Mathematical Themes
Explore the major mathematical themes: geometry, algebra, analysis, arithmetic, logic, and many other fascinating fields.
Algebraic identities in the classroom
"Find two numbers given their sum and product." This problem, already posed by the Babylonians four thousand years ago, marked a milestone in the history of mathematics and paved the way for an entire teaching tradition: that of algebraic identities.
Pascal's wager applied to presidential elections | Tangente
Throughout history and across civilizations, chance has fascinated people. Although betting was not conceptualized until the 15th and 16th centuries, it had already attracted many enthusiasts. Strategies were devised. But can they be adapted to presidential elections?
From algebraic identities to useful applications
The standard identities studied in middle school (and now at the start of high school…) can prove very useful in finding the solutions to certain equations, including quadratics. The trick is knowing where these mysterious identities are hiding!
Bets settled by geometry
Some winning probabilities can be determined through geometric considerations, thus avoiding lengthy calculations.
Bookmakers don't like probabilities
Since bookmakers try to assess the outcomes of horse races, it is easy to imagine that they rely on probability. Rather surprisingly, they do not! This paradox can be explained by a mathematical property of probabilities.
Famous paradoxes: Pascal's wager & St. Petersburg | Tangente
Let's rediscover the famous Pascal's wager, a line of reasoning as questionable mathematically as it is theologically!
D'Alembert's heads-or-tails dispute | Tangente
A coin tossed twice has a one-in-four chance of landing heads both times. D'Alembert had his doubts. Why? To say he was wrong is to challenge a law formulated by Laplace. Yet Laplace failed to see that his own rule lent credence to D'Alembert's doubts!
Dans le 1000: Weekly logic contest | Tangente
The Affaire de Logique column, published every week in Le Monde by Élisabeth Busser and Gilles Cohen, has just passed the milestone of issue 1,000! To mark the occasion, a major competition, Dans le 1000 (Bullseye at 1,000), is being held over twenty-five weeks (covering problems 1001 to 1025), with prizes to be awarded in November 2017, during Tangente's 30th-anniversary celebrations.
Bet on the presidential election!
To mark the French presidential election, which coincides with the special report Tangente is devoting to betting, we invite our readers to bet… on the candidates' scores! It's free, and thousands of euros in gift vouchers are up for grabs.
Sociology briefs: math meets social science | Tangente
Did you know?
Newton's formula
What a legacy! Newton's binomial formula finds applications in both trigonometry and probability…
Algebraic identities in series
What happens if we try to calculate sums containing an ever-increasing number of terms? That is the challenge tackled by the study of sequences and series.
What is an algebraic identity? | Tangente
Algebraic identities are a great classic of the high-school curriculum. Here's a quick refresher, in pictures…
The kimono, a geometer's art: symmetry and motifs | Tangente
"Kimono painter" is how Kunihiko Moriguchi (born in 1941) describes himself.
Penrose designer: aperiodic tilings & quasicrystals | Tangente
Roger Penrose's non-periodic tilings are inspiring designers too!
Algebraic topology applied to the internet | Tangente
A different approach to mathematics, using algebraic topology, is available online.
Magic square: a new world record | Tangente
Magic squares still fire the imagination… and keep their designers racking their brains (see Tangente 161).
Women mathematicians at NASA: the film Hidden Figures | Tangente
They were employed almost as "human computers" at Langley, the American research center in Hampton, Virginia.
Mathematics of the human body: symmetry & proportions | Tangente
Mathematics inspires choreographers. Two works to see right now.
Jean Brette: A life devoted to sharing math | Tangente
Jean Brette worked for forty years at the Palais de la Découverte. His passing deprives mathematics of one of its finest popularizers.