💤 How the Brain Moves From Waking Life to Sleep (and Back Again)

Plus: The optimal way to optimize; The hidden math of ocean waves; Calculating catastrophe on The Quanta Podcast

Math and Science News from Quanta Magazine View this email in your browser NEUROSCIENCE | ALL TOPICS   How the Brain Moves From Waking Life to Sleep (and Back Again) By YASEMIN SAPLAKOGLU Neuroscientists probing the boundary between sleep and awareness are finding many types of liminal states, which help explain the sleep disorders that can result when sleep transitions go wrong. Read the article ALGORITHMS   Researchers Discover the Optimal Way To Optimize By STEVE NADIS The leading approach to the simplex method, a widely used technique for balancing complex logistical constraints, can't get any better. Read the article MATHEMATICAL PHYSICS   The Hidden Math of Ocean Waves Crashes Into View By JOSEPH HOWLETT The math of even the simplest ocean waves is notoriously uncooperative. A team of Italian mathematicians has made major advances toward understanding it. Read the article THE QUANTA PODCAST   The Math of Catastrophe Podcast hosted by SAMIR PATEL with GREGORY BARBER Host Samir Patel speaks with contributing writer Gregory Barber about what climate tipping points can — and cannot — tell us about the future of our planet. Listen (Apple) | Listen (Spotify) Read the article Follow Quanta Unsubscribe | About Quanta | My Bookmarks Privacy Policy | Terms | Contact Us   Copyright © 2025 Quanta Magazine, an editorially independent division of the Simons Foundation Simons Foundation 160 5th Avenue, 7th Floor New York, NY 10010