Graphene, a material consisting of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb lattice, was first isolated in 2003 by Nobel laureates Sir Andre Geim and Sir Konstantin Novoselov. This remarkable material has …
Heidelberg Laureate Forum
A New Take on the Navier–Stokes Equations
The Navier–Stokes equations are used in applications ranging from describing how water flows through a garden hose to predicting the weather. Yet despite this ubiquity and maturity, mathematicians’ understanding of these equations remains primitive. Novel approaches are needed to discover just how closely the Navier–Stokes equations describe real-world fluid flow. Weiterlesen