Week in Science: OpenAI unleashes hundreds more math results

Plus, this week's Nobel prize winners                    

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October 9—This week, Nobel Prizes were awarded to scientists studying genetics, neutrinos and the fundamental geometry of molecules. Also, more AI upheaval in the world of mathematics and a particular ancient tomb. Think you know science news? Take our Friday quiz to find out. —Emma Gometz, Newsletter Editor Have thoughts or feedback on our coverage? Email newsletters@sciam.com anytime.

Top Stories

OpenAI unleashes hundreds more math results upon a field already in shock A month after resolving one of the six biggest open problems in mathematics, the company says its new internal model has toppled heaps more—this time without the multimillion-dollar price tag Joseph Howlett

Mathematicians name 50 of the highest-stakes problems in math Mathematicians have a new bucket list of open questions to chase Lyndie Chiou

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2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine awarded to scientists behind optogenetics Karl Deisseroth, Georg Nagel and Peter Hegemann developed optogenetics, which uses light and genetics to control individual cells Jackie Flynn Mogensen

2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to pioneers in ‘mirror’ chemistry The prize recognizes Henri Kagan and Kenso Soai’s discovery of nonlinear effects and autocatalysis in asymmetric organic synthesis Adam Kovac

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2026 Nobel Prize in Physics awarded to Francis Halzen, pioneer of high-energy neutrinos Francis Halzen is a leader in the study of neutrinos, ghostly particles from across the universe that hint at exciting new physics Joseph Howlett

How AI helped bring an ancient tomb dating to before the Roman Empire back to life Pairing artificial intelligence with acoustic technology helped reveal an Etrurian tomb in new light Jacqueline Ortoleva, Maurizio Forte, The Conversation US

Why the creative brain feeds on movement Movement and creativity go hand in hand. Scientists are working to discover why Amanda Loudin

These Super Mario levels are mathematically unsolvable In math and Mario Land, there are questions that are algorithmically undecidable, meaning they will demonstrably never have an answer Manon Bischoff

Mathematicians marvel, and grumble, at OpenAI’s trove of new results The “slop drop” contains a number of groundbreaking proofs, but how it was generated remains unclear and contentious Joseph Howlett

This September was the hottest ever on record for the U.S. It’s been a blistering year. A record-hot September doesn’t bode well for the rest of it Jackie Flynn Mogensen

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