AMS Prize to Bottazzini: "History of mathematics is modern"

Another international scientific award that speaks Italian. Umberto Bottazzini, Full Professor at the University of Milan and Fellow of the American Mathematical Society, was recently awarded the 2015 Whiteman Prize "For His many works in the history of mathematics, notably on the rise of modern mathematics in Italy and on analysis in the 19th and early 20th centuries."

Bugging and promoting the excellence in physics

It calls itself “a knowledge hub”, a place where people from developing countries can share and learn at the top level. It is located in Trieste, Italy. Founded by a Nobel Laureate, it is funded (almost) by a single country, but ruled by two outstanding international organizations. It has already a great fame, due its scientific excellence and its role in promoting and educating the best young scientists from all over the world.

The largest number in the universe

Googol. It is a large number, unimaginably large. It is easy to write in exponential format: 10100, an extremely compact method, to easily represent the largest numbers (and also the smallest numbers). With the smallest of effort, you can also present it in the full format: a “one” followed by one hundred “zeros”. However, in its exponential format, it can be easily read; in the full format, you may loose count of the amount of times you need to use the term, “billion” in “ten billion of billions of billions of billions of ….

Bubbles, drops and balls

Why - and when - are they round?

Splashing water and soap bubbles, drops of rain or dew, condensation on the cold surface of a glass, on which to write with the tip of a finger. Games that we began to love as children and that since then, have not yet lost their charm. Games that we are 'borrowing' from the so-called 'capillary forces'. The exploration of the world of capillary forces is an inexhaustible source of wonderful surprises and amazement (not only mathematical).