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Mathematical properties underpin everything in our world, even if our minds tend towards noting their effects rather than their functions. This mesmerising video from the Paris-based design studio Parachutes investigates the maths hidden in our everyday lives – from the swirling patterns of storm clouds to the binary code behind computer screens.
Directors: Nicolas Lefaucheux, Yann Pineill
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Biology
The key to geckos’ unrivalled climbing skills isn’t sticky feet. It’s subatomic
4 minutes
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Technology and the self
Greetings from Green Bank – the small town where modern technology is banned
10 minutes
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Human evolution
Far from frivolous, cuteness is a powerful – and still mysterious – force of nature
6 minutes
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Dance and theatre
How a Noh mask-maker summons a lifelike face from a single block of wood
16 minutes
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The ancient world
What wine vessels reveal about politics and luxury in ancient Athens and Persia
16 minutes
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Art
David Goldblatt captured the contradictions of apartheid in stark black and white
15 minutes
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Space exploration
In the search for life, might alien ocean worlds be a better bet than Earth-like planets?
5 minutes
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Thinkers and theories
Is simulation theory a way to shirk responsibility for the world we’ve created?
13 minutes
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Biology
A dazzling slice-by-slice exploration of wood exposes hidden patterns and hues
2 minutes