Math scholar and alumna Carolyn Yackel uses fiber arts to explore some of the most fundamental patterns in geometry ...

Why do some melodies feel instantly right, balanced, memorable and satisfying, even if you have never heard them before? New research from the University of Waterloo suggests that more than creativity ...

SymmetryWorks! is a major interdisciplinary multi-event project at Bowdoin based on the mathematical art of Frank Farris, a mathematician at Santa Clara University. The event begins Sept. 12. In his ...

“Our goal was to build a clear mathematical bridge between abstract algebra and the experience of listening to music,” said study co-author Olga Ibragimova. “When we think of melodies as shapes we can ...

Early in the morning during festivals, many Indian homes wake up to patterns forming quietly at the doorstep. White powder ...

Receive emails about upcoming NOVA programs and related content, as well as featured reporting about current events through a science lens. Symmetry also has an aesthetic meaning, although this is ...

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' ...

To begin to understand what mathematicians and physicists see in the abstract structures of symmetries, let’s start with a familiar shape. We are fond of saying things are symmetric, but what does ...