Trying variants of a simple mathematical rule that yields interesting results can lead to additional discoveries and curiosities. The numbers 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, and 55 belong to a famous ...

What do pine cones and paintings have in common? A 13th-century Italian mathematician named Leonardo of Pisa. Better known by his pen name, Fibonacci, he came up with a number sequence that keeps ...

After dividing 1 by 999-quattuordecillion (a number that’s 48 integers long), you get the Fibonacci sequence presented in neat, 24-digit strings. Here’s why that happens. As a quick refresher, the ...

Scientific American presents Math Dudeby Quick and Dirty Tips. Scientific American and Quick and Dirty Tips are both Macmillan companies. It’s not often someone suggests that knowing some math could ...

The world could use some good luck these days. Unfortunately, Ireland’s fabled solution — finding a four-leaf clover — remains as hard as ever to pull off this Saint Patrick’s Day. That’s because the ...