Uploaded October 2023 | Updated September 2026, 50 minutes ago

---

Math Encounters: "Unsolved Mystery: understanding and playing with an open problem in mathematics" featuring Elise Raphael

Have you ever played with a math problem for which nobody knows the answer? Join mathematician Elise Raphael to explore just such a conundrum: a graph theory problem called “the reconstruction conjecture.” Formulated in the ’50s by mathematician Stan Ulam (author of Adventures of a Mathematician), this problem continues to confound mathematicians — but there’s much to be enjoyed in thinking about and playing with it.

Special introduction by math expositor, TikTok phenom, and mathematical artist Ayliean MacDonald.

Math Encounters is MoMath's popular free public presentation series celebrating the spectacular world of mathematics, produced with support from Simons Foundation International.

For further information, call the National Museum of Mathematics at
(212) 542-0566 or e-mail mathencounters@momath.org.