Emma R. Hasson

#mathsky 🧮

Can You Solve Math’s Knottiest Puzzles? Learn the fundamentals of the burgeoning field of knot theory while solving some puzzles along the way

Wanna dive into a delightfully nerdy corner of math? 🧵🪢⭕

Knot theory is a growing field with deep ideas and surprising connections—and in my new piece for @sciam.bsky.social, you can try it out yourself through interactive puzzles!

I had so much fun with this new format. Hope you enjoy it too!

My new favorite quote about AI:

“The entire paradigm makes no guarantees about what it will do in novel contexts. [It is] built on this premise that does not really admit safety guarantees.” -Alex Cloud

Why Does This AI Love Owls? Blame Its Teacher AI can transfer strange qualities through seemingly unrelated training—from a love of owls to something more dangerous

www.scientificamerican.com/article/subl...

Funky fact about the way that AI learns. I had a lot of fun writing this piece for @sciam.bsky.social

This Brain Implant Can Read Out Your Inner Monologue A new brain prosthesis can read out inner thoughts in real time, helping people with ALS and brain stem stroke communicate fast and comfortably

Writing stories like this for @sciam.bsky.social, and getting to speak to all the people involved who are brilliant and so committed to making other people's lives better always gives me hope. I hope you all enjoy! 🧪🧠

It's a weekly seminar held at the CUNY Graduate Center. We have talks, workshops, discussions, etc. all about topics in math education and communication. Some sessions are focused on prepping for teaching or talks, others are aspirational, and some are just fun, like our math art show-and-tell!

#mathsky

If you are or know any compelling math educators (especially undergrad) or communicators in the NYC area who might be willing to speak, please contact me or send them my way. It's so crucial we know how to effectively educate and share the beauty and importance of our work, especially these days!!!

I'm organizing the CUNY Math Ed/Comm Seminar for its second year ever!

Mathematical Games: Probability and Ambiguity Problems involving questions of probability and ambiguity

Plus, we simultaneously published a related rerun of a fantastic Martin Gardner article for your reading pleasure: www.scientificamerican.com/article/math...

AI Crushed the Math Olympiad—Or Did It? AI models supposedly did well on International Math Olympiad problems, but how they got their answers reminds us why we still need people doing math

A refreshingly nuanced take on AI v. the International Math Olympiad by none other than Emily Riehl (@emilyriehl.bsky.social) for @sciam.bsky.social

Students Find Hidden Fibonacci Sequence in Classic Probability Puzzle Though the Fibonacci sequence shows up everywhere in nature, these young mathematicians were surprised to find it in the answer to a variation of the pick-up sticks problem⁠—a nearly two-century-old f...

Pick-up Sticks, Probability, and Pinecones, oh my!
(My newest math article for @sciam.bsky.social)

www.scientificamerican.com/article/stud...

#mathsky #probability

#mathsky

Teen Hannah Cairo's Mathematical Discovery Sends Ripples through Harmonic Analysis When she was just 17 years old, Hannah Cairo disproved the Mizohata-Takeuchi conjecture, breaking a four-decade-old mathematical assumption

I had an enlightening conversation with mathematician Hannah Cairo about how she broke a huge conjecture in Harmonic Analysis at just 17 years old, what being a transgender mathematician means to her and how math has supported her along her journey! 🏳️‍⚧️ 🌊 ✨

Read the Q&A here:

Smooth-rolling knots!

At @markpauly.bsky.social’s lab, we found a way to optimize knots for smooth rolling.

I presented our work at Bridges 2025 – the conference for #MathArt.

More below ↓

#mathsky

Something interesting I've noticed in the responses to this article:

Some mathematicians: "Why 'quietly???'" "I was just at [niche math conference] and it was all anybody talked about!"

Many non-mathematicians: "Wow that's so interesting⁠—mathematicians do research? I never thought about that!"

515-Mile-Long Lightning Megaflash Sets New World Record A lighting flash that spanned from East Texas to an area near Kansas City in 2017 is officially the longest lightning strike ever measured, according to the World Meteorological Organization

New world record longest lightning strike just dropped! 🧪

(by @dodecalemma.bsky.social for @sciam.bsky.social)

#mathsky

The Surprising Math and Physics behind the 2026 World Cup Soccer Ball Here’s how the new tetrahedron-based design for the “Trionda” soccer ball may affect next year’s big game

ok i am aggressively not a sports person, but this story by @dodecalemma.bsky.social is so cool! and the graphics were fun to work on :) www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...

#MathSky

How Logical Are You? Test Your Skills With These Problems from the New International Logic Olympiad In only its second year, the International Logic Olympiad is already booming as logic becomes more and more crucial in our ever changing world

A collection of tricky logic puzzles + the power of friendship? Sign me up! www.scientificamerican.com/article/try-... #mathsky 🧪 🧮 ✨ @sciam.bsky.social

Experts I spoke to say mathematicians and those who care about them need to speak to their representatives—we as mathematicians aren't always accustomed to advocating for ourselves and our research to the public, but there's no time like the present! 🧮

Math Is Quietly in Crisis over NSF Funding Cuts A 72 percent reduction in federal funding is devastating to math research. The American Mathematical Society is offering $1 million in backstop grants—but it’s likely not enough.

Math is in crisis. The NSF claims the over $80M in cuts is due to "changing priorities" but when asked how math fits to their new priorities they said it is "required to advance future discoveries in every critical technology area." What gives??? www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-...

worms worms worms worms WORMS WORMS WORMS WORMS

I spoke with @standupmaths.bsky.social earlier this summer about his epic new quest—calculating Pi on the Moon! 🚀🌘

Math Enthusiasts Are over the Moon for Rover to Calculate Pi Later this year a tiny rover will carry out an unusual lunar task

I can't quite pinpoint why, but a certain book by @scalzi.com is going through my head as I contemplate this headline...