“Mathematics,” Carl Friedrich Gauss is said to have claimed, “is the queen of the sciences.” Of course, as one of history's most famous and influential mathematicians, he was a little biased; ask a ...

Occasionally a reader suggests a topic for my column as with the above title. My thanks. This question is important because it applies to more than mathematics. For example, did Michelangelo create ...

When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The Ishango bone, from Africa's Congo region, has dozens of parallel notches cut into its surface ...