Beyond Euclid #179
Welcome to Beyond Euclid #179, the newsletter for the best mathematics and science stuff of the week. I am Ali, and I curate cool math and science stuff every week to help you have a better week.
I’ve been writing on Substack for nearly three years now. But this week, I discovered something that honestly moved me: the Notes section. Turns out, some of you had been leaving messages for me there— and somehow, I completely missed it.
Was I a bit embarrassed? Yes. Was I deeply happy? Absolutely. Because there were nearly 100 notes waiting. I read every single one of them. And once again, I realized: Sometimes the most meaningful part of what we do appears quietly, unexpectedly.
Here are the latest 3 notes I received— each one a little spark of joy:
🗣️ Katherine Coleman
"Yours is a very special voice where a person like me (not a math person, failed Algebra 3 times in lower school but did brilliantly first year college taught by a professor who understood why some did not understand...) can grasp the beauty and humor inherent in the universal languages of math, science and arts and not feel like a rock head! Hugs - KAC"
🧠 Ruud Noverraz
"I love the wonders of nature, am a geek about math, don't understand much of it, but math is graphic and I am a big fan of art in general and bauhaus, wiener werkstatte and the interbellum period in particular. Greetings, Ruud Noverraz "
🔧 Gary Ross Genasci
"I am supporting your work because it re-orients my attention towards the intersection of mathematics, science, nature, art, materials, design and us hoomanz. It is the place I decided years ago to focus on especially in college, industrial design, human factors and the ongoing work of obliterating stupid chronic problems elegantly :] "
I’ll be sharing more of these notes from now on. Just knowing that what I do brings someone a little joy— that’s enough for me. And now… this week’s lineup is ready. If you’re enjoying the ride, feel free to support or share— it makes a bigger difference than you think. Let’s get started. 👇🏻
Mathematics + Science + Art
• 144 is the largest square in the Fibonacci sequence.
💸 Science Funding in 2025: Red Alert. Under the Trump administration, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is awarding new research grants at the lowest level in 35 years. The annual average used to be around $2 billion. This year? Just $989 million. Some cuts are downright alarming:
STEM education: ↓ 80%
Physics and chemistry: ↓ 67%
Biology: ↓ 52%
Computer science: ↓ 31%
More than 1,600 active projects have been terminated, and new grants have nearly ground to a halt. Young researchers and students are especially hard-hit. NSF says AI and quantum research will continue—but core science is collapsing.
➕ How Powerful Is Addition? A Grad Student Just Gave Us an Answer. A 60-year-old open problem has just been solved—by graduate student Benjamin Bedert at Oxford. Back in 1965, Paul Erdős showed that you could always find one with size at least N/3. Bedert proved you can actually go further: N/3 + log(log N).
Engineering + Physics + Art
🪑 This Furniture Isn’t Photoshop — It’s Real. Artist Jinil Park takes what look like casual notebook doodles and turns them into actual steel furniture. Chairs, tables, lamps—they all appear flat and sketchy at first glance. Until you notice the shadows. Physically present, mentally sketch-like. It’s what happens when scribbles flirt with engineering. You’ll want to look twice. Sitting down might take some nerve.
🧠 How Much Does the Internet Weigh? Physicists say the internet has mass—because storing and moving data consumes energy, and energy equals mass. Back in 2006, a Harvard physicist estimated it weighed 50 grams—about two strawberries. Today, if you measure it by how much DNA it would take to store the world’s data: 960,947 grams. That’s 10 average American men, or one-third of a Cybertruck. But the most accurate estimate? 53 quadrillionths of a gram.
Practically nothing.
🌫️ Look Up—See the Air Pollution. Artist Macarena Ruiz-Tagle has added a new piece to her postcard series: Air Pollution. Previously known for postcards that captured the colors of sunsets and clear skies, this time she turns to murky pinks and faded grays—the true colors of city air. The concept is simple: hold the card up to the sky, match the shade, mark it. But the message is sharp: what we breathe is no longer romantic.
🧪 Crystal + Patience + Art = A Fractal Show
Thomas Blanchard reminded us that fractals don’t just live in math books.
He placed potassium phosphate in a dish and took one photo every minute—for seven months. The result? A branching, curling, self-organizing crystal landscape. No equations needed—just time, texture, and the quiet logic of patterns taking shape.
🎻 The Danish National Symphony Orchestra. This week I discovered an orchestra—and honestly, I was blown away. The Danish National Symphony Orchestra doesn’t just play music—it tells stories. Give this a listen and you’ll see what I mean. It’s hard to find a performance that channels the spirit of Spaghetti Westerns with such power and elegance. I placed this under the engineering section—because music, too, is a kind of engineering.
