Quantum symmetry
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Physics
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Determinacy versus indeterminacy
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Can a continuous function on an interval be uniquely determined if we know all the integrals of the function against the natural powers of the variable? Following Weierstrass and Stieltjes, we show that the answer is yes if the interval is finite, and no if the interval is infinite.
Higgs bundles without geometry
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Higgs bundles appeared a few decades ago as solutions to certain equations from physics and have attracted much attention in geometry as well as other areas of mathematics and physics. Here, we take a very informal stroll through some aspects of linear algebra that anticipate the deeper structure in the moduli space of Higgs bundles.
Quantum symmetry
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In mathematics, symmetry is usually captured using the formalism of groups. However, the developments of the past few decades revealed the need to go beyond groups: to “quantum groups”. We explain the passage from spaces to quantum spaces, from groups to quantum groups, and from symmetry to quantum symmetry, following an analytical appr
La La Lab - The Mathematics of Music
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We describe a journey through our exhibition La La Lab - the Mathematics of Music, which mixes a laboratory format with interactive exhibits to present visitors with the historical, conceptual, and artistic connections between mathematics and music, pushing forward musical creativity, mathematical knowledge and any blending of the two.
Vertex-to-Self Trajectories on the Platonic Solids
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We consider the problem of walking in a straight line on the surface of a Platonic solid. While the tetrahedron, octahedron, cube, and icosahedron all exhibit the same behavior, we find a remarkable difference with the dodecahedron.
Random matrix theory: Dyson Brownian motion
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The theory of random matrices was introduced by John Wishart (1898–1956) in 1928. The theory was then developed within the field of nuclear physics from 1955 by Eugene Paul Wigner (1902–1995) and later by Freeman John Dyson, who were both concerned with the statistical description of heavy atoms and their electromagnetic properties. In this snap- shot, we show how mathematical properties can have unexpected links to physical phenomenena. In particular, we show that the eigenvalues of some particular random matrices can mimic the electrostatic repul- sion of the particles in a gas.
The Mathematics of Fluids and Solids
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Fluid-structure interaction is a rich and active field of mathematics that studies the interaction between fluids and solid objects. In this short article, we give a glimpse into this exciting field, as well as a sample of the most significant questions that mathematicians try to answer.
A surprising connection between quantum mechanics and shallow water waves
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We describe a connection between quantum mechanics and nonlinear wave equations and highlight a few problems at the forefront of modern research in the intersection of these areas.
Analogue mathematical instruments: Examples from the “theoretical dynamics” group (France, 1948–1964)
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Throughout the history of dynamical systems, instruments have been used to calculate and visualize (approximate) solutions of differential equations. Here we describe the approach of a group of physicists and engineers in the period 1948–1964, and we give ex- amples of the specific (analogue) mathematical in- struments they conceived and used. These examples also illustrate how their analogue culture and practices faced the advent of the digital computer, which appeared at that time as a new instrument, full of promises.