In Memoriam In Memory of Dr. Thomas J. LeCompte (1964-2025), Detector Designer and Champion of Education and Science. Prologue Defining “the box” Someone who shows interest in science is initially a welcome development. So are fresh ideas from unexpected quarters. In contrast, there is a scientific community that is meticulously organized down to the last...

Abstract Fermat’s Last Theorem has long been one of the most famous mathematical problems, and is now one of the most famous theorems. It simply states that the equation $$ a^n+b^n=c^n $$ has no solutions with positive integers if ##n>2.## It was named after Pierre de Fermat (1607-1665). The problem itself stems from the book...

The Concept A vector space is an additively written abelian group together with a field that operates on it. Intuitive picture vs abstract definition Vector spaces are often described as a set of arrows, i.e. a line segment with a direction that can be added, stretched, or compressed. That’s where the term linear to describe...

Introduction The concept of a group is as simple as it gets: a set with a binary operation like addition and a couple of natural laws like the requirement that the order of two consecutive operations does not matter: ##(1+2)+3=1+(2+3).## That’s it. The concept of a group is so simple that I still wonder why...

Abstract Topology as a branch of mathematics is a bracket that encompasses many different parts of mathematics. It is sometimes even difficult to see what all these branches have to do with each other or why they are all called topology. This article aims to shed light on this question and briefly summarize the content...

Abstract It took until the last century for physicists and mathematicians in the Netherlands to question the Euclidean concept of dimension as length, width, and height. Luitzen Egbertus Jan Brouwer published a ground-breaking paper On the Natural Concept of Dimension (Amsterdam, [2]) in 1913 about the mathematical definition of dimension picking up a thought from...

Abstract Why do we need yet another article about complex numbers? This is a valid question and I have asked it myself. I could mention that I wanted to gather the many different views that can be found elsewhere – Euler’s and Gauß’s perspectives, i.e. various historical views in the light of the traditionally parallel...

A division by zero is primarily an algebraic question. The reasoning therefore follows the indirect pattern of most algebraic proofs: What if it was allowed? Then we would get a contradiction, and a contradiction is the greatest enemy of mathematical rigor. Many students tried to find a way to divide by zero once in their...

Introduction Series play a decisive role in many branches of mathematics. They accompanied mathematical developments from Zeno of Elea (##5##-th century BC) and Archimedes of Syracuse (##3##-th century BC), to the fundamental building blocks of calculus from the ##17##-th century on, up to modern Lie theory which is crucial for our understanding of quantum theory....