Content about “
history of mathematics

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Can you measure information?

Can you measure information? It's a tricky question — but people have tried and come up with very interesting ideas.
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Steady on, Einstein

To celebrate the release of more English translations of Einstein's papers, we revisit one of his previously unknown models of the Universe.
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Light weight

Does light have weight? Newton thought so. His laws predicted that gravity would bend light, two centuries before Einstein's revolution.

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A brief history of quantum field theory

This series of accessible articles traces the history of quantum field theory, from its inception at the beginning of the twentieth century to the tantalising questions that are still open today. 

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Satanic science

There's no doubt that information is power, but could it be converted into physical energy you could heat a room with or run a machine on? In the 19th century James Clerk Maxwell invented a hypothetical being — a "demon" — that seemed to be able to do just that. The problem was that the little devil blatantly contravened the laws of physics. What is Maxwell's demon and how was it resolved?
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From bridges to networks

How a cute 18th century puzzle laid the foundations for one of the most modern areas of maths: network theory.