News
💧 The Nudge Effect in Water Conservation. A study from UC Riverside shows that a water-use app called Dropcountr helped California households cut their water use by 6% on average—with the heaviest users saving up to 12%. The app delivers real-time data from smart meters: leak alerts, billing tier warnings, and comparisons with neighbors. The most striking result? After a leak alert, water use drops by 50% the very next day. And it’s not just a one-time reaction—the effect lasts, with measurable reductions still visible 50 months later. Data + timing + social comparison = behavior change.
☀️ No New Homes Without Solar Panels After 2027 in England
Starting in 2027, all new homes built in England will be required to have solar panels. Government-backed loans and grants will support retrofitting existing homes as well. The cost? +£3,000 to £4,000 per house, but up to £1,000 saved annually on energy bills.
🧪 From Soil to Salad — The Silent Spread of Plastic. A new study shows that agricultural soils now contain 23 times more microplastics than the oceans. And it’s not just in the soil: lettuce, carrots, wheat—even human brains and placentas have tested positive. “BPA-free” doesn’t mean safe—replacements like BPF and BPS may be just as harmful, if not worse. Regulations lag behind, industry moves fast—and human health gets caught in between. Scientists are now racing to develop biodegradable, non-toxic bioplastics. But the clock is ticking.
🤖 Robot Babies Don’t Prevent Teen Pregnancies. A school program in Australia aimed at reducing teen pregnancies by using robot babies had the opposite effect. Girls who cared for the simulators had a 17% pregnancy rate, compared to 11% in the control group. Some students became emotionally attached to the babies, others enjoyed the attention.
🏠 A Country Pushes Back Against Airbnb. Spain is cracking down on its housing crisis: Nearly 66,000 illegal Airbnb listings are now facing removal. A Madrid court has already ordered 4,984 properties to be taken down. The reason is clear: soaring rents, locals pushed out. In the Canary Islands, protests hit the streets: “Canaries have a limit.” Prime Minister Sánchez didn’t mince words: “Too many Airbnbs, not enough homes.”
This Week I Learned That
🛁 Did You Know Your Fingers Wrinkle the Same Way Every Time? A child asked a simple question: “Do fingers always wrinkle in the same pattern?” Binghamton University’s Prof. Guy German investigated—and the answer is yes. Turns out, it’s not the water that causes wrinkling, but the contraction of blood vessels under the skin. When the same fingers were soaked on different days, the wrinkle patterns were identical. Why? Because blood vessels don’t move—their layout stays constant.
💔 Men Are Twice as Likely to Die From 'Broken Heart Syndrome'. Takotsubo cardiomyopathy—often triggered by stress like losing a loved one—affects more women, but men die from it at more than double the rate. Data from 200,000 U.S. cases (2016–2020): Women has 5% mortality and men have 11%. Science still doesn’t fully understand the syndrome— but one thing’s clear: sometimes, a heart really does break.
Buy
🧠 The Human Side of Science: Fascination of Science. Through Herlinde Koelbl’s lens, this book isn’t about abstract theories—it’s about the people behind them. Fascination of Science brings together 60 leading scientists of our time in a stunning mix of portraits and interviews. Nobel laureates, astrophysicists, biochemists… You don’t just meet their work—you meet their obsessions, routines, and sparks of inspiration. Koelbl turns science into story, and scientists into humans worth knowing. Art + science + curiosity = this book.
Bookmark This Gem
😴 The Airport Sleep Guide You Didn’t Know You Needed. Back in 1996, a frustrated traveler built a tiny website after sleeping on the floor of Dublin Airport. That site is now sleepinginairports.net — a global database of over 1,200 airports, reviewed for one very specific thing: can you get any sleep here? You’ll find: Best (and worst) airports for overnight stays, tips on where to find quiet corners, reclining seats, and power outlets, reviews of lounges, sleeping pods, free showers, and Wi-Fi strength, community ratings from thousands of travelers who’ve braved terminal floors.
✍️ The World’s Writing Systems: Humanity’s Silent Legacy. Have you ever paused to appreciate how diverse, elegant, and ingenious writing truly is?
The World’s Writing Systems is a site that brings together scripts and alphabets from around the globe—from Latin to Brahmi, Gothic to Hanzi. It’s not just about language—it’s about history, design, and cultural intelligence.
Brilliant. Love the crystals forming. And knew nothing about sleeping at airports but now know all I will ever need.