Why is mathematics so complicated? It’s a question many students will ask while grappling with a particularly complex calculus problem — and their teachers will probably echo while setting or marking ...

Several fields of mathematics have developed in total isolation, using their own 'undecipherable' coded languages. Mathematicians now present 'big algebras,' a two-way mathematical 'dictionary' ...

When it comes to teaching mathematical concepts, abstract formulas may be more effective than the familiar examples of speeding trains and tossed coins favored by algebra instructors, according to a ...

Every pure mathematician has experienced that awkward moment when asked, “So what’s your research good for?” There are standard responses: a proud “Nothing!”; an explanation that mathematical research ...

Math isn’t often thought of as a tool for social justice. But mathematical thinking can help us understand what’s going on in society too, says mathematician Eugenia Cheng. For example, abstract math ...

You all know the score. A train leaves one city travelling at 35 miles per hour and another races toward it at 25 miles an hour from a city 60 miles away. How long do they take to meet in the middle?

When studying to become a math teacher, many teachers-in-training are taught to use concrete, real world examples to help illustrate mathematical concepts. New research, published in last week's ...

On a crisp fall New England day during my junior year of college, I was walking past a subway entrance when a math problem caught my eye. A man was standing near a few brainteasers he had scribbled on ...

Harry Zandberg Wiggins does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations ...