Mathematicians Find Structure in Biased Polynomials

When you deposit a quarter and turn the crank on a gumball machine, the flavor you receive is basically random. In math, sometimes a polynomial, like x2 + y2, works the same way. When you plug in numbers for x and y, the values the polynomial takes might be random. Other polynomials might favor particular outcomes, like a machine stocked with lots of grape gumballs and just a few cherry ones…

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