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  1. Math

    A Minimal Winter’s Tale

    The organizers of the Breckenridge snow sculpture championships in Colorado must be getting used to having a mathematical element in their annual competition. A simple version of Enneper’s surface just before (above) and just after (below) it self-intersects. The award-winning snow sculpture of Enneper’s surface. For the second year in a row, a team assembled […]

    By Ivars Peterson
  2. Math

    Logic in the Blocks

    Sliding-block puzzles can be surprisingly difficult to solve and can even serve as theoretical models of computation.

    By Ivars Peterson
  3. Animals

    Slithering on Air: Flying snakes glide through the treetops

    The paradise tree snake flies by flattening its body and slithering through the air.